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All Turnout/ PPE Gear worn by TFRD members must be NFPA approved. It is the responsibility of each individual member to maintain their fire gear, and to seek repairs when needed.

PPE/Turnout Gear should be inspected before and after use. Examine for dirt, discoloration, thin spots, holes, tears, chemical damage, cracking, burns, abrasions and worn spots. Company officers shall monitor and record a bi-annual inspection of PPE belonging to all members under their command. In January and July, per Policy B-23, these records shall be entered through the fire station dashboard. This is accessed through the individual station dashboard, within the TFRD website, under the Maintenance Bureau and then the Gear Inspection tab. Any item flagged through the gear inspection form as a failure, automatically generates a repair request and is sent to the maintenance bureau’s fire gear technician.

If turnout gear needs repair, bring cleaned gear to the Maintenance Bureau. Gear will be repaired in-house or sent out to a certified ISO facility for more extensive repairs. Any defect in the outer shell which exposes the liner/moisture barrier is a mandatory repair. The fire shop has developed a loaner gear supply of coats and pants, assuring members maintain 2 full sets of gear at all times. Loaner gear will be provided when gear needs to be sent out for more extensive repairs, or at any time necessary. The supply of loaner gear is located in the upstairs inventory room at the fire shop, and can be accessed after hours by Battalion Chiefs and the Safety Officer if needed.

For fire gear that needs extensive repairs or decontamination services, the cost of returning gear to service-ready condition must be considered. The general guideline is if the cost of the repairs or decontamination is greater than the depreciated value of the gear, replacement should then be considered.

The Maintenance Bureau uses a cost depreciation factor of 10% per year. This is used in a cost/benefit analysis to justify repairing or replacing damaged fire gear. For example, a $1,000 pair of fire pants would lose $100 of replacement value each year over its 10-year service life. At 10 years, gear has no replacement value and will not be repaired.

• Stations have been supplied with extractors for the primary purpose of cleaning turnout gear.

• Turnout gear can be washed as often as needed, and is essential to maintaining the thermal performance of the gear.

• Outer shells and liners must be washed separately. Fasten all closures on outer shells before washing, and turn all liners/moisture barriers inside-out with cloth side out for washing.

• Recommended cycles for different gear are posted near the extractor.

• Due to the cross contamination threat of the dirty fire gear, it is recommended that station personnel not use the extractors for other washing needs.

• If there is any problem with the extractor, the Building Maintenance Bureau should be notified to answer any questions or schedule repair.

Refer to the Non-Emergency Procedures manual for further information on Cleaning of PPE/Turnout Gear (B-9) and Fire Gear Inspection (B-23).

• It is the responsibility of TFRD members to see that all Fire Gear taken out of service for any reason shall be brought to the Fire Maintenance Bureau.

• It is the responsibility of the Fire Maintenance Bureau to record the retirement and arrange for proper disposal of retired gear per NFPA 1851 and TFRD Policy B-23.

• Upon retiring a firefighter shall bring all fire gear to the shop. It will be inspected and repaired and then be used as available gear in the loaner program.

• No gear shall ever be ‘handed down’ to another member.

• NFPA standards recommend a service life of 10 years for structural firefighting equipment.

• The TFRD policy allows exceptions for gear of this age, recognizing that some gear can have a useful service life beyond 10 years. Gear that is older than 10 years must pass biannual inspection and be affirmed to be in useable condition through the normal member/company officer/ Battalion Chief sign-off per TFRD Policy B-23.

• Any gear that is visually compromised, regardless of age, should be removed from service and sent to the Fire Gear Maintenance office for testing.

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