On the surface, modern technology has made the cleaning of turnout gear and station wear a simple and straightforward endeavor. However, peel back the layers and the task becomes increasingly more complex.

The first decision that has to be made concerns whether to launder in-house. Assuming the decision is made to do so, a plethora of other choices follow: what type of equipment to specify; where such equipment should be located in the fire house; how often gear should be cleaned; and, what are the best practices that should be followed to ensure proper decontamination without shortening the lifespan of very expensive — and very vital — protective equipment.

Once all of these decisions have been made, then there's one last hurdle that has to be cleared, one that might be the most challenging of all — addressing the cultural bias that exists in many sectors of the U.S. fire service against cleaning gear too often.

Of course, most, if not all, of these decisions will depend on whether a department is volunteer, combination or career. But, regardless of the choices that ultimately are made, the cleaning and decontamination of turnout gear and station wear is something that no fire chief can afford to take lightly.

Set it and Forget it

There are several advantages of sending turnout gear to a commercial entity for cleaning and decontamination. First, there's no cash outlay for in-station equipment. Second, there's no need to train firefighters for this task, or burden them with it. Finally, there are no logistics to worry about, such as where to locate the equipment, whether the ventilation system can accommodate the cleaning process, and so on.

The big disadvantage of sending turnout gear out for cleaning is time; gear can be turned around quicker when it's cleaned and decontaminated in-house. For those departments that opt for that approach, the first decision that has to be made concerns whether to buy a commercial or industrial machine. Each of the vendor representatives interviewed for this article offered the same caution: You get what you pay for.

"Industrial machines are hearty, rugged and built to last," said Keith Quarles, regional sales manager for Pellerin Milnor Corp. "This means the total cost of ownership is less."

For example, Milnor machines feature a tapered roller bearing that offers a longer contact area that spreads force over a greater distance, which results in longer life; in contrast, commercial machines use ball bearings that are pressed into the cylinder, which makes maintenance costly, Quarles said.

"You can't just do a bearing maintenance, you have to replace everything," he said. "So, whatever savings you thought you had [achieved] by buying a commercial machine goes away."

Kim Shady, North America sales manager for Alliance Laundry Systems, agreed that spending a little more money over the short term pays big long-term dividends. He advised any department that's considering an equipment purchase to make sure that they purchase machines that are pre-programmed to be in compliance with NFPA 1851, Selection, Care, and Maintenance of Protective Ensembles for Structural Firefighting and Proximity Firefighting, which governs inspection, cleaning and decontamination of turnout gear.

Departments also should purchase equipment that uses words, not codes, on their displays, Shady advised.

"Sometimes they just say, "cycle number one,' and if you don't know what cycle number one is, that's a problem," he said. "If you buy the lowest-priced machine, that's what you're going to end up with. But if you spend another $400 or $500, you'll get a display that says 'jackets,' 'liners' or 'station towels.'"

Another advantage to programmable machines beyond NFPA compliance is that they can be set to automatically select the proper chemical and chemical-to-water-mixture, Quarles said, adding that departments should avoid machines that don't pre-mix, because degradation problems ensue when chemicals come into direct contact with turnout gear. Another good idea is to work with the vendor's local distributor that installed the machine to ensure that the chemicals and detergents being used are in the proper amount for each application.

The distributor also will ensure that only chemicals and detergents are used that are compatible with the machine and suitable for the particular gear or clothing that is being cleaned. The latter consideration is vitally important when cleaning turnout gear, said Bruce Teele, the NFPA's senior fire service safety specialist.

"They need to follow the manufacturer's instructions … simply because different manufacturers use different types of product in the construction of their PPE," Teele said. "Failure to do so can make the PPE more susceptible to damage."

Damage is something that should be avoided at all costs for a couple of important reasons, said Joel Jorgensen, vice president of sales and customer services for Continental Girbau.

"That personal protective equipment goes on the most important asset that a department has — the personnel," he said. "Also, the gear represents a huge investment. If you can double the life of gear … because of the way you're handling it in the decontamination and cleaning, you're going to lower the cost of ownership — and that all comes back to the type of equipment you choose."

For that reason, it is critical that any washer purchased by a fire department that also functions as an extractor — essentially a very-high-speed spin cycle that pulls most of the water out of the turnout jackets and liners so that they dry faster — performs at speeds no higher than 100 Gs. Anything higher than that threshold over time will compromise the PPE's moisture-barrier properties. Also, machines that can achieve significantly higher speeds — which are popular, for instance, in the hotel sector because of the enormous amount of heavy cotton towels and linens that must be laundered — cost more.

"You don't want to pay for a machine that can do 300 or 400 G force, when you only need it to do 100," Shady said.

Jorgensen believes that departments should look at laundry equipment the same way that they look at the other types of equipment they purchase.

"Let's say that you buy a machine that can fit two sets of gear. That's four thousand dollars going into that machine for one cycle — and they're going to balk at a four thousand dollar price tag for the washer?" he said. "It doesn't make sense. They look for the finest quality in their fire trucks, speed saws and hydraulics, and all we suggest is that they do the same thing [for laundry equipment]."

Black Snot No More

Once a decision has been made concerning what kind of cleaning equipment to buy, there are a few other important decisions that must be made. For example, a decision has to be made in terms of whether to employ a soft- or hard-mount installation. A soft-mount machine offers more flexibility in terms of where it can be located compared with a hard-mount machine, because it doesn't need to be bolted to the floor — this is an important consideration for fire houses that have radiant-heat tubing embedded in their concrete floors. However, soft-mount machines generally cost about 25% more than hard-mount machines.

Another decision has to be made concerning how to dry the gear: tumble or hang dry. The former offers the advantage of speed — turnout gear that's hung in a drying room can take anywhere from five to 10 hours to fully dry depending on factors such as humidity and the type of garment — and cost, as they are less expensive than a drying cabinet. However, tumble drying has a downside.

"Both methods are allowed under NFPA 1851, but when you think of the mechanics of tumble drying and compare that to a drying cabinet, where gear is drying still on a hanger, the drying cabinet … will preserve the life of these bunker sets," Quarles said. "It costs a little more money for the right type of equipment, but it saves a lot of money [over the long haul] if you do the process right."

Still another important decision concerns where to store turnout gear. They days of gear hanging near the apparatus — as famously depicted in the movie Backdraft — are dwindling. Gear needs to be well-ventilated, in part to aid the drying process, so the logical place to store it was in close proximity to the fire house's bay doors. But that tradition quickly is falling by the wayside, according to Mike Zywanski, deputy chief of the Naperville (Ill.) Fire Department.

"Today's new fabrics that the fire gear is made out of tend to be more sensitive to prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light that streams in through those bay doors," he said.

Consequently, many departments are opting for gear-storage rooms located away from firefighter living and working areas, particularly for newly constructed or re-habilitated structures.

Another tradition that's falling by the wayside is the one where firefighters did everything they could to avoid having their gear cleaned. The crustier the gear, the better, said John North, battalion chief in charge of special operations for the Alexandria (Va.) Fire Department.

"When I came up through the ranks, the more scarred your turnout gear was, the greater your badge of courage," he said. "It showed that you were a seasoned veteran."

When his department first launched a program to regularly clean and decontaminate gear, firefighters pushed back and ultimately had to be compelled to comply. Today however, there is much greater awareness of the detrimental effects of the myriad contaminants — particularly carcinogens — that firefighters encounter so attitudes are changing, according to North.

"It reminds me of the days when breathing apparatus first arrived on the scene," he said. "People didn't put them on until they had to, and then they took them off as soon as they could. It always was a badge of courage to have the black snot coming out of your nose. But now, they just accept it. It's a culture change."

Laundry Best Practices

Do this …

• Choose equipment with automatic settings and word displays
• Choose industrial, not commercial, equipment
• Follow turnout gear manufacturers' cleaning instructions
• Choose a drying cabinet over a tumble dryer if possible

But not this …

• Don't purchase a washer/extractor that exceeds 100 G force
• Don't clean turnout gear and station wear together
• Don't take station wear home to launder
• Don't store gear near living or working areas of fire house

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