Mask Service Unit

[jlab]

I have seen the MSU trucks going to firehouses to change air bottles but do the MSU vehicles also have the capacity to respond to fires and charge air bottles on site ?

 

[ryanb556]

I have seen the MSU trucks going to firehouses to change air bottles but do the MSU vehicles also have the capacity to respond to fires and charge air bottles on site ?

Yes

 

[Captain784]

Yes, the Mask Service Unit is assigned to respond on every 3rd or great alarm. I think they are also assigned on every 2nd alarm in High Rise Buildings. The M.S.U. can be Special Called whenever the Incident Commander deems it necessary, for things like major subways or other underground fires, ship fires, or anytime the need is there for long duration mask operations. Captain Bob Rainey FDNY Engine 26 retired

 

[Skyler Fire]

I have seen the MSU trucks going to firehouses to change air bottles but do the MSU vehicles also have the capacity to respond to fires and charge air bottles on site ?

 

[jlab]

But can they refill bottles at a fire scene ? Do they have mobile cascade systems ?

 

[Skyler Fire]

But can they refill bottles at a fire scene ? Do they have mobile cascade systems ?

No they can’t fill at the scene. There re numerous Depot Spots that they drop off at. If there is a big fire they go out to depot to drop off.

 

[RCL]

But can they refill bottles at a fire scene ? Do they have mobile cascade systems ?

Each Battalion has a bottle depot. Usually a box with a certain amount of spare bottles. So if a given company in the battalion needed to swap bottles during a shift, they just ran up to the battalion depot. Or possibly having the Div messenger might run some over. In the 51 it was at 308 and then went to 285 in the early 90s. Not sure if it's still there after remodel. The MSUs will stop at each depot once or twice a week and swap bottles as needed. During major fires, they just swap bottles 1 for 1. Once they return to the Rock, the bottles are refilled there and full bottles are put back on the rig. I know the older MSU trucks had removable cages so when they got back to the Rock, they just took the cage with the empties off, and put a new cage with fulls back on with a forklift. The cascade system and compressor system at the Rock last time I saw it in the 90s had like 15 or 20 positions to fill cylinders.

This is just me, but when you look at the time to fill a bottle properly, at a major event where you may have 200 bottles, ( figuring a 3rd alarm or better ) even filling 4 bottles at a time would take roughly 10 to15 minutes. Using 15 minutes as a round number including swapping bottles on the whips, it would take about 12 hours to run 200 bottles thru. Plus the space a cascade and compressor takes up looking at it timewise, is better spent with more bottles, to do 1 for 1 swaps, where they can be filled at their leisure at the Rock.

 

[68jk09]

When I was in R*2 we had an O2 Cascade System in qtrs bolted to the wall on the apparatus floor allowing us to fill "D" cylinders for the old Emerson Resuscitator which we & all BN Rigs carried ......there were 6 to 8 large O2 cylinders in the Cascade System connected to each other by copper tubing....it only took a few minutes to fill a "D" cylinder with O2.

 

[RCL]

When I was in R*2 we had an O2 Cascade System in qtrs bolted to the wall on the apparatus floor allowing us to fill "D" cylinders for the old Emerson Resuscitator which we & all BN Rigs carried ......there were 6 to 8 large O2 cylinders in the Cascade System connected to each other by copper tubing....it only took a few minutes to fill a "D" cylinder with O2.

I think i remember those things. They were in a blue or green box that basically unfolded.

We had 3 different setups to fill our bottles. Our heavy had a compressor and Cascade system for breathing air. We could refill bottles as needed on scene or use the reel lines for confined space or pneumatic tools. We also had a cascade trailer and a compressor and cascade system at St 1. Could only fill 2 bottles at a time on any unit though.
A lot depends on the volume. The way I was taught when they installed.our new compressor/cascade before I did my PSI compressed gas cylinder class at a scuba shop was roughly 300 psi per minute. Ball park. Depends on the material. Steels and composities slower then alum. The main reason, was heating the cylinder. I've seen a lot of people zip fill a cylinder, and there burning hot but full and an hour later when they cool there at 36 3800 psi instead of 4500. Or they blow a burst disc out which is always fun.

 

[jlab]

Each Battalion has a bottle depot. Usually a box with a certain amount of spare bottles. So if a given company in the battalion needed to swap bottles during a shift, they just ran up to the battalion depot. Or possibly lying the Div messenger might run some over. In the 51 it was at 308 and then went to 285 in the early 90s. Not sure if it's still there after remodel. The MSUs will stop at each depot once or twice a week and swap bottles as needed. During major fires, they just swap bottles 1 for 1. Once they return to the Rock, the bottles are refilled there and full bottles are put back on the rig. I know the older MSU trucks had removable cages so when they got back to the Rock, they just took the cage with the empties off, and put a new cage with fulls back on with a forklift. The cascade system and compressor system at the Rock last time I saw it in the 90s had like 15 or 20 positions to fill cylinders.

This is just me, but when you look at the time to fill a bottle properly, at a major event where you may have 200 bottles, ( figuring a 3rd alarm or better ) even filling 4 bottles at a time would take roughly 10 to15 minutes. Using 15 minutes as a round number including swapping bottles on the whips, it would take about 12 hours to run 200 bottles thru. Plus the space a cascade and compressor takes up looking at it timewise, is better spent with more bottles, to do 1 for 1 swaps, where they can be filled at their leisure at the Rock.

Thanks. Great explanation !