Gas mask suits and boots

[Skean Dhude]

Ranger is right. The suits are meant to be one time use but I don't have a warehouse full of them so I compromise by making them last. It reduces the effectiveness but I don't see a better way of doing it.

[Highlander]

(9 January 2013, 22:59)Skean Dhude Wrote: Ranger is right. The suits are meant to be one time use but I don't have a warehouse full of them so I compromise by making them last. It reduces the effectiveness but I don't see a better way of doing it.

Do you mean by wearing something over the top,..like the asbestos suits,...or do you think that the NBC suits would last longer then the military say they would

Its probably a bit like food sell by dates,.. they are still good for ages after,...I mean, as an ex-squadie, I know that its very rarely a battlefield soldier could be brought out of the line, just to get a change of suits,... and I cant see them being made to last just one day,...lol, the idea of battle is to win the flipping thing so they wouldnt want the guys dieing too quickly,... caniters are different, its easy to change those anywhere

[Skean Dhude]

No. If they are removed as described then any radiation is kept on the suit and disposed of. All i am doing is washing away as much as I can to reuse the suit because having one with limited carbon is better than just a boiler suit.

Personall, I'd stay inside for as long as I could but if i had to go out then to maximise the suit life I would wash it. However once opened the carbon obsorbs things from the air and the more it does the less effective it is.

Without unlimited funds you can only do so much. I have a few suits and will only use them where necessary to get the most benefit from them. I would like some more when funds allow. I have not full thought through protocols for use. When would I use a suit? I need to think about it.

[Ranger]

One thing we have to remember is that the noddy suit was designed before the invention of breathable waterproofs and I think part of the design brief would have been to be able to fight without drowning in your own sweat. In a chem/bio scenario, a modern, tough, breathable smock and overtrousers over the noddy suit would extend the life of the suit as it would only be absorbing whatever seeped through the waterproofs. Duct tape the pockets closed so nothing can get in them and lie in wait and whenever you return to your cleaning room, you can swill off any contaminants under a gentle shower(improvised), before removing layers in stages. In a dirty bomb scenario(radioactive dust), I think a better system might be the waterproofs(as above) with a disposable asbestos suit over the top. when returning, you must dispose of the suit and then swill the waterproofs before removing. A bucket and sponge could be used for swilling down also.
One size too large wellington's that you can step into and out of without too much handling would possibly be the best footwear. Water must be drained and disposed of carefully. Washing chem contaminated stuff might work if rinsed enough, but dust I'd be wary of as even a tiny, literally microscopic, particle could enter your body through your mouth, nose, eyes, cuts or even skin pores and cause damage that could kill you. Remember the russki that was killed in London with radioactive material and how ott they went in checking for contamination at every place he'd been to after the meal that killed him.

sweet dreams

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...lol, the idea of battle is to win the flipping thing so they wouldnt want the guys dieing too quickly,... caniters are different, its easy to change those anywhere
[/quote]

From what I recall(20 odd years ago), the idea of all this protection was to extend our survival time enough to win the battle and then after that,well. The rigmaroll with the cutting off of the suits was something I learned when I did a NARO course(nuclear accident reaction operative). Yep, as a sapper we were expected to go and clean somebody else's shit up after they'd dropped a goolie, though we were supposed to do it without getting ourselves killed(bad PR). Luckily, I never had to put it into action and after a couple of decades I doubt I'm on any reserve list. Bloody hope not.

[Highlander]

Ok,.. this has been great, just what I wanted when I started the thread,... we have now dealt with the person outside,... but if possible I dont intend to go outside, I plan to stay inside the house if possible.

I think it would only be for a couple of days, what with the British climate being what it is,..at least rain would be a very welcome sight if all this happens.

So,... we now need to protect the house,...I have a small three bedroom bungalow, what do I need to do?

If possible I would like to move around the house, so I can watch outside, if only for signs of life to tell me its all clear,... I am fairly sure that modern double glazed windows seal very well,... but doors will need taping, letter boxes etc too...

.... but what about attics, there is usualy a gap around the roof edges, if the contamination can enter through there, then we would need to tape any attic doors, or its likely to enter that way

What about the grills in the walls below the floor level?,... I take it that with the contamination dropping like dust that its not likely to enter here,..so any trap doors under the floor wouldnt need taping,...or would they?

Anything else we would need to do?