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recently, my fusebox (the one in the engine compartment), caught on fire and from there it spread to the insulation on the hood. I managed to catch it in time, turn off the engine, and extinguish it (with my handy dandy fire extinguisher). It shorted out the main alternator fuse (60Amp fuse) and melted a good portion of the fuse box.
Now, as a a precaution, I'm thinking of setting up an engine cut off switch to be able to turn off the engine without having to go to the drivers side.
Any ideas which wire I need to cut?
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I don't remember what year your XJ is, but if you want everything to be dead, I would go for the main power feed to the ECM. Make sure you also get the one for the fuel pump relay included if it takes its power separately. I can tell you from my years as a professional firefighter, if the engine is off and the fuel pump is still going, that most fires will involved that gas sooner or later. Cutting the fuel pump could make the difference between repair and total.
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Sorry I neglected to include that information, but its a 96 XJ Limited. Thanks for the advice re the ECM and fuel pump. I got the same advice from a fellow XJ driver, so it seems those are the wires to cut.
I dont think itll hurt to do some more research on this.
This was the first time Ive used a fire extinguisher on my car. I suppose since this was one of those non-rechargeable extinguishers I will have to replace immediately or do you think there is still some "stuff" left ?
How does one dispose of a spent fire extinguisher?
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So now you clean up the mess, right? The disposable fire extinguisher is made for one use. Even if there is some charge left, the pressure will not last. I made a device to recharge my 20# extinguisher and recharged it since I had only used a small squirt on a shop fire and found that the pressure bled off several months later. The problem is that he powder gets on the valve seat and it won't hold pressure indefinitely. The stuff inside us usually just baking soda, or if its Purple K its potassium bicarbonate instead. Both are harmless. Just discharge it fully. You might be able to unscrew the valve afterwards or not depending on who made it. There is nothing there that will harm a land fill.
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My dad used to own a fire extinguisher recharge business and I would suggest contacting someone in that business and see he it truly is disposable if not it is typically pretty cheap (Less than $10). If it is a disposable one invest in a rechargeable one, I have seen some nice chrome plated ones that look sharp and have all the mounting hardware included. I have a couple different kinds around the house, co2 and powder, you never know what could catch on fire .
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