FA Viewpoints
Editor’s Note: Asking about midmount vs. rear-mount aerials can often create passionate debates. However, deciding on which to purchase should be based on the tactics you wish to achieve and the unique characteristics of your first due and surrounding areas. This month, we asked Editorial Advisory Board members Bill Adams and Ricky Riley to comment on midmount and rear-mount aerials.
Asking if you prefer a rear-mount or a midmount aerial ladder is another loaded question. Stating a preference could subject you to ridicule, scorn, and possibly hate mail from biased opinions in firehouses running the other. “Truckers” can be a biased and vocal lot. An objective answer should be based on the physical characteristics of a response district and how well each type of aerial performs in it. I had the opportunity to operate a midmount and then a rear-mount in the same volunteer department over a span of almost 40 years. The majority of the residential areas had very narrow streets with on-street parking, telephone poles, overhead wires, and overhead service lines (cable, telephone, and electrical) to each house. House lots were 40 feet wide, usually with a tree in the front yard and a two-story or 2½-story wood frame set close to the road and closer to each other. Both the ladder trucks were quints; however, they were not used for initial attack. They responded second out after the first-due engine. Laying hose and pulling preconnects wasn’t a prime function. Hence, my observations are from using each as a real ladder truck in the same response area.
The Rigs
The first ladder was a single-axle 85-foot midmount with a semicab (doors but no roof). Standard operating procedure called for the first-due engine to pull one house beyond to leave room for the ladder truck. That gave sufficient room if the turntable had to be set on the A/B corner to sweep those two sides. If the house was on the side of the street with the telephone poles and overhead wires, it was a general rule of thumb that if you could position the turntable beneath the wires, you could hit the roof with the stick.
The replacement ladder was a tandem-axle 110-foot rear-mount with an enclosed canopy cab with open jump seats. An anticipated operational difference was the rear-mount’s overall height being about a foot and a half higher than the midmount, which limited its use on many houses because of the overhead obstructions. Known before the purchase was made, it was offset by specifying double side stacked ground ladders (a 35-foot two-section extension ladder, a 28-foot two-section extension ladder, and a 16-foot roof ladder on each side). There was a 50/50 chance of not being able to use the stick on residential calls. Sometimes it took jockeying the rig to do it—not easily done on narrow streets where there was seldom room for one rig to pass another.
On the Fireground
After the rear-mount’s delivery, a major fireground issue became the placement of the first-due engine. Pulling one house lot beyond didn’t always work. The rear-mount is about 43 feet long. When positioning its turntable on the A/B corner, the rig took up the entire house lot beyond the structure. Consequently, the first-due engine had to pull two houses beyond. It is important to note tha
- 241
- Article rating: No rating
Posted: Feb 19, 2018
FA Viewpoints
Editor’s Note: Asking about midmount vs. rear-mount aerials can often create passionate debates. However, deciding on which to purchase should be based on the tactics you wish to achieve and the unique characteristics of your first due and surrounding areas. This month, we asked Editorial Advisory Board members Bill Adams and Ricky Riley to comment on midmount and rear-mount aerials.
Asking if you prefer a rear-mount or a midmount aerial ladder is another loaded question. Stating a preference could subject you to ridicule, scorn, and possibly hate mail from biased opinions in firehouses running the other. “Truckers” can be a biased and vocal lot. An objective answer should be based on the physical characteristics of a response district and how well each type of aerial performs in it. I had the opportunity to operate a midmount and then a rear-mount in the same volunteer department over a span of almost 40 years. The majority of the residential areas had very narrow streets with on-street parking, telephone poles, overhead wires, and overhead service lines (cable, telephone, and electrical) to each house. House lots were 40 feet wide, usually with a tree in the front yard and a two-story or 2½-story wood frame set close to the road and closer to each other. Both the ladder trucks were quints; however, they were not used for initial attack. They responded second out after the first-due engine. Laying hose and pulling preconnects wasn’t a prime function. Hence, my observations are from using each as a real ladder truck in the same response area.
The Rigs
The first ladder was a single-axle 85-foot midmount with a semicab (doors but no roof). Standard operating procedure called for the first-due engine to pull one house beyond to leave room for the ladder truck. That gave sufficient room if the turntable had to be set on the A/B corner to sweep those two sides. If the house was on the side of the street with the telephone poles and overhead wires, it was a general rule of thumb that if you could position the turntable beneath the wires, you could hit the roof with the stick.
The replacement ladder was a tandem-axle 110-foot rear-mount with an enclosed canopy cab with open jump seats. An anticipated operational difference was the rear-mount’s overall height being about a foot and a half higher than the midmount, which limited its use on many houses because of the overhead obstructions. Known before the purchase was made, it was offset by specifying double side stacked ground ladders (a 35-foot two-section extension ladder, a 28-foot two-section extension ladder, and a 16-foot roof ladder on each side). There was a 50/50 chance of not being able to use the stick on residential calls. Sometimes it took jockeying the rig to do it—not easily done on narrow streets where there was seldom room for one rig to pass another.
On the Fireground
After the rear-mount’s delivery, a major fireground issue became the placement of the first-due engine. Pulling one house lot beyond didn’t always work. The rear-mount is about 43 feet long. When positioning its turntable on the A/B corner, the rig took up the entire house lot beyond the structure. Consequently, the first-due engine had to pull two houses beyond. It is important to note tha
- 256
- Article rating: No rating
Posted: Feb 19, 2018
FA Viewpoints
Editor’s Note: Asking about midmount vs. rear-mount aerials can often create passionate debates. However, deciding on which to purchase should be based on the tactics you wish to achieve and the unique characteristics of your first due and surrounding areas. This month, we asked Editorial Advisory Board members Bill Adams and Ricky Riley to comment on midmount and rear-mount aerials.
Asking if you prefer a rear-mount or a midmount aerial ladder is another loaded question. Stating a preference could subject you to ridicule, scorn, and possibly hate mail from biased opinions in firehouses running the other. “Truckers” can be a biased and vocal lot. An objective answer should be based on the physical characteristics of a response district and how well each type of aerial performs in it. I had the opportunity to operate a midmount and then a rear-mount in the same volunteer department over a span of almost 40 years. The majority of the residential areas had very narrow streets with on-street parking, telephone poles, overhead wires, and overhead service lines (cable, telephone, and electrical) to each house. House lots were 40 feet wide, usually with a tree in the front yard and a two-story or 2½-story wood frame set close to the road and closer to each other. Both the ladder trucks were quints; however, they were not used for initial attack. They responded second out after the first-due engine. Laying hose and pulling preconnects wasn’t a prime function. Hence, my observations are from using each as a real ladder truck in the same response area.
The Rigs
The first ladder was a single-axle 85-foot midmount with a semicab (doors but no roof). Standard operating procedure called for the first-due engine to pull one house beyond to leave room for the ladder truck. That gave sufficient room if the turntable had to be set on the A/B corner to sweep those two sides. If the house was on the side of the street with the telephone poles and overhead wires, it was a general rule of thumb that if you could position the turntable beneath the wires, you could hit the roof with the stick.
The replacement ladder was a tandem-axle 110-foot rear-mount with an enclosed canopy cab with open jump seats. An anticipated operational difference was the rear-mount’s overall height being about a foot and a half higher than the midmount, which limited its use on many houses because of the overhead obstructions. Known before the purchase was made, it was offset by specifying double side stacked ground ladders (a 35-foot two-section extension ladder, a 28-foot two-section extension ladder, and a 16-foot roof ladder on each side). There was a 50/50 chance of not being able to use the stick on residential calls. Sometimes it took jockeying the rig to do it—not easily done on narrow streets where there was seldom room for one rig to pass another.
On the Fireground
After the rear-mount’s delivery, a major fireground issue became the placement of the first-due engine. Pulling one house lot beyond didn’t always work. The rear-mount is about 43 feet long. When positioning its turntable on the A/B corner, the rig took up the entire house lot beyond the structure. Consequently, the first-due engine had to pull two houses beyond. It is important to note tha
- 203
- Article rating: No rating
Posted: Feb 19, 2018
FA Viewpoints
Editor’s Note: Asking about midmount vs. rear-mount aerials can often create passionate debates. However, deciding on which to purchase should be based on the tactics you wish to achieve and the unique characteristics of your first due and surrounding areas. This month, we asked Editorial Advisory Board members Bill Adams and Ricky Riley to comment on midmount and rear-mount aerials.
Looking at both types of apparatus configurations, the decision for the purchase is truly based on the operational and geographic needs of your department. The midship-mount aerial is a small niche in the production of aerial ladder sales across the country. But, that does not mean that it does not have a place in the market or in a particular department. The standard rear-mount aerial is certainly the majority of the straight ladder market and has certain features that make it fit for most departments looking for a straight truck.
Midship-Mounted aerials
In a midship-mounted aerial, the turntable usually is right behind the cab, situating the device low on the frame rails and closer to the ground than the rear-mount aerial. Selecting a midship-mount does offer some tactical advantages for the department. One of these is a driving feel on the apparatus—by having this weight lower on the chassis and more centered, it will have less of a sway when taking corners. This is the feel that drivers experience with rear-mount aerials when the weight of the turntable and aerial is more elevated, situated behind the rear axles. That much weight moving in a direction opposite the turn can have a dramatic feel for the driver depending on the speed of the turn. With the lower turntable of the midship mount, this is reduced and creates less of an issue for drivers. With the advancement of driving technology and the use of electronic stability control, this sway is greatly reduced with the reduction of acceleration capabilities when the apparatus feels the turning speed affecting its stability.
Usually one of the main reasons for the midship-mount is a height restriction in older firehouses. With the device mounted low behind the cab, the overall height is greatly reduced. This turntable positioning also offers a tactical advantage for the ladder chauffeurs. These older firehouses with height restrictions are normally in older cities with very tight street layout and with numerous wires in the front and rear of the structures. The lower turntables can allow the operator to position the rig underneath the wires, rather than over top of them, which is how we would normally use the rear-mount aerial.
Another driving item with this type of rig is the rear swing out. A lot of the aerial and compartments are behind the rear axle, more or less hanging off the back. When navigating streets, the driver will need to be especially conscious of the rear end of the truck and the swing when taking corners. These vehicles, along with midship mount towers, require the driver to pay special attention to this as to not incur damage when taking these corners—especially in tight congested cities or towns.
The midship-mounted aerial’s turntable and ladder positioning greatly reduces compartment storage. Depending on the number of duties that your aerial device is required to acc
- 270
- Article rating: No rating
Posted: Feb 19, 2018
FA Viewpoints
Editor’s Note: Asking about midmount vs. rear-mount aerials can often create passionate debates. However, deciding on which to purchase should be based on the tactics you wish to achieve and the unique characteristics of your first due and surrounding areas. This month, we asked Editorial Advisory Board members Bill Adams and Ricky Riley to comment on midmount and rear-mount aerials.
Looking at both types of apparatus configurations, the decision for the purchase is truly based on the operational and geographic needs of your department. The midship-mount aerial is a small niche in the production of aerial ladder sales across the country. But, that does not mean that it does not have a place in the market or in a particular department. The standard rear-mount aerial is certainly the majority of the straight ladder market and has certain features that make it fit for most departments looking for a straight truck.
Midship-Mounted aerials
In a midship-mounted aerial, the turntable usually is right behind the cab, situating the device low on the frame rails and closer to the ground than the rear-mount aerial. Selecting a midship-mount does offer some tactical advantages for the department. One of these is a driving feel on the apparatus—by having this weight lower on the chassis and more centered, it will have less of a sway when taking corners. This is the feel that drivers experience with rear-mount aerials when the weight of the turntable and aerial is more elevated, situated behind the rear axles. That much weight moving in a direction opposite the turn can have a dramatic feel for the driver depending on the speed of the turn. With the lower turntable of the midship mount, this is reduced and creates less of an issue for drivers. With the advancement of driving technology and the use of electronic stability control, this sway is greatly reduced with the reduction of acceleration capabilities when the apparatus feels the turning speed affecting its stability.
Usually one of the main reasons for the midship-mount is a height restriction in older firehouses. With the device mounted low behind the cab, the overall height is greatly reduced. This turntable positioning also offers a tactical advantage for the ladder chauffeurs. These older firehouses with height restrictions are normally in older cities with very tight street layout and with numerous wires in the front and rear of the structures. The lower turntables can allow the operator to position the rig underneath the wires, rather than over top of them, which is how we would normally use the rear-mount aerial.
Another driving item with this type of rig is the rear swing out. A lot of the aerial and compartments are behind the rear axle, more or less hanging off the back. When navigating streets, the driver will need to be especially conscious of the rear end of the truck and the swing when taking corners. These vehicles, along with midship mount towers, require the driver to pay special attention to this as to not incur damage when taking these corners—especially in tight congested cities or towns.
The midship-mounted aerial’s turntable and ladder positioning greatly reduces compartment storage. Depending on the number of duties that your aerial device is required to acc
- 901
- Article rating: No rating