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About LinkBacksWhat do you or your dept use to wash your turnout gear? In my dept we just use regular liquid laundry detergent. We wash liners, shells, and hoods in it and haven't had a problem.
View Poll Results: How do you wash your bunker gear?
- Voters
- 45. You may not vote on this poll
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Cleaning agents from manufactuer
3 6.67% -
Gear cleaning agents sold from local dealer
14 31.11% -
Regular laundry detergent
24 53.33% -
No cleaning agent at all
4 8.89%
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Results 1 to 14 of 14
Thread: Washing Bunker Gear
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05-12-2002, 12:35 PM #1Senior Member
- Join Date
- Jul 2001
- Posts
- 445
Washing Bunker Gear
Member IACOJ & IACOJ EMS Bureau
New England FOOL
"LEATHER FOREVER"
As always these are strictly my own opinions and views
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05-12-2002, 01:40 PM #2MembersZone Subscriber
- Join Date
- Jan 2002
- Location
- league city texas
- Posts
- 62
we have 2 washing machines 1 on the east side and 1 on the west, these are the heavy duty type machines that add the detergents and cleaners automaticaly also cleans gear for blood borne pathogens. rather expensive machines but they get the job done.
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05-12-2002, 01:43 PM #3dazed and confused
- Join Date
- Dec 2000
- Location
- New England
- Posts
- 1,993
There is no problem with doing this. The garment labels that now come with gear all recoomend this. Things to remember:
wash liners separate from shells
no bleach/chlorine
liquid detergents recommended
front loading washers recommended... extractors preferred
best to have a dedicated machine... don't use a public machine or even worse, your one at home
air dry out of sunlight/UV light. fans work swell.
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05-12-2002, 02:38 PM #4Member
- Join Date
- Apr 2002
- Location
- Louisville
- Posts
- 31
We purchased a machine that is advertised for washing turnout gear. From what I can remeber it is called a Uni-Mac (not sure if thats right). It is advertised in Firehouse Magazine and Fire Engineering. It works great however if I remeber right it costs us $10,000. we also purchased a industrial dryer to go along with it. As for detergent, we order it locally. It is made by Lever 2000. It also has a neutralizer that goes with it. If you are doing a search for the machine, I believe it is advertised as an extracter.
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05-12-2002, 03:05 PM #5Senior Member
- Join Date
- Jul 2001
- Posts
- 445
Interesting, we use a washer and dryer that we some how acquired.
Member IACOJ & IACOJ EMS Bureau
New England FOOL
"LEATHER FOREVER"
As always these are strictly my own opinions and views
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05-12-2002, 03:15 PM #6MembersZone Subscriber
- Join Date
- Mar 2002
- Location
- Loco madidus effercio in rutilus effercio.
- Posts
- 12,819
Our Dept uses a standard home type heavy duty washer, and regular detergent to wash with. We hang dry everything inside the building - takes about a day to dry liners and shells. Other than the washer is dedicated strictly to washing gear and rags nothing special about it.
If you don't do it RIGHT today, when will you have time to do it over? (Hall of Fame basketball player/coach John Wooden)
"I may be slow, but my work is poor." Chief Dave Balding, MVFD
"Its not Rocket Science. Just use a LITTLE imagination."
(Me)
Get it up. Get it on. Get it done!
impossible solved cotidie. miracles postulo viginti - quattuor hora animadverto
IACOJ member: Cheers, Play safe y'all.
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05-12-2002, 04:23 PM #7Member
- Join Date
- Mar 2002
- Location
- St Louis Mo
- Posts
- 29
I just take out the liners, wash them in a washer.
take the outers outside with a bucket & brush ,hose it off.
hang on the line for a day
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05-12-2002, 07:35 PM #8Member
- Join Date
- Apr 2002
- Location
- Louisville
- Posts
- 31
You can find washing instruction for Kevlar(PBI), Nomex, and Spectra @ http://www.hatch-corp.com/OtherPages/care.html. They are pretty straight foward and should help anyone looking for advice. The one thing noted is never use bleach.
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05-12-2002, 07:37 PM #9District Chief
- Join Date
- Mar 2001
- Location
- Florida
- Posts
- 6,413
marcelstl...do not wash your liner in a machine that has an agitator in it. The twisting back and forth action tears at the fibers and destroys it causing delamination....especially in the vapor barrier.
Also...a reminder to all. You should air dry the gear. DO NOT DRY IN A DRYER and do not place in direct sunlight.
Also...make sure you check the PH of the material you are using to wash with. It should be no higher than 10.5 per NFPA 1851. Make sure it does not contain sodium hydroxied, sodium silicates and sodium hypochlorites. Ask for the MSDS sheets. These are all chemicals in bleach.
Yes...wash liner and outer shell seperately.09-11 .. 343 "All Gave Some..Some Gave ALL" God Bless..R.I.P.
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IACOJ Minister of Southern Comfort
"Purple Hydrant" Recipient (3 Times)
BMI Investigator
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The comments, opinions, and positions expressed here are mine. They are expressed respectfully, in the spirit of safety and progress. They do not reflect the opinions or positions of my employer or my department.
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05-13-2002, 10:51 AM #10Senior Member
- Join Date
- Oct 2001
- Location
- Missouri
- Posts
- 163
We have the comercial front loading type machine and use a non bleach liquid detergent. For drying, we take out the bottom racks of our mechanical hose dryer and hang the gear in there. The hose dryer worked so well, one of our fire fighters made a second one with a squirell cage fan on top just for the gear. It will hold and dry 3 full sets of bunkers in a matter of a couple hours.
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05-13-2002, 11:52 AM #11MembersZone Subscriber
- Join Date
- Sep 2001
- Location
- The southern shore of beautiful Lake Michigan
- Posts
- 250
Drying
I have always wondered why you shouldn't dry your gear in a machine.
Is it the tumbling??? Like the washers tumble? (front loader)
Is it the heat??? It can't be the heat!!!
Just curious.FTM-PTB
trk4
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05-13-2002, 06:12 PM #12District Chief
- Join Date
- Mar 2001
- Location
- Florida
- Posts
- 6,413
gfdtrk4 That is a good question... I have asked it also and never got a good answer. It has to do with the garment not having a way to relieve the heat... I think...
09-11 .. 343 "All Gave Some..Some Gave ALL" God Bless..R.I.P.
------------------------------
IACOJ Minister of Southern Comfort
"Purple Hydrant" Recipient (3 Times)
BMI Investigator
------------------------------
The comments, opinions, and positions expressed here are mine. They are expressed respectfully, in the spirit of safety and progress. They do not reflect the opinions or positions of my employer or my department.
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05-14-2002, 12:14 PM #13Senior Member
- Join Date
- Oct 2001
- Location
- Missouri
- Posts
- 163
gfdtrk4
When we bought our washer and dryer, we were told by a neighboring dept who had purchased one a year or so before us that when they dried their gear, they started noticing the seams on the gear started giving out a lot quicker.
When they stopped using the dryer, the seams stayed.
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05-15-2002, 12:41 AM #14Forum Member
- Join Date
- Dec 2000
- Location
- WV
- Posts
- 99
We have an extractor to wash our gear, and a front-loading dryer. Not sure what the detergent is that is used for the gear - it's a liquid that's sucked out of some bottles that sit alongside, and I've never had to change them. The dryer is an industrial-sized unit, but it's more of an airflow dryer, as there's no heat involved. Takes about 1.5 hrs to dry the shells or liners.
Never have seen any problems with seams coming apart using this method. Machine design maybe?HazMat
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We gotta be nuts...we're running in when the rats & roaches are running out!
Let No Victim's Ghost Say That We Didn't Try
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Disclaimer:
These are my opinions, and only mine, and do not reflect the views of my department.
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