If you’ve dipped your toes into the world of fire safety at all, you’re probably aware of Foam Fire Extinguishers. You are also probably aware of Class B fires, aka liquid fires, and how the two go hand in hand. Furthermore, you likely know about fire hoses and the typical ways in which the fire brigade do their job. What may still elude you is how the two concepts overlap; how does the brigade handle liquid fires?
Why Would you Need Firefighting Foam Equipment?
Foam as an extinguishing agent occupies a strange position in the firefighting industry. It has undergone a surplus of changes to its formulation and legislation over the years (covered in detail here). But the truth is that it’s just too useful to fully give up on.
Foam is essential in tackling Class B (flammable liquid) fires due to how it works. It forms a layer between the liquid and the fire (instead of spreading it like water would). This cuts off oxygen from the fire while directly cooling the fuel source. ‘Liquid fires’ in this context includes just about everything except cooking oil. So think paint, petrol, alcohol, etc. Unsurprisingly, this makes Class B fires very common and one of the more likely types to be large and difficult to control.
This is why the fire brigade has to factor in liquid fires to their arsenal. Their equipment, as you would be right to assume, mostly uses water. This all has to do with hydrants and how easy it is to deliver large amounts of water with force.
Water is plentiful and is great at putting out the most common fires (Class A: woods, fabric, plastic, etc.). Foam is less plentiful and slightly more specialised. But these fires do happen. They happen at petrol stations, flammable liquid storage zones, and a variety of industrial contexts. One such fire was the ITC facility fire in Texas, where 15 out of 80,000 storage barrels of petrochemical liquids caught ablaze, resulting in severe contamination of the Houston Ship Channel. This is quite an extreme example, but it does point out the need for specialised equipment quite plainly.
How do the Fire Brigade Fight Liquid Fires?
What they use should be no secret at this point; they use foam, of course! We’ll get into the real specifics of the equipment later, but I’m still going to introduce you to some stuff. Firstly, foam types and inventory.
It is typical nowadays for fire response vehicles to have foam itself and firefighting foam equipment on hand. This equipment is not exclusively intended for use on liquid fires, as the foam can increase the effectiveness of water. It depends on the class of foam, which is aptly named after the fire classes it corresponds to. ‘Class A’ foam is for common, solid fuel fires and runs at 0.3, 0.5 and 1% concentrations. Operating at these percentages keeps the amount of foam used low but rich enough to increase firefighting power.
‘Class B’ foam runs at a minimum of 1% and usually goes no higher than 6%. This introduces enough foam to the water spray to effectively cool liquid fires without spreading them. Class B foam requires specialised cleanup by state or federal authorities, which can be considered a drawback of their usage.
The foam is primarily introduced into the firefighting water line via a foam inductor. This and the branchpipe are the most straightforward pieces of Firefighting Foam Equipment. Both connect to a drum of foam and attach to the water supply and then possibly even an outlet hose on the other end (in the case of the inductor) to expel foam at a rate and force comparable to a standard fire hose. Once flowing, the firefighters will employ the standard practice of sweeping the foam across the base of the fire to seal and cool the fuel source.
What kind of Firefighting Foam Equipment is Available?
At Fire Protection Online, we offer a variety of top-quality Firefighting Foam Equipment from Vigil Products and other top suppliers. While we do not supply canisters of foam directly. We do, however, provide a range of items that are key to applying the foam to a firefighting situation. Also, keep in mind that the information I’m about to provide is based on Vigil’s version of the given product.
We mentioned the In-Line Foam Inductor already; these keep things very simple. It is a metal tube that can be either held or fixed to the ground. On one end is the inlet, where you attach the hose that is connected to the water supply. Coming out of the body is the pick-up tube with a stainless-steel drum piercer; this goes into your foam canister directly. And then on the other end is the outlet, where the foamy water will come out, but another hose with a foam-generating nozzle should be attached here.
Our inductor also has a dial which sets the concentration anywhere from 1% to 6%, so it’s always producing Class B foam. The inductor is a natural pairing with a Medium Expansion Branchpipe, which is the simplest way to produce large quantities of foam. This is a large, drum-like attachment for the inductor and has a handle and lever for ergonomic, handheld operation. Its cousin is the self-inducting Low Expansion Branchpipe.
While not as powerful, the low-expansion version is much lighter and has its own pick-up tube. This means you can connect it to the hose instead of having to use an inductor. It also uses a simple, adjustable handle and pistol grip for even greater ease of use. We also have Instantaneous Fire Hose Couplings, which help with the setting up of any of these tools.
Closing Words
While not manufactured for Vigil Products, we do offer High Expansion Foam Generators. These are portable turbines with built-in induction systems that are capable of producing very large volumes of foam. All it needs is a pressurised water supply and access to a synthetic foam concentrate to send foam hard and fast wherever it is facing.
There are, of course, even more varieties of Firefighting Foam Equipment available online. But if you are a firefighter, then you probably already know what you need (we just hope it’s from us!). If you’re not affiliated with the fire brigade, then I still hope you’ve learned something about the nature of liquid fires and how they are approached in the professional firefighting world.
But, whoever you are, if you’re interested in any of the products discussed in this article, then please browse our range here, and if you want an even closer look, then check out the helpful video below. Thanks for reading!
