[Archived]

Thanks Tom for the post, we just bought two new ones at the begining of the year.

[Don]

A fire extinguisher is good to have but it will likely be too-little, too-late unless you notice the fire immediately. Prevention would be better. It would be interesting to see a pareto of common causes in buses (below is an example from transit safety.gov).

Unfortunately, the data are not (yet) very meaningful. Maybe we can create our own pareto of causes given the experience level on this board. My best guess as to common causes would be

1. Turbo (main engine and generator). Oil or fuel on hot turbo and exhaust components. This is the primary cause of fire in marine applications. Make sure your turbo heat blankets are in good shape and are not soaked in oil. There should be no leaks in the turbo area.
2. Batteries. There is a lot of energy stored in the batteries. A short or loose connection can cause an electrical fire. Look for loose connections and chafing of main battery cables ahead of any breaker and fuses.
3. Brakes. A stuck parking or service brake can get hot enough to burn up a tire and coach. Checking tire and wheel temps after 20 miles of travel might catch this.
4. Auxiliary heat. Diesel or electric. A regular check for loose fittings and wiring would be appropriate.
5. Galley. Lots of ways to get into trouble here.
6. Modifications. Our buses are well built but over the years modifications accumulate that may not be up to the manufacturers standards. Aftermarket AV installations come to mind. It may look great on the outside but pull an inspection panel and have a look at the wiring. If you don’t like what you see, have it fixed.

I’m sure there are more causes but assuming I got the order roughly correct, paying attention to the first three would help eliminate the majority of fires.

[JIM]

Tire fires on the duals because of low tire pressure. Thus, the walk around at every stop. IR therm. to check tire surface and hub temps. Anything out of kilter shows up quick.

These fires are bad as most of the material of the wheel tub front on H’s is plastic and that which is aluminum will burn.

I don’t think you can carry enough extinguishers plus your house water to put one of these out.

[Corey]

I bought a 98 that had a rear fire that was one of 3 that was converted for a charter service. Entertainer coach. That apears to be just like it. At the time I purchased it 2 of the three had burned from the same reason. I have posted pictures on this board in the past of it. Was a electrical 24 volt problem. All three conversions were by same converter. Would be intresting to know if this was the last remaining one of the three. This info is as I understand the history of the coach I purchased. Paint and model match. Bob