Fire Extinguisher Cabinets

Fire extinguisher cabinets house and protect a portable extinguisher and, where a public space calls for it, deter tampering or shield the unit from weather. Choose by how the cabinet mounts, whether the wall is fire-rated, and whether your extinguisher's cylinder fits the tub depth. For the full walkthrough, see our Fire Extinguisher Cabinet Selection Guide.

Mounting. Fully-recessed and trimless cabinets sit inside the wall for the cleanest look and least projection; semi-recessed is the general-purpose default in a standard stud wall; surface-mount bolts to the wall face for masonry, thin walls, and rated walls you don't want to cut into. In an occupied corridor, a recessed or semi-recessed cabinet stays within the ADA 4-inch projection limit.

Fire-rated walls. Recessing a cabinet into a 1- or 2-hour fire-rated wall calls for a fire-rated cabinet (tested to ASTM E814) to preserve the wall's rating — or surface-mount a standard cabinet, which doesn't open a recess.

Fit. A cabinet is sized by the extinguisher's cylinder diameter against the interior (tub) depth, not by weight. A 5 lb unit fits a 5 or 10 lb cabinet; a standard 10 lb needs a 10 lb cabinet; wide "short" 10 lb and 20 lb units need a deeper tub. Match the cabinet to the measured cylinder.

Extinguisher selection and placement follow NFPA 10 and its mounting requirements; the cabinet is the housing and never changes what the code requires.