Fireground Tricks of the Trade.....

[seabas]

We get way more mva's than fires out here, and I gotta be honest....the sawzall rocks all other methods. You get a dewalt w/an axe blade...you got yourself a cut windshield. Just keep the patient informed. On top of that, on a good pop, its a hassle switching tools all the time. you can go from removing a windshield to directly cutting pillars if you want to. zero time wasted. i mean..its called a sazALL for a reason..
you get a guy on the tools, a guy at the hydraulic pump, and a guy working the sawzall, and you'll have that thing filleted in no time..

[Lewiston2FF]

I believe that it does create more dust, not to mention the scare factor to the patient. A saw is cutting with back and forth motion. but a hand saw is more of a ripping, look at the blade on a hand saw, for the most part, it is not sharp and it is wider than a blade on a recipricating saw

The windshield saw works on the pull stroke more than the push therefore most of the glass dust being generated is being pulled out of the vehicle. The reciprocating saw works on both the push and pull and will end up with relatively more glass dust in the vehicle. This can be avoided by running a simple bead of Barbasol shave cream along the area to be cut. The shave cream captures the dust.

[NDeMarse]

When am I more off balance on a peaked roof, staying "stationary" working a power saw, or swinging my arms over my head and back with an axe? We did some testing at a drill, we're sticking with saws.

Question on the "fine dust" when cutting a windshield...using a sawzall sends a blade back and forth using a motor, using a hand saw sends a blade back and forth using manual power. Does one really create more dust than the other?

With short, chopping strokes letting the sledge, axe or whatever do the work you are not off balance. You are letting the weight of the tool do the work. Cutting from the ridge pole while straddling the ridge is the safest place to be and is also pretty comfortable to work with little or no balance issues.

If you raise your hands over your head and back, you are surely off balance. However, that is why you aren't supposed to swing a hand tool like that. The proper way is to lift the tool up about chest high and drop it into the roof. If you have to swing like a lumber jack to get through the roof, you need a heavier tool.

If you are off balance with a saw and lose your footing, then you stand the chance of falling AND sawing off a limb or hurting someone else. The same probably would not happen with a hand tool.

[Bones42]

With some of the pitch's on the peak roof's around here, chest level would leave the axe still sitting on the roof, so the only way to get the axe up is to go over the head level. With a saw, at chest level, it's cutting.

[ChicagoFF]

With some of the pitch's on the peak roof's around here, chest level would leave the axe still sitting on the roof, so the only way to get the axe up is to go over the head level. With a saw, at chest level, it's cutting.

I believe he is talking about sitting on the peak and cutting. It sounds like you are talking about doing it off of a ladder? Thats not something you see much of here. We always (I know, you can't say always - but you know what I mean!) cut from the peak at the high point of the roof.

[Bones42]

I understood what he was saying, but we, more often than not, are doing our cuts from a roof ladder. Being on the ocean front, we get some "funky" winds coming at us (as I bet you do) and try our best to stay out of harm's way as much as possible. Also, my tallest structure is only 3 stories.

[Captain5505]

Dont agree with thing. dont car what you use but a sawsall, sawzall will put fine particulate glass into the air. Dont want to be breathing that. Personally I like a windshield hand saw.

Sawsall or window saw both will produce fine dust. Use what you use everyday " Shaving Cream " run a bead of this around the window before cutting, this traps all the dust on the side that the rescuer is on. Try it before ya knock it.

[Lewiston2FF]

Sawsall or window saw both will produce fine dust. Use what you use everyday " Shaving Cream " run a bead of this around the window before cutting, this traps all the dust on the side that the rescuer is on. Try it before ya knock it.

I think I said that up here:

The windshield saw works on the pull stroke more than the push therefore most of the glass dust being generated is being pulled out of the vehicle. The reciprocating saw works on both the push and pull and will end up with relatively more glass dust in the vehicle. This can be avoided by running a simple bead of Barbasol shave cream along the area to be cut. The shave cream captures the dust.

[nbfcfireman]

see what your saying with glass dust on both sides of window.

have heard of shaving cream being used but have never seen or heard or it being used in my area. Lewiston2 you guys use it out there on the west side of the county?

[DeezNutz4u]

I have got to ask Nick Demarse, how long have you been w/ FDNY? Because you sure do have an unbelievable amount of knowledge and experience to share with the fellow brothers. I really didnt think Engine 68 was that busy catching jobs, but I must be mistaken...wow.

-Curious

[pfd4life]

I tried the "wall-walking" technique this evening at a training burn..a captain of mine looked at me while I did it and said"
..wow..cool but useless...now get down here so I can kick your ***"

[CAPPYY]

LMAO! Those Captains are a real pain in the butt!

Heres another trick and I learned it on these very forums about a year back. Take your pressurized water extinguishers (PW's),(Can's),(buckets) whatever they are called in your neck of the woods and after you have put the 2-1/2 gallons of water in them, add 2 oz of Dawn dishwashing liquid (thats the brand I tested). Seal it up and charge it with air. This is one hell of a firefighting tool! I set up two-1inch deep large trays (4x6 ft) and filled them with kerosene and lit em up with a flare. I let them burn for a while so they were boiling and snortin mad. I had engine and amb behind me just in case this was bulls--t, Full PPE, and I hit the first tray with a straight stream blast from the PW. No thumb over the nozzle for spray and the thing flaired slightly and went completely out! I turned to the other tray and used the thumb for spray and walked the fire from the front to the back of the tray with one sweep and it was out. I could not relight them untill the water steamed away and the foam would start to settle to the low end of the tray. It was a real effort to relight these things.
Next, I started spraying this homemade foam on different objects to see the effect it would have on doors and walls and metal etc. It would cling to all of these things and hold the moisture on the objects way longer than just water.
If you are going to try this experiment... make sure you have Dept approval and engine etc standing by so no one gets hurt!

[nbfcfireman]

very cool, homemade wet water or Class A foam

[Lewiston2FF]

see what your saying with glass dust on both sides of window.

have heard of shaving cream being used but have never seen or heard or it being used in my area. Lewiston2 you guys use it out there on the west side of the county?

I did it once, it worked quite well. I tried putting some on the rescue once but someone keeps stealing the shave cream! Actually, I dont think I can remember the last pin job we had. All of the dumb ones are dead now. Mostly minor injuries.

[NDeMarse]

I have got to ask Nick Demarse, how long have you been w/ FDNY? Because you sure do have an unbelievable amount of knowledge and experience to share with the fellow brothers. I really didnt think Engine 68 was that busy catching jobs, but I must be mistaken...wow.

-Curious

Deez,

First of all it's "Nate" and thank you for the compliment.

I have only been in the FDNY for just over 2 years. I was a firefighter in Illinois for several years before that on both volunteer and paid departments. Over two of those years, I served on two departments at the same time.

I am starting my 13th year in the fire service at the end of October. Everything that I post on the threads is really nothing new to the fire service world. There are no groundbreaking techniques that I invented. Basically, everything that I post is what I have learned from my mentors from all over the world and have tried them out in my practical setting and have found them to work. (i.e. I wouldn't post anything that I haven't tried myself, unless I state otherwise).

My mentors include firefighters like Tom Brennan, Vincent Dunn, Frank Brannigan, John Norman, Andy O'Donnell, Ray & Bob Hoff, Dave Fornell, Andrew Fredricks, Ray Downey, John Morris, Paul Grimwood and several others. If you listen, read, watch, and try out things that the guys mentioned above talk about, you pick up something new everyday! It doesn't take a lot of thought to figure out that when these guys teach, it isn't something that they read out of a book. All of their knowledge is from "doing" the things they teach and not reading it like other "instructors".

I basically have dedicated my entire career to learning the job as many other firefighters do. I have been lucky enough to work alongside some of the best firefighters in the country (here and in Illinois) and learn a ton from them. I have also been lucky enough to work in a department that will let me use the experience that I have gained quite frequently. I think it would be a sin to not pass on the experiences that I have had to other firefighters.

I also (as of a few years ago) stepped up my career to passing on some of the knowledge that I have learned from my mentors. I now try to use their teaching techniques and classroom techniques to teach new firefighters the job. I enjoy instructing and will hopefully be doing it for quite sometime.

Sorry guys, that's enough for me tooting my own horn! But, now you know where I am coming from at least. I have some truck tips that I will post (probably Sunday night) later on.

As I stated before, we have a great thread going here. Keep them coming. There are a lot of people eating this thread up, and I am learning something everytime I visit. For example, I have never heard of the shaving cream on the windshield!

Have a safe one

[DeezNutz4u]

Nate:

I have been looking up some of your other informative posts to help develop my firefighting career. I didnt realize you were on Westmont. I too am from Illinois. I know those guys dont see too much action, but they seem like nice men. Your Engine in New York must be incredibly busy with fires (or 'jobs' as you guys call them!) to have gained so much experience in just 2 short years. Wow. Please tell me all about it! I have GOT to test out there! ENGINE 68 OR BUST!!!!

[firefight99]

nutz... get a life

[ChicagoFF]

Nate:

I have been looking up some of your other informative posts to help develop my firefighting career. I didnt realize you were on Westmont. I too am from Illinois. I know those guys dont see too much action, but they seem like nice men. Your Engine in New York must be incredibly busy with fires (or 'jobs' as you guys call them!) to have gained so much experience in just 2 short years. Wow. Please tell me all about it! I have GOT to test out there! ENGINE 68 OR BUST!!!!

What explorer post do you belong to?

[NDeMarse]

Nate:

I have been looking up some of your other informative posts to help develop my firefighting career. I didnt realize you were on Westmont. I too am from Illinois. I know those guys dont see too much action, but they seem like nice men. Your Engine in New York must be incredibly busy with fires (or 'jobs' as you guys call them!) to have gained so much experience in just 2 short years. Wow. Please tell me all about it! I have GOT to test out there! ENGINE 68 OR BUST!!!!

This guy is great, silly me for taking his first post seriously!

Instead of mucking up a good discussion thread, please take your antics (guest member antics at that) somewhere else. There is learning trying to take place here.

If you would like to challenge me on anything I post to not work, then please do! Something tells me that won't happen though, because you have "better" things to do, right?

I don't hide behind any fancy screennames or guest memberships. Everyone knows or can easily find out who I am or what I stand for. I stand behind and take responsibility for everything I post with my name signed to it.

Sorry to everyone else who has to read this, but unfortunately "Deez" doesn't leave a personal email to reach him at! IMAGINE THAT!

[ChicagoFF]

Do you suppose NoNutz will come back and tell us just what department he works for?