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Not all fire hydrants are red — here's what each different color means

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Red, yellow, violet— fire hydrants come in many different colors. But it's not for decoration. These colors have an important meaning that could just save your life one day. Following is a transcript of the video.

What do fire hydrant colors mean? Certain colors are meant for different types of fires. Each color represents a different GPM or Gallons Per Minute. Higher GPMs are meant for larger fires.

Here are the 4 most popular colors, and the biggest fires they can extinguish. To calculate the GPM necessary for the size of a fire, you can take the volume of the fire and divide it by 100. So, if you have a two-story house that is 20 feet tall, 50 feet long, and 50 feet wide, then you're going to need ([20*50*50]/100=500) 500 GPM. 

Red: 500 GPM or less, for a 2-story house that's 50 ft by 50 ft and 20 ft tall.
Orange: 500-1,000 GPM, for a 4-story house that's 50 ft by 50 ft and 40 ft tall.
Green: 1000-1500 GPM, for a 4-story house that's 61 by 61 and 40 ft tall.
Blue: 1500 GPM or more, for a 4-story house that's 70 by 70 feet and 40 ft tall.

Some colors don't always refer to GPM. Yellow indicates that the water comes from a public supply system. Violet means the water comes from a lake or pond. While most areas follow this color scheme, some choose to make up their own system. Either way, fire hydrants may stick out like a sore thumb but those bright colors are chosen with your safety in mind.

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