One of the tasks assigned to your fire company is the annual inspection of fire hydrants in your district. All the hydrants that you have tested are dry-barrel hydrants. You replace all the hydrant caps except one. As you are closing the stem on one hydrant, you shut it completely, open it a quarter turn, and place the palm of your hand over an open discharge. You feel a slight suction on your hand. You close the hydrant stem completely, replace the discharge cap, and complete the inspection.
What is the purpose of dry-barrel hydrants?
Answer: Dry-barrel hydrants are used in areas that experience prolonged periods of subfreezing weather. The control valve is located below the frost line underground and prevents water from entering the hydrant barrel and freezing, making the hydrant inoperable.
What causes the slight suction on your hand?
Answer: It is an indication that the water is draining out of the dry barrel through the drain hole at the bottom of the hydrant.
What conditions should you look for during a hydrant inspection?
Among the items listed in the text, you should inspect the hydrants for:
Obstructions, such as sign posts, utility poles, weeds, bushes, or fences that might interfere with pumper-to-hydrant connections or with opening the hydrant valve.
Outlets that face the wrong direction for pumper-to-hydrant connections.
Insufficient clearance between outlets and the ground.
Damage to the hydrant.
Rusting or corrosion.
Outlet caps missing or stuck in place with paint.
Stem nut that cannot be turned or turns feely with no visible result.
Obstructions (bottles, cans, rocks) inside the hydrant outlets.
Damp ground surrounding the hydrant or erosion indicating a drain valve leak.
Hydrants painted by property owners (caps adhered to threads by paint).

By Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

Your company responds to a fire in a one story, single family residential structure. It is a ranch style structure. The time is 6:00 am on a Sunday morning. While responding, you hear the first arriving officer report that there is fire coming from a bedroom window on the B-C corner of the house with smoke also coming from the open front door.
When you arrive, the incident commander directs your officer to perform a primary search of the structure. Other companies have been directed to ventilate the structure and to do an interior attack on the fire.
What other operations, if any, must be coordinated with your primary search?
Answer: There are several other operations that must be conducted nearly simultaneously with the beginning of the primary search. Of course, it may be necessary to force entry into the structure. In this case it appears the front door is open and that is the most appropriate point to enter the structure. Also, ventilation must occur prior to entering the structure to reduce the heat and improve visibility. Finally, fire attack will also begin immediately following ventilation. Your search team may actually follow the attack team into the structure.
What fire conditions can be expected inside the structure?
Answer: It is apparent from the conditions observed outside of the structure that at least the bedroom is involved in fire. Smoke is moving throughout the structure as evidenced by the smoke coming from the open front door. The quantity of fire and smoke indicates that the fire is intense which means it is going to be hot. Also, the fire may have extended to other rooms and areas. In this type of scenario it is crucial that you maintain situational awareness - both individually and as a team. Even after ventilation has been completed fire conditions may remain extreme until the fire is extinguished. Flashover may be possible in other rooms until the hot smoke and gases have been ventilated and the fire is extinguished.
How should the primary search be conducted?
Answer: The primary search is a rapid but thorough search of the house. The search should begin in an area most likely to have someone needing rescue. At this time of day that would be the bedroom area. The search would start with the bedrooms closest to the room of origin and then work away from the fire area. If the fire is controlled quickly, the primary search may actually begin in that room. During the search common hiding places should be checked. As a room is searched the door should be marked indicating the primary search has been completed. When the primary search has been completed the officer will give an 'All Clear' to the incident commander.

 

By Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

Hey FireIce Bloggers!  Check out todays question and answer below:

Describe this operation. How must the blower be placed at the open entry point?

ANSWER:

Positive Pressure Ventilation or PPV is defined as: “A method of ventilating a confined space by mechanically blowing fresh air into the space in sufficient volume to create a slight positive pressure within and thereby forcing the contaminated out the exit opening”.

The fan or blower is placed 4’ to 10’ from the entry point you must ensure the fan cone completely covers the entry point. An exit point MUST be created opposite the entry point to push the smoke out of the exit opening.  This exit opening should be the same size or slightly smaller than the entry opening.  The entire goal is to create postive pressure an it is important that no other exterior doors or windows are opened during this operation.

Hey FireIce Blog Readers!! It appears this past month has been busy for many departments around the world and with that being said the LODD list grew as did firefighter injuries… Our job is hard enough and we take many risks, but most injuries are preventable!

Make everyday a training day So Everyone Goes Home… Stay Safe!

 

By Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

Hey FireIceBloggers!! FireIce Academy is back in session...



You have responded to a fire in a single family dwelling. Upon arrival your company officer orders your hose team to don full PPE and advance a 1 3/4 inch attack line to the front door. The door is open and you can see the fire at the back of the living room. The smoke that is rolling out of the doorway is black and the heat is intense at the opening.

What method of attack, direct, indirect, or combination, do you use?

Answer: The combination attack uses the fog nozzle to its best advantages.

What are the advantages of this method?

Answer: The wide fog pattern cools the room and provides protection to the nozzle operator.

Why did you select this method?

Answer: The fog nozzle also creates small water droplets that absorb the heat and generates steam to smother the fire. The straight stream can penetrate the burning combustibles from a distance and complete the extinguishment process.

Stay Safe!

By Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

(A segmented look at Firefighting, Fire Extinguishing Products, and Fire Suppression)

We’ve looked at firefighting foams and now we’ll look into long term retardants and What’s Being Done…
What are long term retardants?
Quite simply it’s the red stuff dropping from aircraft across the world on wildfires! So let’s look at the technical side of Long Term Retardants…
A fire retardant is a substance other than water that reduces flammability of fuels or delays their combustion. This typically refers to chemical retardants but may also include substances that work by physical action, such as cooling the fuels or by initiating a chemical reaction that stops a fire.
Early fire retardants were mixtures of water and thickening agents, and later included borates and ammonium phosphates. Borates are chemical compounds which contain oxoanions of boron in an oxidation state and ammonium phosphate is salt of ammonia and phosphoric acid. Today’s long term retardants are comprised of Diammonium Sulfate, Monoammonium Phosphate, Diammonium Phosphate, Guar Gum, Hydroxypropyl, and Performance Enhancers of Diammonium Sulfate is a synonym for Ammonium Sulfate and other synonyms are Sulfuric Acid, Diammonium Salt, Actamaster, Dolamin, and Mascagnite. Ammonium Sulfates are an inorganic salts which is part of soil fertilizers and its purpose is to reduce the soil pH.
Monoammonium Phosphates is an ammonium dihydrogen phosphate and is formed when in a solution of phosphoric acid is added to ammonia until the solution is distinctly acidic. Monoammonium phosphate is often used in the blending of dry agricultural fertilizers and it supplies soil with the elements nitrogen and phosphorus which is usable by plants. The compound is also a component of the ABC powder in some dry chemical fire extinguishers. This substance is also supplied in an emerald green or aquamarine crystal growing box kit for kids.
Diammonium Phosphate is used as a fertilizer and when applied as plant food, it temporarily increases the soil pH.
Guar Gum, Hydroxypropyl is an inert ingredient used as a thickener. Its common characteristic is that it’s a water absorbing polymer.
Ok that sounds pretty technical and that’s what’s in the red stuff...  What are its effects on the environment?
Well according to the manufacturer they say it’s…
“Long-term retardants are the safest, most effective, and environmentally friendly retardants available. No other products meet the current USDA Forest Service specification for long-term retardant. This specification includes product qualification testing for combustion retarding effectiveness, environmental, safety and health and corrosion standards.”
Ok so the manufacturer states that its product is the safest, most effective, and environmentally friendly and no other product meets the US Forest Service Specification. Hmmmm lets have a look at that…
According to the USFS Qualified Products List they are correct! There are no other companies listed on the QPL with a product that is classified as a long term retardant… So they are a sole source provider to the Federal Government...
So how effective are long term retardants?
There are no public records with the US Forest Service for Lateral Ignition Flamespread Test or Combustion Retarding Effectiveness. So the answers are unknown to the public...
Let’s recap what we have learned so far. Chemical composition is very salty with fertilizer salts. Here is a breakdown according to the MSDS sheet listed with the US Forest Service.
 Components:                 
Diammonium Sulfate, CAS #7783-20-2 = >65%
Monoammonium Phosphate, CAS #7722-76-1 = >15%   
Diammonium Phosphate, CAS#7783-28-0 = >5%
Guar Gum, Hydroxypropyl, CAS#39421-75-5 = Performance Additives, CAS# Trade Secret = The trade secret performance additives are protected by “trade secret” but the manufacturer states “Our wildland fire retardants consist of fertilizer type salts, a coloring agent, corrosion inhibitors, and flow conditioners.”
Ok so there are corrosion inhibitors in the red stuff well what are they?
In an environmental assessment of long term retardants dated October 2007 conducted by the US Forest Service it states ” Previous retardant formulas contained sodium ferrocyanide 2 as a corrosion inhibitor. It was found that under certain conditions, sodium ferrocyanide poses greater toxicity to aquatic species and aquatic environments than retardant solutions without this agent.” While we cannot confirm what corrosion inhibitors are currently being used today in the current formulas because they are a “trade secret”. One can only assume that they have not improved since 2007 and here is why…
In July 2010 a Montana Federal Court Judge the Honorable Donald Malloy “ordered the U.S. Forest Service to take a hard look at its use of toxic aerial fire retardants and their impact on fish and wildlife habitats.”
Ok so that blows the claim by the sole supplier to the Federal Government that they are the “safest, most effective, and environmentally friendly retardants available.”
Hmmm, no testing results available on effectiveness. So the “safest, most effective, and environmentally friendly retardants available” on the market today?
Not so much according to the environmental watchdog groups who filed a federal lawsuit and not according to a federal judge.
So What’s Being Done?
“Molloy ordered the Forest Service to comply with the federal laws by Dec. 31, 2011, threatening contempt sanctions if the agency fails to do so.”

"The Federal Defendants are advised that failure to comply with this deadline may subject them to sanctions, including contempt proceedings, and could conceivably result in enjoining the continued use of aerially-applied fire retardant until the law enacted by Congress is complied with," Molloy wrote. "The issue requires immediate attention."  

That was July 2010 and in December 2010 headlines are;

 “U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy of Missoula” announced “that he will be taking senior status in August 2011.”

Coincidence??? Guess we will have to wait and see…

So who is the manufacturer of the sole provider of products used by the Federal Government to retard and combat wildfires?

They are called Phos-Chek and the Phos-Chek Fire Safety Group is part of ICL Performance Products LP, North America's premier phosphate chemical manufacturer.

So who is ICL?

“ICL Performance Products LP is a worldwide leader in the manufacturing and marketing of phosphates, phosphoric acid, and phosphorus chemicals.”

Since it is a Limited Partnership company is there a bigger picture or group?

“ICL Performance Products LP, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Israel Chemicals Limited (ICL), based in Tel Aviv, Israel. ICL is engaged in the development, manufacture and marketing of fertilizers, industrial products, metallurgy, and performance products.”
So during this segment we discussed long term retardants and the jury is still out on them. We have also looked at firefighting foams more commonly known as Class “A” foam used for fire suppression. In the next segment we will look at fire gels or water enhancers and how they affect firefighting equipment, the environment and the effectiveness for fire suppression or exposure protection.

(A segmented look at Firefighting, Fire Extinguishing Products, and Fire Suppression)

In the last segment we touched on some of the things that are being done by the local, state, and federal agencies to reduce the threat of wildfires in the wildland urban interface. In this segment we’ll look at fire extinguishing products and their effectiveness.

It appears that wildfires have become a pandemic and we have all seen the news clips of airplanes and helicopters dropping some sort of liquid on a fire…
But what is that liquid?
Some of it may be clear, some of it appears to be bubbly, and some of it may be red or blue. More often than not they are fire extinguishing products and some have been around for close to 100 years to aid firefighting efforts and help to firefighters with fire suppression. So let’s look at these fire extinguishing products and how well do they work for fire suppression.
Firefighting foams are the chemicals that have been around longest ever since the early 1900’s and developed by a Russian Chemist named Alexsandr Loran. Originally firefighting foams were designed to combat flammable or combustible liquid fires. It wasn’t until the 1980’s when the foam manufacturers came up with the idea of making a formulation to be used on wildland fires which has evolved into Class “A” foam.
So what are firefighting foams or class “A” foams?
The chemical composition of these fire extinguishing products vary from manufacturer to manufacturer but all contain some sort of surfactant. Surfactants are compounds that lower the surface tension of liquid (usually water). Surfactants are usually organic compounds which are carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon and cyanides. Other components of firefighting foams are organic solvents such as trimethyltrimethylene glycol and hexylene glycol, foam stabilizers such as lauryl alcohol, and corrosion inhibitors.
Now that we have your attention of what’s in firefighting foams! Let’s look at their effects on the environment…
The US Forest Service QPL (Qualified Products List) specifies a mix ratio of 0.1 to 1.0 % foam concentrate to water and clearly states that they must be mixed within that ratio to comply with their specifications. Now on the other hand firefighters are taught in the Fire Academy to mix firefighting foam at a ratio of 3 gallons of foam concentrate mixed with 97 gallons of water to get an end product of 3% foam. Hmmm the US forest Service says a maximum of 1%... Why?? Let’s look at toxicity on mammals and fish…
Acute Oral Toxicity Mammals (Foam Concentrate):
Phos Chek WD 881 = 4378 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it also is moderately irritating to non washed and washed eyes, and has a 0.9 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
Phos Chek WD 881-C = >5050 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it is also moderately irritating to non washed and washed eyes and has a 1.4 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
Tyco Silv-Ex = >5050 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it is also severely irritating to non washed and washed eyes and has a 2.7 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
National Foam KnockDown = >5000 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it is also moderately irritating to non washed eyes and mildly irritating to washed eyes and has a 1.2 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
**Note** The lower the Lethal Dosage value (LD₅₀) is - the more toxic it is.

Fish Toxicity (Foam Concentrate):
Phos Chek WD 881 = LC₅₀ 11 mg/L soft water and 10 mg/L hard water.
Phos Chek WD 881-C = LC₅₀ 17mg/L soft water and 10mg/L hard water.
Tyco Silv-Ex = LC₅₀ 46mg/L soft water and 28mg/L hard water.
National Foam KnockDown = 28mg/L soft water and 26mg/L hard water.
**Note** The lower the Lethal Concentration value (LC₅₀) is - the more toxic it is.
Let’s look at what firefighting foams do to fire equipment? We already established that firefighting foams contain corrosion inhibitors. Corrosion inhibitors are a chemical compound that decreases the corrosion rates of a material, typically a metal or an alloy. Corrosion tests are designed to measure the loss of structural integrity of the affected metal and potential loss of the metal item. Significant corrosion in fire pumps or aircraft may have catastrophic effects to human life. Corrosion testing is based on mils-per- year and the US Forest Service is looking to minimize the risk of corrosion- caused fire equipment failure in the field. The benchmark is less than (Uniform Corrosion Partial Submersion at 120˚F (Foam Concentrate):
Phos Chek WD 881 = 0.1 Aluminum, 1.9 Steel, and 0.5 Yellow Brass.
Phos Chek WD 881-C = 0.9 Aluminum, 4.7 Steel, and 0.7 Yellow Brass
Tyco Silv-Ex = 0.1 Aluminum, 4.9 Steel, and 3.5 Yellow Brass
National Foam KnockDown = 0.4 Aluminum, 1.1 Steel, and 0.1 Yellow Brass
While all of these firefighting foams comply with the US Forest Service Specifications it should be noted that the above testing results is public record and are published on the US Forest Service’s website.
How effective are firefighting foams in aiding firefighters in fire suppression or fire extinguishment?
Simply it last for seconds compared to water!!
Here are the test results from the US Forest Service QPL list.
Lateral Ignition Flamespread Test (LIFT)
Phos Chek WD 881 = 211 seconds compared to Water = 112 seconds
Phos Chek WD 881-C = 255 seconds compared to Water = 124 seconds
Tyco Silv-Ex = 139 seconds compared to Water = 128 seconds
National Foam KnockDown = 225 seconds compared to Water = 116 seconds
Basically what we have learned from this segment is that firefighting foam is corrosive to firefighting equipment, it’s not that great for the environment, and it’s not very effective compared to water.
So stop wasting the taxpayer’s money!
On a side note National Foam as well as AFG Firewall, Kidde, and Ansul are all owned by Tyco. In the next segment we will look at Long Term Retardants the red stuff being dumped from airplanes and helicopters…  

By: Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

(A segmented look at Firefighting, Fire Extinguishing Products, and Fire Suppression)

In this segment we’ll look at fire extinguishing products and their effectiveness.

It appears that wildfires have become a pandemic and we have all seen the news clips of airplanes and helicopters dropping some sort of liquid on a fire…
But what is that liquid?
Some of it may be clear, some of it appears to be bubbly, and some of it may be red or blue. More often than not they are fire extinguishing products and some have been around for close to 100 years to aid firefighting efforts and help to firefighters with fire suppression. So let’s look at these fire extinguishing products and how well do they work for fire suppression.
Firefighting foams are the chemicals that have been around longest ever since the early 1900’s and developed by a Russian Chemist named Alexsandr Loran. Originally firefighting foams were designed to combat flammable or combustible liquid fires. It wasn’t until the 1980’s when the foam manufacturers came up with the idea of making a formulation to be used on wildland fires which has evolved into Class “A” foam.
So what are firefighting foams or class “A” foams?
The chemical composition of these fire extinguishing products vary from manufacturer to manufacturer but all contain some sort of surfactant. Surfactants are compounds that lower the surface tension of liquid (usually water). Surfactants are usually organic compounds which are carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon and cyanides. Other components of firefighting foams are organic solvents such as trimethyltrimethylene glycol and hexylene glycol, foam stabilizers such as lauryl alcohol, and corrosion inhibitors.
Now that we have your attention of what’s in firefighting foams! Let’s look at their effects on the environment…
The US Forest Service QPL (Qualified Products List) specifies a mix ratio of 0.1 to 1.0 % foam concentrate to water and clearly states that they must be mixed within that ratio to comply with their specifications. Now on the other hand firefighters are taught in the Fire Academy to mix firefighting foam at a ratio of 3 gallons of foam concentrate mixed with 97 gallons of water to get an end product of 3% foam. Hmmm the US forest Service says a maximum of 1%... Why?? Let’s look at toxicity on mammals and fish…
Acute Oral Toxicity Mammals (Foam Concentrate):
Phos Chek WD 881 = 4378 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it also is moderately irritating to non washed and washed eyes, and has a 0.9 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
Phos Chek WD 881-C = >5050 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it is also moderately irritating to non washed and washed eyes and has a 1.4 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
Tyco Silv-Ex = >5050 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it is also severely irritating to non washed and washed eyes and has a 2.7 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
National Foam KnockDown = >5000 LD₅₀ (mg/Kg) it is also moderately irritating to non washed eyes and mildly irritating to washed eyes and has a 1.2 primary irritation index for skin irritation.
**Note** The lower the Lethal Dosage value (LD₅₀) is - the more toxic it is.

Fish Toxicity (Foam Concentrate):
Phos Chek WD 881 = LC₅₀ 11 mg/L soft water and 10 mg/L hard water.
Phos Chek WD 881-C = LC₅₀ 17mg/L soft water and 10mg/L hard water.
Tyco Silv-Ex = LC₅₀ 46mg/L soft water and 28mg/L hard water.
National Foam KnockDown = 28mg/L soft water and 26mg/L hard water.
**Note** The lower the Lethal Concentration value (LC₅₀) is - the more toxic it is.
Let’s look at what firefighting foams do to fire equipment? We already established that firefighting foams contain corrosion inhibitors. Corrosion inhibitors are a chemical compound that decreases the corrosion rates of a material, typically a metal or an alloy. Corrosion tests are designed to measure the loss of structural integrity of the affected metal and potential loss of the metal item. Significant corrosion in fire pumps or aircraft may have catastrophic effects to human life. Corrosion testing is based on mils-per- year and the US Forest Service is looking to minimize the risk of corrosion- caused fire equipment failure in the field. The benchmark is less than (Uniform Corrosion Partial Submersion at 120˚F (Foam Concentrate):
Phos Chek WD 881 = 0.1 Aluminum, 1.9 Steel, and 0.5 Yellow Brass.
Phos Chek WD 881-C = 0.9 Aluminum, 4.7 Steel, and 0.7 Yellow Brass
Tyco Silv-Ex = 0.1 Aluminum, 4.9 Steel, and 3.5 Yellow Brass
National Foam KnockDown = 0.4 Aluminum, 1.1 Steel, and 0.1 Yellow Brass
While all of these firefighting foams comply with the US Forest Service Specifications it should be noted that the above testing results is public record and are published on the US Forest Service’s website.
How effective are firefighting foams in aiding firefighters in fire suppression or fire extinguishment?
Simply it last for seconds compared to water!!
Here are the test results from the US Forest Service QPL list.
Lateral Ignition Flamespread Test (LIFT)
Phos Chek WD 881 = 211 seconds compared to Water = 112 seconds
Phos Chek WD 881-C = 255 seconds compared to Water = 124 seconds
Tyco Silv-Ex = 139 seconds compared to Water = 128 seconds
National Foam KnockDown = 225 seconds compared to Water = 116 seconds
Basically what we have learned from this segment is that firefighting foam is corrosive to firefighting equipment, it’s not that great for the environment, and it’s not very effective compared to water.
So stop wasting the taxpayer’s money!
On a side note National Foam as well as AFG Firewall, Kidde, and Ansul are all owned by Tyco. In the next segment we will look at Long Term Retardants the red stuff being dumped from airplanes and helicopters…  

 

By: Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

Hey FireIce bloggers. You are the Chief of a rural fire department and you were just toned out to a motor vehicle fire. You, your District Chief and your engine company of 2 firefighters are responding.

Upon arrival you find a 2000 Ford Expedition with heavy fire coming from the engine and passenger compartments. The vehicle is 20’ from a structure…

During attack you find the engine compartment has magnesium components in it as it starts to explode with sparks…

What Do You Do?

FireIce instructor's synopsis is below…
 
Upon arrival the firefighters attacked the vehicle fire with a 1 ½” pre-connect. Upon discovering the magnesium components in the engine compartment the firefighters went defensive and began to protect the structure. The Chief pulled a 2 ½ gallon pressurized water extinguisher loaded with FireIce and attacked the engine compartment fire with magnesium…
Here are the quotes from the Chief on scene:
“There was none of the usual sparks or small explosion associated with putting water on the fire.”
” The FireIce gel coated and cooled the magnesium as soon as it made contact with the fire.”
“All in all great product can’t wait to use until we can try it on a larger scale like a house fire.”
The District Chief quoted:
“FireIce did exactly what we have seen in the videos.”
“Then it was used on the rest of the interior and put down all the smoke and steam within seconds.”
“Great Stuff, it’s always better to see it in action on a live burn rather than a controlled environment conducted by the seller.”
Many of you said to use foam, but why?? Whether it’s wet foam or dry foam what are you achieving??
Faster knockdown, better cooling abilities, better suffocation??
Here is what foams definition of Heat Resistance: Foam's ability to resist the actual heat of the liquid or surface on which it is applied.
The Firefighters Guide to Foam by National Foam: Rates its AFFF’s heat resistance ability as fair (page 7).
What happens to foam when absorbs heat? Does foam displace heat?
Let's take a moment to look at how foam works and what it can do and CANNOT do.

When foam concentrate is mixed with water, whether you are using a Class A or B product, its main action is to break the surface tension of the water. Thus, the water becomes "lighter" (hence the term "light water"). The principle theory behind Class A foams is that the reduction in surface tension (or separation of the molecular structures of water through adding a surfactant) will allow the water to "penetrate" into tiny cavities, like cracks, crevasses found in porous materials.

By making the water lighter with a Class B product, it allows water to float across the top of hydrocarbon fuels (which normally have a lower specific gravity than water alone). Once the finished foam product is on top of the fuel, the surfactant is then released from the mix, creating a film which covers the fuel and separates it from the oxygen available in the ambient air. This action works very well and I am certain will continue to be a great asset to the fire service for fighting flammable/combustible liquid fires.

What can foam NOT do?

First, with its mediocre heat resistance, it has a hard time standing up to extreme temperatures for any length of time. Even if we aerate the mix, we have to be cognizant of how high heat will affect the finished product. Finished (B) foams are laden with air bubbles to "lighten" the water. What happens to heated air? It will have a drastic increase in molecular activity and will expand, causing the bubbles to burst.

Secondly, if using Class A foam, you cannot "penetrate" a non-porous material (i.e.-solid steel or magnesium). The product will simply run off the fuel.

So.....we are fighting a magnesium engine block fire. It is non-porous AND produces very high heat! Can we put out magnesium with water or foam? Yes, but only from a great (safe) distance and using COPIOUS amounts of either agent. Foam or water will run off of the block easily and will rapidly vaporize under the intense heat.

FireIce is a water enhancer! It will: A) stick to the block and allow more heat absorbing water molecules to continue to "stack" on top of itself, absorbing the heat at a faster rate and for a longer period of time and B) allow us to be closer to the burning product without the explosive effects of applying water to burning magnesium. FireIce will also "coat" the burning block, excluding ambient air from the combustion process…

Stay Safe!

 

By Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer

Hey FireIce Blog Readers! FireIce Academy is back in session!! Please size up the scene…

You are the officer of the first due Engine Company responding to a reported structural collapse of an apartment building.

Upon arrival you see what is pictured. There are No reported missing persons...

What are your initial actions?

What other resources will be needed?

How do you begin Rescue Operations?

What do you do about Safety… for your crew? Bystanders?

How do you secure the scene?
 
Stay Safe!

 

By Rob Rosovich, Fire Protection Engineer