Grease is one of the most typical ways to catch fire in the kitchen. Whenever you talk about grease, most people always first think about the kitchen grease. But do you know there are also different types of grease, and their uses are also distinct?
For instance: lithium grease, aluminum complex grease or sodium grease, etc. And these types of grease have some useful properties, such as preventing leaking and having sealing properties.
Most of the firefighters are dealing with the accident caused by the grease very often. And pyro people are learning the method of the flammability of many components in various ways.
Basically, I’m going to talk about the flammability of the grease. I think you already have some idea about the grease and many of the inexperienced firefighters and pyro people wanted to know is grease flammable?
It has no specific reason as it depends on the changes in the temperatures. Generally, grease is combustible, but it can also be flammable under certain conditions. For example, it will be Flammable when you keep this in sparks or an open flame.
Also Read: Check out our other article about Is White Petroleum Jelly Flammable?
Is the grease from the grease spell flammable?
No, grease from the grease spell is not flammable. It is combustible but not all types of grease. Grease will be flammable at a minimum of 100 degrees Fahrenheit, but it is not always the same case.
Is grease combustible or flammable?
Grease is combustible when the temperature is at or above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. And the residue of grease is 700 degrees Fahrenheit. Therefore, it can be considered a fire hazard when it catches fire when cooking and is not aware of the heating system and time.
It is regarded as combustible because most of the grease is composed of flammable components such as hydrocarbon-based synthetic fluid or Petroleum derived mineral oils (lubricating grease)
Why is grease flammable?
Grease becomes flammable when the temperature of the oil is extremely hot. First, it will produce smoke, and suddenly it will BOOM!!! So I think cooking grease is the most flammable as well as combustible. But as I have already said, if it needs to be explosive, it must meet temperatures in which it becomes explosive.
What is the flashpoint of grease?
As I have already given some examples of grease, you now know that there are various kinds of grease. For this reason, the flashpoint can vary according to the components of the grease. However, in general, the temperature of the grease is between 572 to 626 degrees Fahrenheit.
Is axle grease flammable?
Axle grease is mainly made of tallow or linseed oil. These components are not explosive as the flashpoint is 509 degrees Fahrenheit which makes it combustible. Axle grease is a combustible solid. It releases black smoke when the heat is applied for decomposition.
Can grease be set on fire?
Yes, grease can set on fire violently and spread fire rapidly, burning everything in your kitchen room, and horrible accidents can happen. You should be very careful while cooking or doing any work related to fire because any accident can occur even if you are attentive.
Sometimes, kitchen fire causes heavy damage because of grease, which almost makes the wall, floor, or kitchen objects or utensils unimaginably black like charcoal.
Only just you can see at that moment is- FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!
Also Read: Does Original Leather Catch Fire?
Is it safe to burn grease?
It is not safe to burn grease because it scatters fire speedily and damages surroundings due to the excessive heat, which takes only a few seconds to ruin the kitchen and kill you. This can result in a catastrophic situation that is potentially dangerous, and sometimes the situation becomes out of control. However, there are some precautions you can follow. They are:
- Whenever you see something burning or fire, your mind always pops up to use water to extinguish it but do you know if you throw or splash water on the grease fire, what will happen?- Water will make it WORSE because drops of water will spread the fire, and the fire will contact the wall, which will catch fire in your whole kitchen room.
- It will be better if you don’t use any powdered particles because flour is extremely explosive. I have already told you about the flammability of the flour or powdered particles in my previous article.
If you are interested to know, you can visit my homepage. All the powdered particles are explosive except baking soda. So you can use baking soda to extinguish the fire from the grease.
- Always clean the materials which might create grease and keep the wooden-made materials away from the fire.
- Always keep the fire extinguisher at your home or office because you never know where the grease is clinged. For minor mistakes, everything can burn and cause accidents.
- If the grease fire increases and you are not understanding what to do , just leave the room and call fire rescuers immediately.
Is cooking oil flammable?
Cooking oil is not methodologically flammable, but it will catch fire if it makes contact with something flammable. For example, suppose the temperature of oil has a low flashpoint which is less than 199.4 degrees Fahrenheit. In that case, it will be considered flammable.
According to the study by OSHA, if the temperature is at or above 199.4 degrees Fahrenheit, it will be considered explosive. In addition, due to grease blockage, oil catches fire.
Oil is flammable because it has compounds that contain carbon, designed to store chemical energy. However, some of the oil is not explosive such as silicone oils, because it can not produce vapors for the ignition if the temperature is below 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
However, various types of edible oil are used for cooking. For instance:
- Coconut oil
- Vegetable oil(approximately 600 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Peanut oil(450 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Soybean oil(450 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Corn oil(410 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Sesame seed oil(410 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Sunflower oil(450 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Grapeseed oil(445 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Olive oil(410 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Canola oil (435 degrees Fahrenheit)
Among all these oils, coconut oil is the most flammable oil for cooking. The flashpoint of this oil is nearly 563 degrees Fahrenheit and 385 degrees Fahrenheit is the smoke point of the coconut oil.
See Also: Is Canola Oil Highly Flammable?
Is there any difference between grease and oil?
Grease and oil are like good friends. To make oil thicker and useful, grease is mixed with oil. Most of you might get confused about the oil and grease, and you may not have a clear idea about the differences. So you must be thinking: Is there any difference between the oil and grease?
Grease:
- It is solid at room temperature
- It has a thick consistency
- It can not be used as edible oil and on your skin or hairs.
Oil:
- It is liquid at room temperature
- It has a slippery consistency
- It can be used for cooking and also for every part of your body.
Conclusion
So, grease has higher flammability. Therefore, you should be more careful while handling greasy materials in the vicinity of higher temperatures, sparks, and fire. Be safe! Keep others Safe!
