As firefighters, you may be exposed to high levels of radiation and heat during your job. These factors can add up to be heavy gear!
For example, a radon detector can cost you over $100! As with all equipment, quality is expensive. You would rather have a good piece of firefighter gear than just buy one off the shelf!
Luckily, quality affordable firefighter gear is out there. Now, that is not always the case with high-end gear. Some may say that cheap does have a value to it as some durable firefighter gear will last you a while.
There are many ways to save money on fire fighter equipment.
Contents:
Firefighter jacket
When choosing fire fighter gear, you should be aware of the typical firefighter build. Some build strengths lie in more weight or thickness of materials such as metal or leather.
For example, heavy metal firefighter vests are stronger than cloth vests. Likewise, a leather jacket is more durable than a winter coat with a plastic frame.
Some physical assets like strength and leanness preferences for shirts and pants styles. Some people prefer baggy clothes to thin, tight clothing. Others like slim, tight clothing that keeps them warm during winter weather conditions.
When looking at brands, it is important to find ones with good customer service. You want to know that they stand behind their gear, if something malfunctions or gets damaged.
Firefighter pants
Most firefighters wear t-shirt and sweatsuit, or just jeans and a jacket. A jacket can be valuable in keeping you safe.
When working in high risk areas such as an industrial zone or chemical facility, fire fighters are given additional measures to be safer. These include wear orange safety clothing, work in a protected environment with safety precautions in place, and keep a good first aid knowledge on yourself.
Slim fit firefighter pants are one of the most preferred pair of firefighter pants by wearing. They provide nice control over the fire fighter’s shape and freedom of motion. A quality denim may also keep its shape better than soft leather or rubber materials. Keep in mind that if the fire fighter is working with their hands rather than wearing pants to prevent injury to the hands, then they must have sturdy enough jeans to do so.
Firefighter boots are another important piece of firefighter gear. They must be sturdy enough to hold up under heavy duty activity and still look professional at the same time.
Firefighting boots
As the name suggests, firefighter boot provides you with enough space in which to maneuver. They are usually made from rubber or leather, and they protect your feet from fire exposed areas.
These boots are large to comfortably fit in the foot area. This is important as you will be walking on hard floors, and potentially wet ones. If they do not fit well, it can make it difficult to perform your duties effectively.​
Another key part of the firefighter uniform is the firefighter coat caucus. This is usually a long-sleeved shirt with cargo pants or shorts. You may also want to wear a jacket if it is hot out, or you do not want to wear a dress shirt and jacket because of their size.
Personal protective equipment
When someone wears firefighter gear, they need to be mindful of what size they are and which pieces of firefighter gear best meet their needs.
When it comes toιweight, the more weight the better!? There are two main categories of firefighter equipment: weight and volume.
Weight can be a metric like grams or lbs, or even ounces! ? Volume depends on what pieces of equipment you are talking about. ?
Gear that sits on top of a body system like a vest or pants can have a little bit less volume than some piece that goes on the body like an air filter.
When looking at volume, there are some things that must be considered. If someone has very large needs, then they should look for more equipment than if they were average in size? It is also important to know which types of equipment do and do not need to be in ?perfruit? condition to wear and function output wise.
Fire hose
When fire fighters do get into a burning building, they need to protect themselves from the burning building. This can be done in many ways. One way is with a fire hose.
To protect yourself with a fire hose, you must buy safety goggles and a face mask. The goggles prevent you from seeing the water coming out of the hose and giving you an idea of how much pressure it has.
The face mask helps you sleep because it keeps your eyes closed and nose and mouth dry during the day to prevent skin irritation. You also have to buy safety shoes and hands and feet and the list goes on.
At night when fires are active, You will need firefighter gear to protect yourself from burns or damage from falling debris or flames. Also, during the day when fires are active, You will need protective clothing as well as footwear to avoid heatstroke or burn injuries.
Axes
An axe is one of the most common things a fire fighter must have. Most axes have a wood planed part and a plastic handle. The difference is in how you use the axe.
If you use the plastic handle end to cut branch or thick vegetation, it makes more noise doing so. If you use the wood end to chop trees, it sounds louder and more impressive.
Many fire fighters choose to start with a non-military style knife and fork to learn how to eat with. The military style knives are stronger and may not be as easy to get started on. After that, depending on your skill level, people move ontoogunks or kitchen knives,shields, pry bars, cleavers, etc.
Barrels of water
As the name implies, firefighter gear is made out of a material that weighs a lot. This material is typically Nomex, an industrial cloth that is heavy and resilient.
Like all cut material, Nomex can stretch or tear easily. If your firefighter gear looks stretched or torn, this is likely because it was bought new and may not have been taken in water at times.
Having nice looking worn equipment is a way to save money buying new equipment every year. By putting some water crocodile logos on it, you have created a cheap way to advertising your product.
Helmets weigh around 3.5 pounds
Most head protection contains Corian or some equivalent. This has to be glued onto the head before it is screwed on.
There are several companies that produce replacement heads for standard safety head protections. These include Shield, A&K, and G-SHOCK. All of these have different sizes of helmets to choose from.
To put down a helmet you first have to remove the face shield and then push down on the top portion of the helmet. This finally breaks off the rest of the helmet which had been held in place by a temporary cover.
The face shield provides protection against flying objects and possibly wet conditions where water can be a factor in telling your condition is good weathering. The temporary cover prevents snow or other debris from getting into the helmet which can cause suffocation.