By Chris Mc Loone

Thirty-one years ago, my fire company was running two engines and a rescue truck. The two pumpers had generators, one cord reel each, and a smoke ejector on each.

This was before positive pressure ventilation (PPV) really took off. After a room-and-contents fire, one of us would bring one of the smoke ejectors inside, put it in the window of the affected room (facing the right way, of course), and turn it on for a while to clear out the smoke. If there was a bit more smoke to clear, we’d set up a gas-powered PPV fan at the front door and use that method.

The rescue truck had two large electric smoke ejectors and the gas-powered PPV fan. The two large smoke ejectors could really move some air, and when you stacked them, you would basically have a wind tunnel. Subsequent engines had generators and cord reels, and while the rescue would still carry at least one smoke ejector, most of our fans had been switched over to electric PPV fans. With our most recent engine purchases, we don’t have generators or cord reels, and now we’ve got battery-powered PPV fans. We’ve come a long way in 30 years.

• Ventilation Equipment Gets More Compact, Powerful
• Ventilation Equipment Ranges from Compact to Very Large
• Ventilation Equipment Blasts to New Levels

Along with the units themselves evolving over time, so has the standard that outlines the performance requirements and test methods for firefighting PPV fans: AMCA 240.

AMCA 240-22

Zach Allen, vice president, Euramco Group and voting member of the AMCA 240-22 Review Committee, explains that AMCA 240 is a standard by the Air Movement and Control Association (AMCA) International. It has been in place since the early 1990s. The purpose of AMCA 240-22, according to Mehdi Achour, international salesengineer at SuperVac, is to establish a uniform method of laboratory testing to demonstrate the performance of a PPV fan in terms of airflow rate, air density, pressure, rpm, and battery runtime (the length of time a battery PPV fan operates at maximum speed before automatically shutting off for the first time).

“The 2022 revision follows the five revisions before it with some basic updates to keep up with the evolving pace of technology, but the fundamental test procedures to determine volumetric airflow remain unchanged,” says Allen. “AMCA 240 has always had several requirements that manufacturers must note along with airflow—this is the test configuration including setback from the door and tilt angle of the fan, both of which significantly affect airflow volume through the structure.” Achour adds that AMCA 240-22 is a laboratory method for testing positive pressure ventilators for aerodynamic performance rating.

Allen explains that the -22 revision adds the requirement to note nominal voltage and battery model used on all test reports and also implements new procedures for battery-powered PPV fans to be tested on DC power, simulating battery use as intended by firefighters. “After standard AMCA 240 volume tests are completed on the test stand, a check test for runtime using the specified b

Christopher Burns
Bangor Daily News, Maine
(TNS)

Oct. 23—A fire truck crashed in the town of Hancock on Tuesday afternoon.

The driver was responding to a wildfire off Oxen Meadow Road in Franklin about 3:26 p.m., according to Christopher Holmes, the chief of the Hancock Volunteer Fire Department and EMS Services.

When the driver turned off Route 1 onto Franklin Road, the Ford L8000 tanker rolled over, Holmes said Tuesday evening.

Holmes said the driver, who was the truck’s only occupant, suffered minor bruises in the crash.

The crash may have been caused by a brake failure, according to Holmes.

The crash remains under investigation.

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(c)2024 the Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine)

Visit the Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine) at www.bangordailynews.com

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KME—Yakima (WA) Fire Department pumper. Severe Service cab and chassis; Cummins X12 500-hp engine; Hale Qmax 2,000-gpm pump; 750-gallon polypropylene water tank; Duo-Safety ground ladders; low hosebed; lowered crosslays; dual EMS compartments with interior and exterior access; customized interior storage modules on doghouse and between rear seats. Dealer: Mark Merritt, Cascade Fire & Safety, Yakima, WA.

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