A fire hose is a high-pressure hose used to carry water or other fire retardant (such as foam) to a fire to extinguish it. Outdoors, it is attached either to a fire engine or a fire hydrant. Indoors, it can be permanently attached to a building's standpipe or plumbing system. It was invented by Hero of Alexandria in the basis of Ctesibius' double action piston pump.
The usual working pressure of a firehose can vary between 8 and 20 bar (800 and 2,000 kPa; 116 and 290 psi), while its bursting pressure can be up to 83 bar (8,300 kPa; 1,204 psi).
After use, a fire hose is usually hung to dry as standing water that remains in a hose for an extended period of time can deteriorate the material and render it unreliable or unusable. As such, the typical fire station often has a high structure to accommodate the length of a hose for such preventative maintenance.
On occasion, fire hoses are used for crowd control (see also water cannon), including most notably by Bull Connor in Alabama against civil rights protestors in 1964. While still a common practice in many countries, it is no longer used in the U.S.
Read more about Fire Hose: History, Modern Usage, Connections, Manufacturing Process
Other articles related to "hose, fire hose, fire, hoses":
... Hard suction hose, also known as a suction hose, is a specific type of rigid fire hose used in drafting operations ... When using this technique, the fire engine draws water for fire fighting from an unpressurized supply, such as a portable water tank, pool, or other static water. 33.9 feet (10.3 m), but "no pump on a fire apparatus is capable of producing a perfect vacuum" ...
... The trend in fire hose construction over the last 20 years has been to the use of lighter, stronger, lower maintenance materials ... One result of this trend has been the introduction of lightweight supply hoses in diameters never possible before ... Hoses up to 12 in (30.5 cm) in diameter with pressure ratings up to 150 psi (1,030 kPa) are now available ...
... Hard suction hose differs from standard fire hose in both its construction and usage It is rigid and generally scalloped ... Often, such hose is manufactured using molded synthetic material (such as PVC) shaped into a series of rings ... This shape allows the hose to be somewhat flexible, without allowing it to collapse in on itself under suction, as a normal, woven-jacket fire hose would ...
Famous quotes containing the words hose and/or fire:
“I must comfort the weaker vessel, as doublet and hose ought
to show itself courageous to petticoat.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“How the cold creeps as the fire dies at length
How drifts are piled,
Dooryard and road ungraded,
Till even the comforting barn grows far away,
And my heart owns a doubt
Whether ‘tis in us to arise with day
And save ourselves unaided.”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)