Interpretation Response #19-0052
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name: GSI Training Services, INc.
Individual Name: Sam Burton
Location State: MO Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
August 6, 2019
Mr. Sam Burton
President
GSI Training Services, Inc.
822 St. Hwy T
Branson, MO 65616
Reference No. 19-0052
Dear Mr. Burton:
This letter is in response to your April 17, 2019, email requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to fire extinguishers. Your email references a package containing Department of Transportation (DOT) specification cylinders filled with a compressed gas (greater than 30% carbon dioxide) attached to an apparatus that contains a fire retardant. The compressed gas and fire retardant are not mixed until the fire extinguisher is used for its intended purpose. You note that this is an important distinction from the more common fire extinguishers that are a mixture of the fire retardant and a compressed gas contained in a single cylinder. You ask whether the cylinder as described is eligible to be shipped as a fire extinguisher under § 173.309. You also ask what would be the most appropriate proper shipping name for the cylinders described in your email.
The answer to your first question is no. As stated in your email, one of the conditions that must be met in § 173.309(a)(3) to use the fire extinguisher description is a cylinder may not contain more than 30% carbon dioxide. If the cylinder you describe contains more than 30% carbon dioxide, it cannot be shipped as a fire extinguisher under § 173.309. To answer your second question, because the cylinders you describe do not meet the definition of a fire extinguisher as prescribed in § 173.309, the identification number and proper shipping name "UN1044, Fire extinguishers" is not appropriate. Rather, the identification number and proper shipping name for the article should reflect the type of compressed gas being shipped, for example, "UN1013, Carbon dioxide."
I hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
T. Glenn Foster
Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division
173.309, 173.309(a)(3)
Regulation Sections
| Section | Subject |
|---|---|
| 173.309 | Fire extinguishers |