on fire! need help breathing and seeing

you probably know about the fires. I'm surrounded by several Santa Ana wind-fed raging infernos, though they are all too far for burning embers to carry, the smoke stream did pass over my house yesterday, raining down soot and ash..

I couldn't find the goggles, but the paper respirator mask worked well...but I think I'm going to buy a full-fledged respirator type thing; with changeable cannisters and what not. I know the purple cannisters are for chemical weapons type stuff,
but what's the best outfit for breathing while putting out flames upwind?

Oh man, this is such a major disaster and getting worse with the 80mph winds that I'm reading about. Best hopes and wishes to you and everyone out there, Ted.

I can't really help you about the respirators seen as I know absolutely nothing about them (so yeah, sorry about the useless post), but I sincerely wish you luck. Hope everything goes OK.

...thanks.
my little southwest windpower windturbine was screaming it's head off, but the batteries just didn't seem that full at the end of the day...I figured out that it has been SO windy that the turbine revved up the voltage on the battery bank before it was full tricking the solar array into 'switching off' prematurely..
I disconnected the wind turbine, shorted the wires; (standard practice to keep the turbine blades from freewheeling,) let the batteries fill on sun only, and just now, after sundown, reconnected it...

I'll see if there's a voltage increase -- need the juice to check the live TV coverage in the AM..

the expert on '60 Minutes' said Sunday that the fires are so bad because of the hundred year policy of putting out every little fire...

at least one has been labeled arson.

Man, our thoughts are with you.

Try www.grainger.com for masks, etc.

Good luck. Be careful.

Fire is darn close to my home. may be offline for awhile.

[babblemode]

We've all seen the "general purpose" filters & masks that are sold at hardware/paint stores...you may find what you're looking for at one of those retailers.

I suggest a visit to a store/supplier that deals in health & safety supplies. Yep different colors are for different hazards & there are combination filters as well.

In my "past life" - I was fit tested every year to ensure my respirators were working & I knew how to use them. I've used several different models (Scott air packs, full face, half face which just fit over your mouth & nose).

Fit is CRITICAL when dealing with certain hazards. If you're merely looking for a particulate filter - I don't think it would tap your wallet too bad. Again, I suggest talking with someone who sells them and/or even fit tests them.

I was browsing Amazon.com & ran across some affordable 3M models with interchangeable cartridges. Another thing to consider - how easy will it be to obtain new cartridges/filters.

[/babblemode]

Fire on the mountain behind my apartment. Listening to local news for possible mandatory evacuation. Don't think I'm going to sleep tonight, just to be safe.

Several firefighters on life support. Bad news in San Diego county.

Best wishes going out to all those in the fire zone.

There are many masks on the market; it's hard to say what is good. I'm assuming you want just particulate filtering which will make things easier, but unfortunately I have no suggestions for a specific product. No need for huge canisters though as you're not trying to filter out 0.5 micron viruses or mustard gas. Proper fit around the face and comfort are the biggest issues. Wearing a sealed mask on your face for long periods of time can be very uncomfortable.

Lights are flickering a little bit. I'm keeping several lights on me.

We're really not suggesting you guys that need masks RIGHT NOW go online to purchase, but sites like Grainger offer good info regarding use and reference.

Good luck guys, this is one of those frustrating deals where we all want to help and there's not a thing we can do.

Just watched the BBC news here in the UK. They had a local TV reporter showing his own family home burn down. Poor guy.

Best wishes to you all in this time of need.

You will need a respirator that uses particulate filters with the SMALLEST micron rating possible....smoke particals are very small!

thanks for the kind words..

I'm still lucking out here, so far.
course this very property has had it's share of fire in the past..not on my watch tho..
the house is mostly glass, stucco, with a gravel roof, so I'm not too worried about the place bursting into flames the moment a spark alights on it (like some buildings)
I have cleared over a hundred feet around the buildings,
I'm keeping an eye out, when one is open, and have the hoses at the ready to put out any landing ember..still if it is a larger conflagration I must fight, it will be hopeless if there's smoke blowing my way..

still I am looking for a mask recommendation; there's a slew of em out there and am looking for advice, if there is any, on one that seems to perform, fit, and last better than the rest..short of joining Gas Mask Forum and reading up on the past few years -- any one have any favorites? full or half face, one can or two

otherwise I'll just cruise "labsafety" and graingers etc. and throw a dart, so to speak.

thanks

TedTheLed said:

I'll see if there's a voltage increase -- need the juice to check the live TV coverage in the AM..

Click to expand...

Is the situation so bad that you don't have mains power at all?

An outfit named MSA makes all kinds of respirators. A half face respirator with a filter(s) that has a low micron rating seems to be what you need.

Been raining ash for 3 days in Costa Mesa and Irvine, and I've tried to stay indoors. Power outages knocked out a bunch of traffic signals on my way home yesterday. One article says half a million people have had to evacuate their homes in So Cal!

Larry

nope, no mains power at all! ..but then I have never had mains power since I've been here off grid for the past 12 years

what changed was the amount of input from the wind: it increased! usually my batteries are 'used to' the 600 watts or so coming in from the solar panels, plus an ocassional burst from the wind turbine which rarely would send the voltage over 14.6 or so..but with these Santa Anas, the solar array 600 watts plus the near 400 watts coming from the wind, it sent the voltage up and over 14.7
before the batteries had a chance to fully absorb their full MDR of kilowatt hours, and caused the solar controller to gear down to the float stage --
so the batteries wouldn't get a full charge. Does that explain it -- ?

sbeen relatively quiet wind-wise for the past several hours..

A mask rated N95 (filters 95% of dust) would probably do you well. I mail-order from Gempler's their store-branded masks. I've used these when sanding all day. You should get some goggles too because after awhile the ash will get into your eyes and burn.
The dual-cartridge masks are for hazardous fumes or other pollutants or mold. It is more difficult to get enough air with one of those than with a simpler mask, so it's better to try a N95 first. The "dime-store" dust masks are N90, from what I remember, while the dual-cartridge are closer to N99.

TedTheLed said:

still I am looking for a mask recommendation; there's a slew of em out there and am looking for advice, if there is any, on one that seems to perform, fit, and last better than the rest..short of joining Gas Mask Forum and reading up on the past few years -- any one have any favorites? full or half face, one can or two

Click to expand...

Ted: Try these

http://www.lifeprotectors.com/product.php?partnumber=PARATC

http://www.lifeprotectors.com/product.php?partnumber=36900