If your pan is on fire right now
How to put out a grease fire.
The full instructions are below. The single most important rule is in red. Read it first.
Never use water.
Water on a grease fire causes a flash steam explosion that throws burning oil across the room. This is the most common cause of severe burns from kitchen fires. Use a metal lid, a Class K extinguisher, or baking soda. Never water.
What to do, in order
- 1
Turn off the heat
Reach for the burner control first. Without continuous heat, the oil cannot keep igniting fresh fuel.
- 2
Slide a metal lid over the pan
Slide it across from the side — do not lower it from above, which exposes your hand to the upward flame. Once the lid is on, leave it. Do not lift to check.
- 3
Do not move the pan
Moving a flaming pan spreads burning oil across walls, cabinets, and floors. Leave it on the cold burner with the lid on until it is fully cool.
- 4
Use a Class K or B extinguisher if smothering doesn't work
Aim at the base of the flame from a safe distance, sweeping side to side. Read the label on your extinguisher once now, before you ever need it.
- 5
Last resort: a generous mound of baking soda
Sodium bicarbonate releases CO₂ as it heats, displacing oxygen at the fire surface. You need a lot — multiple cups, not a sprinkle. Flour and sugar make the fire worse, not better.
- 6
Evacuate and call 911 if the fire spreads
If the fire has spread beyond the cooking surface to walls, cabinets, or ceiling, do not try to fight it. Get everyone out, close the kitchen door behind you to slow the spread, and call 911 from outside.
What NOT to do
- · Don't throw water on it. Flash steam explosion. Burning oil flies everywhere.
- · Don't move the pan. Spreads the fire to whatever you walk past.
- · Don't lift the lid to check. Reintroduces oxygen, fire reignites.
- · Don't use flour or sugar. Makes it worse — both are combustible at fire temperatures.
- · Don't use a glass lid. Thermal shock can shatter it. Always a metal lid.
- · Don't blow on it. Adds oxygen, spreads burning droplets.
After the fire is out
- 1. Leave the lid on for at least 20-30 minutes. Hot oil can re-ignite when oxygen returns.
- 2. Open windows. Burning oil produces toxic smoke, especially with synthetic non-stick coatings.
- 3. Do not run the kitchen exhaust hood at full speed if there are still embers — it can spread them.
- 4. Inspect the pan, the burner area, and any walls/cabinets/curtains nearby for damage and lingering heat.
- 5. Replace the pan. The oil residue is now bonded to the surface and will smell during the next cook.
- 6. Check your smoke alarm and CO alarm. Both should have triggered. If neither did, replace the batteries today.
- 7. If anyone has burns, run cool (not cold) water over them for 10-20 minutes. Seek medical attention for burns larger than a quarter or with broken skin.
The earlier alert is what catches the unattended pan
A grease fire starts when oil reaches its flash point — typically around 600°F. By that point a smoke alarm is already too late. A smart stove monitor watches the temperature directly and beeps before the smoke. Stovyn is built for this case: per-burner thermal sensing, escalating alerts to your phone and trusted contacts. Pair it with a metal lid within reach, a Class K extinguisher on the wall, and a working smoke alarm.
Frequently asked questions
Why can't you put water on a grease fire?
Water boils at 212°F (100°C). Burning cooking oil sits at roughly 600°F (315°C). Water dropped onto burning oil vaporizes instantly, and that steam expands ~1,700 times its liquid volume. The expanding steam hurls droplets of burning oil upward and outward — a flash explosion that spreads burning oil across walls, cabinets, ceiling, and you. This is the most common cause of severe burn injuries from kitchen fires. Never use water on a grease fire.
Can baking soda put out a grease fire?
Yes — for a small fire still contained in the pan, dumping baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) on the flames can smother them. It releases carbon dioxide as it heats, which displaces oxygen at the fire surface. You need a lot — multiple cups, not a sprinkle. Baking powder, flour, sugar, or other powders do not work and can make the fire worse. A metal lid + heat off is still the better first move; baking soda is the next-best option when you have nothing else.
What kind of fire extinguisher do I need for the kitchen?
Class K (kitchen) is purpose-built for cooking-oil fires. It uses a wet chemical agent that reacts with the hot oil to form a soapy foam, simultaneously cooling the oil below its ignition point. Class B-rated extinguishers (for flammable liquids generally) also work and are more common in residential settings. ABC-rated dry-chemical extinguishers will technically smother a grease fire but the powder makes the cleanup much worse and the agent is not as effective on cooking oil. If you are buying one extinguisher for the kitchen, get Class K or B-rated.
How hot does cooking oil need to be to ignite?
The flash point of common cooking oils is 600°F (315°C) for canola and corn oil, slightly lower for olive oil (~570°F / 300°C), and slightly higher for peanut oil (~640°F / 340°C). The smoke point comes earlier — when oil starts visibly smoking, you are within ~50°F of the flash point. If you see smoke from oil, turn the heat off immediately and remove the pan from the burner. Most cooking burners can easily reach 600°F on high.
Should I throw the burning pan outside?
No. Moving a pan of burning oil is one of the most dangerous things you can do. The slosh from picking it up flings burning oil everywhere — on you, on the kitchen, on the floor between you and the door. The oil that lands on flammable surfaces starts secondary fires that may not be obvious for minutes. Always smother in place: lid, heat off, leave it. The pan is replaceable. Your skin and your home are not.
Can I prevent grease fires with a smart stove monitor?
A smart stove monitor cannot put out a fire that has already started — but it can catch the unattended pan that is heading for ignition. Monitors like Stovyn watch each burner's temperature; when an empty or oil-filled pan keeps climbing past safe cooking temperatures with no acknowledgement, the device beeps locally and notifies your phone before the oil reaches its flash point. Combine that with a metal lid within reach and a Class K extinguisher on the wall, and most kitchen-grease incidents stay small.
If a fire is spreading right now
Get out. Close doors behind you. Call 911 from outside or from a neighbor's home. Do not go back in for belongings. Do not stop to call until you are out.
This page is informational and is not a substitute for the certified safety devices required in your jurisdiction. Always maintain a UL 217 smoke alarm, a UL 2034 CO alarm, and a Class K or B-rated fire extinguisher in or near the kitchen.
Read more