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4500 psi SCBA
We are considering a complete changeover from to 4500 psi SCBA. I would like to hear from others who have positive experience with these longer duration units, and also anyone that has had increased problems from FF stamina. (Please, only respond with negative experiences if you have adequate controls such as S.O.P.'s and functional rehab and you still had problems.) Thanks!
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4.5'S ARE GREAT!! We have 1 hour bottles and they have had no significant decrease in firefighter stamina, and allow for more work to be done at once. Plus its very comforting to know you have that much more air should the need arise. -
I have said this before and will explain it again here. A common misconception amongst firefighters is that 4500 SCBA are automatically going to have more air than 2200's. Its not that simple.
High pressure SCBA are much the same as low pressure but, with a significant advantage: Bottle size (smaller). Think of it this way...Take your 2200 PSI bottle with 30 minutes of rated air, envision a big plunger squeezing the air until it reaches 4500 PSI. What you are left over with is a portion of your bottle that is now empty. So a 30 minute 4500 bottle is roughly half or 3/4 the size of a 30 minute 2200 bottle because the air is under greater pressure and fits into a smaller container. If you dont mind your 30 minute 2200 bottle sizes, then when you upgrade, get 4500 bottles with 45 or 60 minute ratings and their size will be roughly equal to your old 2200 bottles with 30 minute ratings. Just upgrading to 4500 with 30 minute bottles will not give you any noticable advantages with the exception of weight reduction (because of the smaller bottle). The difference is in volume (cubic feet of air) not pressure.
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The information presented herein is simply my opinion and does not represent the opinion or view of my employer(s) or any department/agency to which I belong.
[This message has been edited by M G (edited 04-17-2001).]Comment
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MG, agreed, i wasn't too specific about why the more time was enjoyed although i did mention the 1 hour bottles, definatly keep what MG said in mind.Comment
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We bought 2 Scott 4.5's about a year or so ago. They are great. We only got 30 minute bottles, though. We also still use our 30 minute 2.2's and it is easy to tell a difference in the two packs. The 4.5 is signifgantly lighter, and that by itself increases your stamina and the amount of time you get out a bottle is also increased.Comment
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Just some humor:
Doesn't beer come in bottles and air come in cylinders??
[This message has been edited by NKF (edited 04-18-2001).]Comment
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Well sup, we have the 2216 bottles. 2.2packs They are very heavy. Alot of our members are pushing for the new bottles, I don't think it will happen, because they will have to replace them 15years, they don't want anything more to replace.
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