Surviair

[Haligan125]

Can anyone tell me about theese? We had a dealer come to the department and talk about them a little. What do people think about them
YEah, I see that I missed a v don;t kill me

[This message has been edited by Haligan125 (edited 11-29-2000).]

[MetalMedic]

We had Survivair at the department I was on previous to the one I am on now which uses Scott. I liked the Survivair face pieces much better than the Scott and the units always seemed to be more rugged than the Scott. I have also used Dreager which has some good and bad points.

The only bad thing about the Survivair I recall was that the regulator had a large knob to turn on the by-pass. These were prone to be turned on accidently when you bumped them while doing building searches and such. If they have corrected that, I would say you can't go wrong with them if the price is right.



------------------
Richard Nester
Orrville (OH) Fire Dept.

[FD111]

The survivair packs are good packs. The department that use to vollie for used the survivair panther. This is a nice pack. If you go with them make sure that you get the 20/20 mask and the carbon fiber bottles. The total weight of the pack with the carbon fiber bottle was 17 lbs. It almost seems like you don't have anything on your back. I would recommend them to anyone. We payed $2000 a pack, and that included a spare bottle.

[FF.FOREVER]

Take it from a brother from Maine Haligan.. I got one word for you SCOTT.. #1 pak in America!! We had a dept next to use go with all new Drager 4.5 paks.. They seem to really like them but I still say Scott is the BEST pak on the market. Look at most magor cities and see what they are using. As for the gentleman that said the Survivair is more rugged then the Scott I don't believe it. We had the Suvrivair paks at my station and what a piece of junk. Granted we didn't have the new ones but still just the thought. Now we are using the MSA MMR2. We have 10 in service and seem to be working very well But still my heart is with Scott!!! I will say that Scott is more expensive than the competors but just remember you get what you pay for!

[Company40]

My department has used Survivair for more than 10 years. The packs have been good to us. MetalMedic is right about the emergency by-pass knob. On the older packs with the regulator assembly on the waist belt, it is easy to accidently turn it on. The newer models (Sigma and Panther) have a knob on the regulator that connects to the face piece. I personally haven't had any problem accidentally turning on the bypass. The packs seem to be rugged, we have not had any real problems with them. You get a good product for what you pay. The new Panther model has a good list of options that make the pack more comfortable and user friendly. One problem we did find was a lack of companies to service Survivairs. There is only one company near us that will work on Survivairs. They are not the greatest company, but they are the only company.

[firetrucker]

I have to agree with FF.forever I had the privilage of using both surviveair and scott while doing some training at the beginning of this year. My conclusion: I would rather hold my breath than go in without a scott pack. Now with that said, I am involved with 2 depts, one uses the scott with the 4500 bottles and the other uses the low pressure 2216 bottles. Another conclusion - get the 4500 bottles, if you have to squeeeeeeze through a tight space such as wall studs with the 2216 bottles you had better be pretty good with an ax because your going to need some extra room!
Soooo in conclusion say it with me here.... SCOTT Good, Surviveair BAD

[TXFIRE6]

one word..GARBAGE!!! I've had the opportunity over the years to use Scott, MSA, ISI, Survivair, and Draeger, and can honestly say I'd put Survivair at the bottom of the list. Everything from comfort, to ease of use they are bad. Scott is by far the best made. MSA second, but Survivair is way far on the list. I don't speak much badly about products, but they are not worth even looking at.

------------------
Any Opinion expressed, are my own, and do not reflect my Department...RB

[Pulaski646]

HALIGAN125!

YOU KNOW WHO THIS IS! I've told you about "SURPRISEAIR's"! I've told you how at high temp's they will literally burn off your back. Firefighters have died using these Air Packs. Maybe they have improved on their quality, but with a track record of that sort, I got two words for ya... STAY AWAY! And if it's a question of "Well this is all our Department can afford." Then you become well trained on Deck Guns and 2 1/2 lines for EXTERIOR ATTACK. We're in the buisness to save lives, Not risk our own to save a little money!

Remember you gotta look out for number 1.... But don't step in number 2! :-)

God Loves Us All

[Haligan125]

Thanks Chief. Where did pulaski come from? It was the guy from R&R. I would rather go with Scotts but we will see. I just finished a night shift and haven;t been to sleep so I think I will go to bed

[Clyde Cushing II]

Junk. That is what they are. My department in Machias used them. We had five out of six FAIL during a structor fire. Right now we are converting over to Scotts. My opinion is that Scotts are the best around.

[Ford45]

Hey, I have a question for you anti-survivair people. Are you talking about the old survivair packs?? And if so, how old?? We just tried out MSA, Scott, Survivair and ISI. We went from the ISI Vikings to the Survivair Panther II's. It was close between that and Scott, but I was wondering what kind of falures people were having, and if it was on the new packs or the older ones. Input Appriciated. Thanks. Peace.

------------------
Matt
Newtown Fire Association
Station 45

[M G]

Did someone say Surprise air??

[firetrucker]

Well this should about sum things up. This is a copy of an email my brother frowarded to me from CT this morning.

State of Connecticut
Commission on Fire Prevention and Control

CT FIREnews

Providing one way, direct, up-to-date fire service information via Email

================================================== ============

December 1, 2000


SURVIVAIR URGENT SAFETY NOTICE
SCBA TWENTYTWENTY UPPER RIM REPLACEMENT
June 28, 2000

Survivair has received scattered reports from the field that the lens of
the Twenty-Twenty mask has separated from the mask rims. Under those circumstances it is possible that the lens may separate entirely from the mask skirt. This can lead to a serious safety hazard. All Twenty-Twenty masks that meet the criteria below must be fitted with a modified P/N 962031 upper rim. Only Twenty-Twenty facepieces that do not have an "X" stamped on the upper rim need to be retrofitted (see figure below). If the rim does not have an "X" as shown below, it must be replaced. Please replace the upper rim only with one that has an "X" etched into the plastic. Then destroy and discard all upper rims that do not have an "X". Please contact your distributor with the number of P/N 962031 rims and Rim Replacement Instructions you will need to change over to the modified upper rims. All replacement rims will be provided to you free-of-charge. Users of the Twenty-Twenty facepiece are authorized by Survivair to accomplish this replacement. It does not need to be conducted by Survivair-certified technicians. Please discard all 962031 rims, whether on facepieces or stored as spare parts that do not have the "X". We know of no one who has had any injuries as a result of the lens separation. Nonetheless, we are conducting this retrofit in the interest of our users' safety.

Sincerely yours,
Susan Butler
Manager, Customer Service

This notice is for the Twenty-Twenty facepiece only. This notice does not
affect the Classic facepiece.
If you need the services of a Survivair Warranty Center for this retrofit
or any other reconditioning or overhaul, send your SCBA units to:

American Airworks
Survivair National Warranty Center
209 E. Main St.
Sophia, WV 25921-1000
or talk to an authorized technician; call 1-800-523-7222, 304-683-4595, or
Fax 304-683-3257 today.

[MTNRESQ]

Survivair is the only way to go, All those Scott fans must be full time union guys.
we have Sigma's at our station never a problem with them. For you volleys for the weight savings in the 4500 carbon fiber bottles, remember they are only good for 15 years. 2216 Aluminum are a better buy.

[Halligan84]

Full time union guys? What sense does that make? Scott gets a loyal following for making quality equipment and backing it up. The basic model of the 4.5 has been around for 25 years!.. how many other manufacturers are just catching up or still chasing Scott? I've never worn a Survivair, so I can't comment on them. As far as the 15 year life span.. just how long do you want to keep your cylinders? The only thing the 15 year life span has done to us is force us to continually upgrade to lighter weight cylinders... sounds like a bonus to me.