Fire Season

[HILLBILLYREDNEC]

Well the fire season has been pretty light so far this week. Wondering how many of you guys carry fire tools and a water sprayer like the old style piss cans. Had to stop and help knock down a fire tonight, had in under control with the help of several other guys. Had my Stihl pressurized chemical sprayer full of wet water and it sure helped a lot. So I figured I would see what you guys carry in other states.

 

[Youngbuck20]

Wet water is most definitely the best kind of water to put out fires. I would use no other.

 

[madhatte]

Youngbuck, at the risk of sounding like a joker, and at the further risk of sounding like I agree with HBRN on something, I feel obliged to point out that foam additives for firefighting are often called "wet water" because the lower surface tension makes the water a more effective wetting agent. That said, I drive a type six wildfire rig with a 250 gallon tank and a 23-HP B&S pump engine. I don't use foam because my agency isn't really allowed to; we mostly fight fire by back-burning. Water is pretty much only used for mop-up.

 

[Brian13]

Youngbuck, at the risk of sounding like a joker, and at the further risk of sounding like I agree with HBRN on something, I feel obliged to point out that foam additives for firefighting are often called "wet water" because the lower surface tension makes the water a more effective wetting agent. That said, I drive a type six wildfire rig with a 250 gallon tank and a 23-HP B&S pump engine. I don't use foam because my agency isn't really allowed to; we mostly fight fire by back-burning. Water is pretty much only used for mop-up.

We put Ivory dish soap in all our engines and water cans for that same reason. And I still laugh when they call it wet water LOL.

 

[2dogs]

Youngbuck, at the risk of sounding like a joker, and at the further risk of sounding like I agree with HBRN on something, I feel obliged to point out that foam additives for firefighting are often called "wet water" because the lower surface tension makes the water a more effective wetting agent. That said, I drive a type six wildfire rig with a 250 gallon tank and a 23-HP B&S pump engine. I don't use foam because my agency isn't really allowed to; we mostly fight fire by back-burning. Water is pretty much only used for mop-up.

We know what you meant but just for clarification the terms foam and wetting agent (wet water) are not interchangeable. In addition there are sub-groups within those two chemicals. (I don't have time to elaborate right now.)

There is a 5 gallon backpack pump in my truck and like HBRN I carry a small bottle foam (and a foam nozzle). I have 3 or 4 backpumps that go out on jobs. Sometimes I have a skid pump that belongs to an agency we do work for.

BTW I made a run into the Sierras yesterday and hit rain. It is either 100 degrees or it is raining. Weird.

 

[paccity]

well forest capatal is at it again. shut down everything west of here. fire danger my azz , it's still so wet i could drop flares out there and it wouldnt burn. just means i have to drive 60 miles around to go fishin.:censored:

 

[madhatte]

We know what you meant but just for clarification the terms foam and wetting agent (wet water) are not interchangeable. In addition there are sub-groups within those two chemicals.

Zing! You got me. I was just tryin' to head off a thread de-rail at the pass.

 

[Youngbuck20]

Well don't I look like an arse. I'm a volunteer firefighter and we use foam on all house fires at one point or another, never heard it called wet water. Now I know.

 

[slowp]

I have not been on the fireline since 1988. Wetwater existed then. In fact, we Westsiders used to drink out of the firehoses when we burned slash, but never on fires because it might be wetwater.

 

[HILLBILLYREDNEC]

Wet Water

Water with added chemicals, any chemical that increases the surface tension of water to adhere to the burning material. Foam or dish soap or the new fire retarding gels.

 

[paccity]

google?

 

[2dogs]

Nope. Wrong again. Wetting agents and class A foams REDUCE the surface tension of water. The effect is similar to washing your hands with soap vs. plain water. Increasing the surface tension of water would have no effect on causing water to "adhere" to a burning surface. BTW fire retarding gels are neither a foam nor a wetting agent.

Wetting agents and foam are not interchangeable terms. There many types of foams in firefighting but assuming we are talking about wildland firefighting we only consider class A foam. Foam is a mixture of water, air, and a foaming agent. It provides a 3 dimensional structure with the advantage that as the foam drains off the water it does so slowly. Most foams are also a wetting agent and are also easier to see where the application occured. Wetting agents while they may foam a little bit are intended to make water spread and penetrate the surface of a solid. Wetting agents are used primarily in mop-up but can be used during initial attack. Used during mop-up drastically reduces man power and time spent. Wetting agents are generally dumped into the tank while foam requires a proportioning device.

Ivory soap and dish detergents are not very effective compared to firefighting specific agents. In addition those over the counter products do not meet environmental requirements for biodegradeability and may cause harm to fish and wildlife. Besides wetting agents are cheap.

Rev JD you ought to stick to your area of expertise. What ever that is. Advising members to be aware of fire season and to carry firefighting equipment is a good thing and I was glad to see that post. Heck even recommending a firefighting aditive is good advice, good for you. Pretending to be a chemist is stretching your resume beyond the breaking point once again.