PP 015: Foam And Foam Equipment

Question 1

How does foam put a fire out?

Answer 1

Smothers the fire, stopping the oxygen supply
Cools the flames
Stops flammable gases rising

Question 2

What are the three types of foam? And what do the LFB use?

Ratios

Answer 2

Low Expansion foam (LX) 2:1 - 20:1, usually 5:1 - 15:1
Medium Expansion foam 20:1 - 200:1
High Expansion foam 200:1 - 2000:1

LFB use low and high expansion foam

Question 3

What are the two concertration percentages, and what are they used for?

Answer 3

3% - for fires with hydrocarbons

6% - for fires with polar solvents

Question 4

What is the fitting called that goes into the RB101 so it can use foam?

Answer 4

An aspirator

Question 5

If an aspirator is used, what should the flow setting on the RB101 be? And at what pressure?

Answer 5

400lpm at 6 BAR

Question 6

What is the flow rate, expansion rate, and pressure for using foam on the ground monitor?

Answer 6

950lpm
12:1
7 BAR

Question 7

Name the methods of applying foam to a fire?

Four answers

Answer 7

Gentle application - from a distance
Raindown - applying foam in the air above
Rolling On - building a wall of foam that spreads over the fuel
Off Wall - indirect application, the foam slides down an object onto the fuel

Question 8

What is LFB foam made from?

Answer 8

Alcohol resistant film forming floroprotein

Question 9

What are some hazards of high expansion foam, for firefighters who are going into it?
Five answers

Answer 9

Claustrophobia
Disorientation
Severely affected light penetration
Mini backdraughts
Limited audibility

Question 10

What does BFU stand for, and where are they based?

Answer 10

Bulk Foam Unit

Barking, Harrow, Kingston

Question 11

What foam and equipment, and how much, is carried on BFUs?

Answer 11

8x 1000 litres of low-ex foam
1x 1000 litres of high-ex foam
1x Turbex hi-ex generator
2x foam monitors

Question 12

What is the capacity of the foam tank on the appliances? What should they be filled to and why?

Answer 12

127 litres

Should be filled to 90 litres so the tank tube doesn’t get blocked

Question 13

What is the Angus Turbex Mark II?

Answer 13

A giant fan that blows foam in a certain direction

Question 14

Where is medium expansion foam commonly used?

Answer 14

At airports

Question 15

What are the differences between low and high expansion foam?

Answer 15

Low expansion is sticky, but doesn’t expand much
High expansion is not sticky, but expands lots

Medium expansion is somewhere in the middle

Question 16

When would high expansion foam be used?

Answer 16

For filling into enclosed rooms where there is a fire, such as a basement