SPRAY NOZZLE

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 296, 10 September 1926, Page 5

SPRAY NOZZLE

TO ASSIST FIRE BRIGADESMEN At the conclusion of the montnty meeting of the Fire Board yesterday, a demonstration was given in the yard of the central station of a new spray nozzle, which has several features in its favour as against the old straight brass nozzle which has done good service tor so many years. The old nozzle’s main drawback was that when the water was required to be turned on or off the order had to be communicated to the man at the hydrant perhaps a hundred vards away or four or five stories below. With the new nozzle the water can be shut off by a lever cock right under the man’s arm. Furthermore, the new nozzle has a fitting which takes a very much smaller hose than the usual three-inch one. With a length of smaller hose appended to an ordinary one, greater mobility of action is given its manipulator, and, in the case of an incipient outbreak, not nearly so much damage from water need be done. There is another advantage about the new nozzle that must be of extreme value in the case of serious interior fires. This is the provision of a steering wheel lever which controls a senes of outlets round the nozzle, some inches back from the point of ejection. When this lever is operated the water, under pressure, forms a perfect forward rose of sufficient density to cleave a way through smoke, and so allows the fireman to penetrate to the seat of the fire. The fact that the rose is in play does not lessen the power of the mam flow from the nozzle tip appreciably Tn the case of a widespread smouldering fire the rose can be used by itself, and it is said that a radius of thirtv feet can be most effectively soused with water . . The demonstration was given under the supervision of the superintendent CAIr J. Creeke), and the new nozzle (which is being provided for all the city hoses) was favourable commented upon bv the members of the board.