Recessed Fire Extinguisher Cabinet

The XMDDG22 is sized for 10 lb (4.5 kg) ABC dry powder extinguishers from all major manufacturers — Amerex, Ansul, Kidde, Buckeye, and equivalent brands. Cabinet body is 680 × 240 × 180 mm with a rough opening of 700 × 260 mm for framing. Internal clearances account for the cylinder height, handle, discharge hose and pressure gauge of a standard 10 lb unit. XMDDG22 is the most commonly ordered model overall — if you are unsure which size you need, it is almost always the right answer for commercial corridor applications.

For a 5 lb (2.5 kg) extinguisher, specify the XMDDG12 — cabinet body 560 × 210 × 150 mm. This is the smallest model in the series, typical for offices, hotel guest rooms and small retail where a 10 lb unit would be over-specified. For a 20 lb (9 kg) heavy-duty extinguisher, specify XMDDG32 or XMDDG42 — both are 800 mm wide but differ in depth: XMDDG32 is 200 mm deep (fits a plain 20 lb cylinder) while XMDDG42 is 220 mm deep (adds room for wall-mounted accessories like a hose reel or secondary gauge panel). Confirm the exact cylinder dimensions with your extinguisher supplier before ordering.

Yes. The ADA Standards for Accessible Design limit wall-mounted objects between 27″ and 80″ above finished floor to a maximum 4-inch (100 mm) projection into accessible routes. A surface-mount extinguisher cabinet projects 150 to 220 mm (6 to 9 inches) which exceeds the ADA limit and creates a protruding-object violation in any accessible corridor. The recessed XMDDG cabinet keeps total projection under 4 inches because the body lives inside the wall cavity — only the door and trim ring are visible. This makes the recessed variant the default specification for hospitals, schools, public buildings and any project subject to ADA or equivalent accessibility codes. For mounting height rules, which are a separate topic, see our ADA & NFPA mounting height guide.

Tempered glass is a permanent door — you open it with a latch or key to access the extinguisher, and the glass is meant to stay intact indefinitely. Tempered glass is 4× stronger than ordinary glass and shatters into small blunt cubes if ever broken. Acrylic break-front is the opposite: it is designed to be shattered with a small hammer in an emergency so that anyone can access the extinguisher without a key. Every break-front activation requires replacement of the front panel. Tempered glass is the architectural choice for hotels and offices where daily access is not expected; acrylic break-front is the emergency-access choice for schools, factories and public venues where speed of access matters more than appearance. Both are clear, so both allow visual inspection without opening.

Rough openings are 20 mm wider and 20 mm taller than the cabinet body to give installers shim room. XMDDG12 needs a 580 × 230 mm rough opening; XMDDG22 needs 700 × 260 mm; XMDDG32 needs 820 × 300 mm; XMDDG42 needs 820 × 320 mm. Minimum wall cavity depth depends on model — XMDDG12 needs 170 mm, XMDDG22 needs 200 mm, XMDDG32 and XMDDG42 need 240 mm. This means a standard 2×4 or 100 mm metal stud wall (which is only 90–100 mm deep internally) will not accept any of these recessed cabinets — you need 150 mm+ stud walls, CMU block, or design-stage framing with additional depth. The trim ring has 20–25 mm overlap on all four sides to hide minor overcut, so framing tolerance is forgiving.

Only if the wall is deep enough. A standard metal stud drywall wall built with 100 mm studs (common in interior partitions) has only about 100 mm of cavity depth after drywall is added to both sides — not enough for any XMDDG recessed cabinet. You need 150 mm stud walls minimum for XMDDG12, and 200 mm stud walls minimum for XMDDG22/32/42. If your project has only standard 100 mm partition walls, the practical options are (1) specify thicker stud walls in the zones where extinguishers are located, (2) build a furred-out box at the cabinet location with extra depth, or (3) use surface-mount cabinets instead and accept the corridor projection (if ADA does not apply). Coordinate early with the architect — this is a design-stage decision, not a fit-out afterthought.

By default, no. The cabinet ships empty so that buyers can fit an extinguisher that is certified to local standards (UL in the US, EN 3 in Europe, GB 4351 in China, AS/NZS 1841 in Australia) and that has the correct rating for the intended fire class in that location. Extinguisher certification is market-specific and it is easier for you to buy locally-certified units from a local supplier than for us to ship hazmat extinguishers internationally. That said, we can include a Chinese GB 4351 certified 5 / 10 / 20 lb ABC or CO₂ extinguisher in the cabinet at quotation time if your project permits — this is common on projects sold into the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia where GB certification is accepted. Specify extinguisher requirements early so we can confirm shipping.

It depends on project constraints. US-market brands carry UL labelling, which is required on federal projects, US military installations and some institutional clients that specify UL-listed fire protection hardware. If your AHJ or specification mandates UL, use a UL-listed cabinet — price is a secondary concern. For the much larger set of projects where the cabinet specification is "NFPA-style layout, red powder-coat, correct size for a 10 lb extinguisher," a factory-direct cabinet from CA-FIRE delivers the same functional product at a fraction of the cost because there is no distributor mark-up. We ship to 60+ countries, provide full submittal datasheets, CAD blocks and Revit families, and support OEM white-labelling for distributors. The honest rule of thumb: if UL is mandated, use a UL brand; otherwise, factory-direct is the right economic answer.

Email [email protected] with: the model number (XMDDG12, 22, 32 or 42), door type (tempered glass / acrylic break-front / solid steel), lock option, wall construction type (drywall / CMU / concrete), wall cavity depth, quantity, destination country and project timeline. Wall cavity depth is the most critical detail because it determines whether the recessed model will actually fit — if your wall is too shallow, we will flag it and suggest surface-mount alternatives. We respond within one business day with pricing, lead time, rough-opening dimensions and a full submittal package.