Fire Safety

Hello Folks: I must pass on a fire safety tip to all tiki owners who have grass or thatch in or around their bars. Please purchase a liquid fire retardant and spray it on all of the thatch or grass so this dry material will not ignite by a careless match or candle use. You can find this fire retardant online and be sure to lift the layers of grass or thatch up and get underneath it when spraying it on. Please do this for both commerical or residential tiki bars. Be safe.

Firetiki,

Warning - You're tampering with natural selection here!

Even though I can't recall in the entire history of Tiki Bars I've ever heard an inferno to match, say a Great White concert, if someone is so stupid as to light a tiki torch around thatch or reed, they must be eliminated from the gene pool anyway!

Just go with it. I know it's hard to understand, but the human race will be stronger and better off without them!

P.S. thanks for saving all of mankind on 9/11.

What's next, not giving flaming drinks to drunk people.

Firetiki? 1 post? Is this someones Mom? I am all for fire safety but to join a message board solely to provide backup for Woodsy Owl seems wierd.

Monkeyman

Life can really burn you up when you're a pyromaniac .

Johnnie Pyro

Trust me, I'm Fire Marshal Bill...yuck, yuck, yuck! :lol:

You know, Firetiki's profile does say he's a firefighter. I seem to recall a few questions about thatch and fire in past posts. I personally am grateful to him for the information. (And any firefighter for that matter.)
And I doubt he just trolls web groups looking for opportunities to lecture people. At least he wasn't trying to sell us a shag/tiki/eames fire safety booklet on eBay!

Welcome and hope to hear more from you, Firetiki.

[ Edited by: purple jade on 2003-06-09 10:37 ]

Don't mess with firetiki. He's got a bigger hose than you!

I asked a question about fireproofing thatch just yesterday. So it's not an odd first post if you ask me.

P.S. I saw a guy set his crotch on fire once when I was a bartender...

firetiki does have a legitimate concern and he/she is just watching out for everyone. They might even be speaking from experience. Most people don't really plan on where and when their fires take place, so it is nice to take preemptive measures to help minimize the damage. I believe much of the thatch and bamboo poles from Oceanic Arts are available with the option of fire retardant treatments. They're issued with a California State Fire Marshal's Certificate. (An inspector once told me that CA sets many of the code standards used in other states anyway) He also told me a story of a person running down the hallway of a burning hotel and the fire passed this person on the walls because the wallpaper was not treated with a fire retardant.

Sorry for the rant...those stories just creep me out.

Although, Tiki_Bong does bring up a good point about stupid people too :wink:

For the tiki you save, might be your own.

On 2003-06-09 11:20, tikifish wrote:
I saw a guy set his crotch on fire once when I was a bartender...

Thanks for the best laugh of the day. (I'm not a man hater, I'm really not.)

When I was working in bars I often saw people who ACTED like their crotches were on fire, but never literally.

How in the heck does one set his own crotch on fire!?

Main Discussion Area: Fire Safety
Posted by kctiki on 2003-06-09 17:29

On 2003-06-09 11:20, tikifish wrote:
I saw a guy set his crotch on fire once when I was a bartender...

.

How in the heck does one set his own crotch on fire? "
How? Thats easy-you just get your crabs drunk on 151 and then TORCH THOSE LITTLE BUGGERS!!

At the Lilo Lounge (a now-defunct Tiki Bar and San Francisco) I saw a girl go topless and light both of her nipple on fire via pasties made out of matches.

Ah, I miss that place.

I wasn't bad mouthing firetiki but do we really need someone to tell us that dried leaves catch on fire?

Maybe common sense isn't that common after all.

Besides, I have a sprinkler system in my house that is right over the top of my thatched roofline.

and while were on the subject of safety, dont forget about those little umbrellas...they can poke out an eye out or whatever too. :drink: (Welcome aboard FireTiki!)

I was trying to remember exactly the stupidity tht preceded the aforementioned flaming crotch episode... I think he was trying to light a match off his zipper to show off. Or was it his zippo on his zipper? The result was so funny it overshadowed in my memory the stupid actions that preceded it.

Also, seen a few people attempt to drink their Sambucas WHILE they were still flaming. Talk about HOT LIPS HOuLIHAN!

On 2003-06-09 18:08, hanford_lemoore wrote:
At the Lilo Lounge (a now-defunct Tiki Bar and San Francisco) I saw a girl go topless and light both of her nipple on fire via pasties made out of matches.

I think I saw the same act on one of my visits to SF. Didn't she do something weird with a candle as well?

I would like to clarify my earlier post by stating that I did not intend to insult anyone’s intelligence. However, I am a twenty five year veteran firefighter and assistant fire marshal and have unfortunately seen careless mistakes made by people over the years. I was simply offering a tip to people to treat the dried grass and thatch on their tike bars so that they do not ignite. I have frequently visited this website and even built my tiki bar and treated it with a spray on fire retardant. Again folks, please understand how important this is especially if you have an interior tiki bar. What prompted me to write was a house fire I went to last week that was caused by a candle that ignited the dry grass. Preventable! Monkeyman, you joined three months ago. 94 posts. Sounds like you need a girl monkey around the tiki bar!!!

yo firetiki, thanks for the tip and have a :drink:. say if you want to bring up numbers, you joined 2 days ago and have 2 posts and already started advising us and judging monkeyman by the number of his post. I'm a retired hwy cop with 25 yrs chp(so what) and you dont see me telling people not to drink flaming tiki drinks with umbrellas while wearing grass skirts and driving. Preventable. Anyway maybe you can post some photos of your bar. aloha.

[ Edited by: Tiki Rider Five-O on 2003-06-10 20:54 ]

Five O, guess your right! Hey…was just trying to help! Enjoy your retirement!

Yo Firetiki,

I've been married for almost 8 years and have 2 kids. My Tiki Central time is an ESCAPE not a lonely guy way to use up time.

Welcome aboard. Your firesafety tip is an undisputable one. Perhaps obvious to some but clearly the correct answer.

Monkeyman

Firetiki,

I saw something on some news show last week about what was termed 'fire safety's dirty little secret'.

I was about the large number of pyromaniacs working for various fire departments.

What are your thoughts on this?

(come on baby light my fire...)

I don't know that every firefighter is a closet pyro, but they fear fire less than the average joe. Lets face it, not many people want to run into a burning building, let alone make it a regular part of their job. In my area, most departments also require that their full-time firefighters be certified paramedics, so that makes these guys even less squeamish than most.

I'm married to a full-time firefighter, and I can say that he's often disappointed when he's off-shift and misses a good structure fire. I don't like to say that these guys pray for something to burn, but, let's face it, no one likes to be bored on the job. I can see how this kind of attitude can cross the line into pyromania in an unstable individual.

As an aside to the original topic of this post, never underestimate a person's potential for stupidity. I know we're all smart little monkeys here, but I have to shake my head when I hear about some of the runs my husband has had to make.

I lived next to a firehouse in NYC. Firemen are nuts! Who else but a crazy Irishman (German, Italian, Hawaiian, etc) would run into a burning building humping 60 lbs of gear. Those guys on 9/11 made it up to the 70-something floor with all that crap-then proceeded to work. You must have more than few screws loose to get into that line of work.

I think firetiki's post is relevant (Considering the antics at most TC events). And I like the image his screen-name evokes.

I was about the large number of pyromaniacs working for various fire departments.

Look up John Orr
and his book, Points of Origin

I'm studying to get my AA in Fire Protection and Technology. :)

Thanks Tikibong for your comments. Yes...some people do the craziest things that keeps your firefighters in a job. However, I just would like to stay on focus with my original statement. Thanks Kitschywoman for the back up!

Maybe this will get me in trouble, but I think there was a tiny little fire once in Castaway Cove. Perhaps Maxton can enlighten us further... Or perhaps he will choose not to.
:lol:

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2003-06-11 20:53 ]

On 2003-06-09 18:18, Monkeyman wrote:

Maybe common sense isn't that common after all.

Amen to that! A while back I was trying to see what a candle smelled like and sucked the flame right up into my left nostril. It really smarted. I'll take all the common sense reminders I can get.

I was trying to see what a candle smelled like and sucked the flame right up into my left nostril.

:lol: :o :lol: :o :lol:
Oh man, I just spewed tea on my monitor! So what did you do for an encore?

Ok, I won't let kcTiki stand alone in fire mishaps:

Back in 1981 during my hardcore Rockabilly era, I had a HUGE pomp that stuck out like a baseball cap. My cousin had trouble with his lighter not igniting, and it just 'sparked'. So me, being the "I can fix it" person, start flicking the lighter 4 or 5 times while taking a REAL CLOSE look at it and I say "it's got a weird burning smell". My cousin calmly says without blinking an eye "no, that's just your hair".
HUH? My Aqua-Net filled pomp had begun melting with little whiffs of smoke rising, and not quite to the point of catching fire (yet).

So do I get tired of hearing fire safety suggestions? NOPE, NO WAY....Bring 'em on!

Alright here's one...but this goes under "fire stupidity".

When I was in junior high, I decided for some dumbass reason to fill a bottle cap with barbecue starter fluid and light it. WHOOMF!
Crinkled up my bangs, singed my eyebrows and melted my lashes to nubs.

Um, I hope nobody else needs to be told NOT to do this.

At the City I work for, most of the fire calls are not for fires, but rather first aid.

I've always wondered why they send 1,000 gallons of water to a call involving a heart attack at the local old folks home (that is unless they were on fire also).

Yes, I'm sure that being a firefighter is a dangerous job, but statistically speaking, being a convenience store clerk is the most deadly.

(All right! Give me a Slurpee and all the cash. Now!)

At the City I work for, most of the fire calls are not for fires, but rather first aid.

Yup, there's not a lot of money in property damage. But medical calls are a good way to make some change.

I've always wondered why they send 1,000 gallons of water to a call involving a heart attack at the local old folks home (that is unless they were on fire also).

From what little I know, sometimes you don't have enough boxes to go around, so whatever gets the personnel over works. Most firemen (west coast, at least) are EMTs/Paramedics. In California it's required to be at least an EMT to be a licensed firefighter. Because in California, we're wacky.

On 2003-06-12 10:19, Tiki_Bong wrote:
At the City I work for, most of the fire calls are not for fires, but rather first aid.

I've always wondered why they send 1,000 gallons of water to a call involving a heart attack at the local old folks home (that is unless they were on fire also).

Some judge in the 9th Curcuit Court probably read something about spontaneous human combustion in "Mother Earth News" between bites of granola and decided to made it so.

Whatever you do, do not light plastic staws on fire. Just don't do it okay, because they're like napalm. Trust me don't do it, at least not in your tiki bar. The burning plastic also makes a really cool whooosh, whoosh, whoosh sound as it drips in flames onto whatever surface is unlucky enough to be underneath it. But don't try this, ever.
Also, don't go into tiki bars with open flames when you only have one contact lens because you got sand in your eye and tried to change it on the beach and it blew away.
Doing so exposes anyone with long hair to the risk of setting it on fire on the side missing the contact lens. Trust me on this one as well.

On 2003-06-11 20:50, Kailuageoff wrote:
Maybe this will get me in trouble, but I think there was a tiny little fire once in Castaway Cove.

Uh, yeah - thanks for bringing that up, Geoff :wink:

It's a funny story after the fact but opened our eyes to our vulnerability - we've changed a few habits and will be fireproofing per firetiki's advice as well. Here's what happened:

Late in the evening last season, Maggie noticed that one of the silk plants next to the waterfall had been set aflame by a candle. The key thing to remember here is that the plant was next to the waterfall. Next to 80 gallons of water. So my quick-thinking friend Rowe (many mai-tais under his belt at this time), says "I'll take care of it". He proceeds to fill a tiki mug with PINEAPPLE JUICE from behind the bar, stumble across the room, and DOUSE THE FLAMING SILK PLANT with PINEAPPLE JUICE! You know, the flaming silk plant that was sitting right next to all that perfectly good WATER. The ants loved that one. Put the fire out, though...