Smooth bore Vs. Fog

[Firefletch67]

I have heard a lot of different opinions about which nozzle is better, but alot of the forums and chats are up north departments that typically run a lot of commercial fires, Here in Florida, for the average residential, which is really better? I personally am 50/50, they both have their pro's and con's!!!

[Firemedic 61]

This is a HUGE topic at my dept. We have (4) 1-3/4" preconnects on our engines/quint/truck, (2) fog and (2) 15/16" smooth bores. I have used both and they each have their advantages/disadvantages. The rep from the company we get our F500 told us that smooth bores are better for using foam
because there is more agitation when a solid stream hits a hard surface than when using a fog stream. What ever, he's probably more of an expert than I am on this, at least I would hope. I prefer, and it maybe because thats what my past Lt's had us use, a smooth bore for structure fires, especially interior ops. It does less damage to the thermal layering and produces less steam on a really hot fire due to dia. of the stream vs. a bunch of tiny water droplets. Especially in the hands of new, inexperienced F/F's. You can perform hydraulic overhaul(a smooth bore will tear the ***** out of drywall), but you can also cause increased water damage if you don't know what your doing. For smaller fires I do think that a fog is better only because you create less damage with it, which is a big part of our job. This has been debated probably a hundred times on here and everyone has a different opinion. The best thing to do is to use both and then make your own decision. Try them during training burns(good luck getting many now in Florida).

[wag11c]

A never ending debate: Our Dept uses both and also has break-away nozzles with a fog and 1" solid bore tip. The bottom line is to get proficient on attack methods and train on it. I'll not enter into the "which is better debate" (although I prefer solids..ooops).

[giweff]

They are both good and both serve a purpose all I can say I choose what ever works best for you and your dept. I agree with everyone else who says they both have pros and cons its up to you and your officer probably more the officer. But that is how the fire service works.