Grease fires are different than other types of fires in that they cannot be extinguished with water.
In fact, throwing water on a grease fire can actually amplify it, as well as increasing your risk of serious burns.
It is important to know how to prevent grease fires and to know how to put them out if you ever encounter one in the kitchen.
To prevent grease fires, always keep supervise your pots and pans on the stove.
Grease fires occur when the temperature of grease in a pan rises to extreme levels, usually when the pan has been forgotten on the stove as the cook becomes busy with other duties.
For this reason, grease fires are often far out of control by the time they are actually discovered.
If you discover a grease fire, the first thing to remember is to never throw water on it.
Since we have been taught from a young age to extinguish fires with water, this may seem counter-intuitive.
However, since oil and water do not mix, throwing water onto the fire can actually splatter the grease and cause serious and life-threatening burns.
Additionally, the quick evaporation of the water when it hits the high-temperature grease can cause a small explosion and increase the intensity of the fire.
The next step is to evaluate the size of the fire.
If the fire is beyond control, exit the building immediately and call the fire department for assistance.
If the fire is still contained in a pan, turn off the heat underneath the pan to being the cooling process and place a lid on the pan to contain it.
Do not try to move the pan since this action can cause serious burns.
After twenty minutes, you may lift the lid to be sure that the fire has been extinguished.
Lifting the lid when the grease is still too hot can cause the fire to reignite with the new surge of oxygen.
If you do not have a lid for the pan, you can also extinguish the fire using a damp-- not wet-- towel.
First turn off the heat, and then place the damp towel over the pan, just like a lid.
The dampness keeps the towel from burning, but too much water can cause the fire to intensify.
You can also extinguish the fire using a significant amount of baking soda.
Turn off the heat and pour the baking soda over the fire to smother it.
Make sure you use baking soda rather than other similar kitchen powders, such as sugar or flour.
Sugar and flour will each ignite and explode upon contact, intensifying the fire.
Because of the large amount of baking soda required and the ease of confusing baking soda with another kitchen ingredient, it is better to extinguish the fire using other means.
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