Utility truck with cascade

[txgp17]

Inside your 6,000 psi cascade bottle the -65 dew point becomes about + 42 deg. F. Now when you take your cascade out into the cold, there will be water condensing on the inside of your 6,000 psi cylinders at temperatures below 42 deg. F.

Pay close attention to KuhShise's advise. Water is the #1 enemy of breathing air systems.

When I was maintaining the mobile compressor/cascade system for my volly dept, I adjusted the pressure maintaining valve so that no air could exit the purification system until it reached 4,000 psi. The aided in the removal of water from the air, which is a big issue down here in the Southeast.

You'll have no such option with a cascade, you'll just have to take what they give you, unless you really know what you're doing.

[blsfeich]

Utility Truck with Cascade

When putting together a truck like this do you consider NFPA, DOT, NIOSH, etc.?

[sfd2674]

We have something very similar to what you're looking to do. Its a 1999 Ford F-350 with a diesel, Stahl body, and was put together by Monroe Truck.

Originally conceived as a lower cost manpower and EMS rig, the cascade and fill station was added in 2005 (give or take a year) as we had leftover money from an SCBA grant, so a rack with four 6000 psi cylinders and an Eagle Sidewinder fill station was installed in the body. The Sidewinder was the only fill enclosure that could handle two bottles at a time and still fit in the existing foot print of the body without making modifications. The cylinders sit in the body arranged front to rear, two on top of two in a rack where originally a large full length slide out tray was installed. There may be other fill enclosures now available that could fit, but I'm not sure what's new since we bought ours.

If I were to put the existing setup in a new rig, I'd probably push for a one ton 4x4 pickup chassis with a topper. The Stahl body is starting to show its age, with rot issues, etc. The "right" topper that would allow the removal of the tailgate and have a large rear door for the entire rear of the rig would make access to the fill station very easy, and perhaps having side access doors above the side of the bed on each side could allow some other equipment to be carried. Our current rig is not 4wd, and in the winter 4wd for us is always a nice convenience.

The only issue I see in using a pickup with our current fill station is an avenue for the "blast" if a bottle fails needs to be cut under the fill station. I suppose you could cut into the pickup bed like we had to do with the floor in our Stahl body, but I'd be hesitant.

I like that our little unit with the cascade is not a big squad because then it isn't committing lots of resources just to provide air. If somone needs our air, all we send is a unit that really only runs on med runs or as a manpower unit. We're not taking extrication or lighting capabilities out of service to use it or refill it. Being a smaller rig, we can often sneak it closer to a scene which helps getting bottles filled and SCBAs back in service quicker.

I can try to snap some photos of it if you're interested.

If you could provide some pictures that would be perfect sounds like you have exactly what i was looking for like i said we have an '03-04 dualy F350 right now with almost no miles on it. Right now its just a quad cab pickup with an 8 foot bed and a Cap on it no equipment at all. Just looking to use what we have to serve a greater purpose.

[LaFireEducator]

Personality, I like the trailer idea as it can sit in the bay at the station as a fixed unit, or be towed to a scene, and you still have the use of the pickup as a utility truck.

The other advantage of the trailer is that it can simply be unhooked at a long-term scene without tying up a truck. Just my opinion.

[neiowa]

Unless you have more manpower at a scene than you know what to do with, do you need to add another task? I submit that calling mutual aid or county EMA etc to operate cylinder refill is a great idea. Or to operate the tanker fill site, or lay the LDH or etc etc etc. Keep you FF at the fire. (And less expensive for you than operating another piece of equipment.)

If you need a few more SCBA cylinders (more than 2/pack) to cover the time until mutual aid arrives buy them. Still less expensive and more useful.

And trailer mounted works great. Our cascade is DOD surplus trailer with 8x tanks. Was brand new, cost us nothing and NO insurance.

[CaptOldTimer]

Why not check with the delivery folks, Fed-Ex and UPS to see if they will donate to your department a good used step van type truck. They are very well maintained.

They are pretty rugged and you can mount the cascade system in the cargo area also all the spare cylinders that you can muster up.

You will have to paint it and add lights, etc., but there are tough trucks!

[npfd801]

If you could provide some pictures that would be perfect sounds like you have exactly what i was looking for like i said we have an '03-04 dualy F350 right now with almost no miles on it. Right now its just a quad cab pickup with an 8 foot bed and a Cap on it no equipment at all. Just looking to use what we have to serve a greater purpose.

I'll try to snap some photos, or dig up something that I already have.

[CTVFIRE]

Cru

As an option :

http://www.piercemfg.com/CRU.html

[sfd2674]

sounds good thanks

[LaFireEducator]

As an option :

http://www.piercemfg.com/CRU.html

This type of a system is very common in Europe with the construction-dumpster size roll on-roll off units.

Configurations include tanker pods, LDH pods, technical rescue/haz-mat pods, command unit pods and heavy duty lighting pods.

Hasn't really caught on here yet though it seems like a pretty efficient way to have a number of specialized response configurations with a minimum number of chassis.

[Ledebuhr1]

If you had a Pierce CRU, and had a skid unit. Would the water tank have to be empty to lift it in the truck? If you then had to fill the water tank, this would greatly slow response times. I see very limited use for something like that, do to the time it take to change units.

[Rescue101]

If you had a Pierce CRU, and had a skid unit. Would the water tank have to be empty to lift it in the truck? If you then had to fill the water tank, this would greatly slow response times. I see very limited use for something like that, do to the time it take to change units.

Nope,they will "hoss" a full skid. T.C.

[neiowa]

The Pierce units are babies. All sizes available up to as big as you could want. Largest user in the world is US Army. Great stuff. But expensive (even before brand P gets their hands it).

http://www.oshkoshdefense.com/defens...s~pls~home.cfm