Calculate the maximum Gallons Per Minute a specially equipped Foam Dragon attack pumper-tanker can deliver in the first ten minutes, using just 3-4 firefighters on-scene, when supported by your available tankers and drivers.  Advantage Foam Dragons are designed to overwhelm large fires with massive volumes of suppressant delivered by minimum crews almost immediately upon arrival on-scene. Here's how these deluge wagons work: Foam Dragons are routinely equipped with Vindicator Heavy Attack aspirating nozzles from First Strike Technologies on each 1.75" line and Vindicator Blitz Attack aspirating nozzles on each 2.5" line. The Heavy Attack nozzles flow 250 gpm at just 50 psi nozzle pressure ("NP") and the Blitz Attack nozzles flow 325 gpm at that same 50 psi NP, so one firefighter on each line can easily handle those large flows. Two 1.75" lines @ 250 gpm each and two 2.5" line at 325 gpm equals 1150 gpm of plain water from 4 lines with 4 firefighters easily controlling the lines. Just a very few more psi on each nozzle and 4 firefighters could flow the capacity of a 1250 gpm pump. If you double the suppressant capacity of each line with foam, 4 firefighters are flowing the equivalent of 2300 gpm, easily, from 4 pinpoint locations. The Vindicator Master Attack deck gun nozzle on the Foam Dragon adds even more muscle, with flows of 1000 gpm of plain water - a 2000+ gpm equivalent from the deck gun alone, when using foam. Please stop a minute and think what it will mean to your entire fire attack strategy to be able to honestly, consistently and easily deliver these kinds of massive flows with such a small crew. And finally, all this suppressant power can be put into play in about 1 minute after the truck's arrival on-scene. The firefighters arrive with air packs on; the high flow hand lines are all preconnected; there is no hydrant to engage; the tank-to-pump lines are enlarged; the foam system is preset and "push-button" ready to flow accurate foam volumes at any gpm; the pump pressure is preset and "push-button" ready to run the engine rpm up and down as needed with multiple hose lines opening and closing; and the pump primes from the tank. This is a crucial design element when you consider that a room and contents fire doubles in size every 60 seconds. Keep in mind also that the National Fire Academy says the following gpm's will "black out the fire" in the listed structures "in approximately 10 seconds when properly applied." Mobile home 327 gpm when 100% in flames Ranch house (45x25) 375 gpm when 100% in flames 40x40 1-story house 533 gpm when 100% in flames 40x40 2-story house 1066 gpm when 100% in flames 40x50 barn 1000 gpm when 100% in flames |
