Note
Fire Extinguisher Cabinets for Self-Storage Facilities
Unconditioned corridors, hand trucks and tenants who borrow things. How to spec a Cato cabinet that survives the hallway and stays stocked.
Self-storage puts fire equipment in the worst possible spot: a long unstaffed corridor that anybody with a gate code can walk down, at the exact height a loaded hand truck travels. The two failure modes are physical damage and things walking off.
Damage first
A painted steel cabinet in a drive-up corridor gets caught by a dolly, a mattress corner or a bumper within its first year. The dent chips the paint, the chip rusts, and by the third inspection the door does not close square.
Cato's whole pitch is the answer to that: a dent and rust proof alternative to metal, injection molded from high-impact polystyrene in .110 thickness with ultra-violet inhibitors. A polystyrene tub takes the knock and springs back, and the red is molded through rather than sprayed on, so a scuff does not show primer. There is no hinge to bend on the Chief, Island Chief or Warrior.
For a corridor that is also a circulation path, the Classic Semi-Recessed 41001 is worth pricing. Its trim projects 2-7/8 in., inside the ADA 4 in. protruding-objects limit, and setting the box into the wall takes it out of the path of the traffic that was denting it. Its wall opening is 10-1/2 in. wide by 25 in. high by 4 in. deep, and on a load-bearing wall the studs must be doubled either side of the tub. Note that Cato's price sheet allows no freight discount on semi-recessed cabinets, so they are the one part of the order that will not ride along on the freight break.
Then theft
Cato addresses this with labels and with the lock, and it is worth using both.
- CL-416 "Felony Warning", 3 x 5 in., red. The Island Chief carries the equivalent "Tampering is a Felony" label on its pull panel as standard, and CL-416A is that label sold separately.
- CL-422 "Extinguisher Missing", 1-1/2 x 8-1/2 in., applied inside the back of the tub. An empty cabinet then reads as a problem the moment somebody walks past, instead of looking like a decorative box.
- The ABS hexagonal lock with two keys on the Chief, Island Chief and Pull to Open.
On the locking question, know what the code says before you turn the key. Cato's NFPA 99 article quotes IFC 9.05.7.2 and NFPA 10 6.1.3.7: cabinets shall be unlocked, with exceptions for a glass panel or other approved transparent frangible material that is easily broken and allows access, for approved locking options, and for certain institutional occupancies. A Chief with a scored acrylic break panel and a hammer is precisely the frangible-panel case. Confirm it with your authority having jurisdiction rather than assuming.
Cato's ADA article also notes a useful middle path some manufacturers offer: a key-operated latch on a bendable plastic cam that opens with a firm pull but appears locked, to deter theft and tampering.
Sizing the corridor cabinet
| Cabinet | Tub I.D. (W x H x D) | Takes |
|---|---|---|
| 105-5 | 6" x 16-3/4" x 5-3/8" | 2.5 and 5 lb ABC |
| 105-10 | 6-3/4" x 20-1/2" x 6" | up to 10 lb ABC, 5 lb CO2 |
| Warrior 95-10 | 9" x 23" x 7" | up to 10 lb ABC, 5 and 10 lb CO2 |
| 105-20 | 9" x 26" x 8" | up to 20 lb ABC |
| 405-10 semi-recessed | 8-1/2" x 23-1/4" x 5-5/8" | up to 10 lb ABC |
A 10 lb ABC is the usual corridor spec — Strike First SF-ABC680, Amerex B456 or B441, or JL Cosmic 10E all fit the 105-10 and the 405-10.
Buy them by the case
This is the one application where the freight math is worth doing properly. Cato cabinets nest in their cases: 12 per case at 5 lb, 10 at 10 lb, 4 at 20 lb, with ship weights of 3.5, 4.5 and 6 lb each. Cato's price sheet pays half the freight on a product total of $1,500 or more and full freight at $3,000 or more. A facility fitting out two or three buildings at once will usually clear a break by combining cabinets, replacement panels and decals into a single order — excluding the semi-recessed units, which are outside the discount.
Order spare acrylic panels and hammers at the same time. In a public corridor they are consumables, and the second panel costs a fraction of a callout.
Don't forget the pull stations
Same corridor, same hand truck. Cato's 220 alarm covers are red high-density polypropylene, surface mount or recessed, in a pull-to-open style or a secured style with a scored acrylic panel and a galvanized steel break bar. For an unstaffed corridor the secured version — 22012 surface, 22002 recessed — is the one that resists casual vandalism, and Cato describes it as vandal resistant for that reason.