Has anyone tested the new Salisbury LT line w/ the lighter fabric? We have some of the SK40 suits that are pretty hot in the summer. I have ordered one of the fan cooled 40 cal hoods to try, and I'm supposed to get it this month sometime (hopefully).

Salisbury makes very nice equipment, but almost everything is backordered w/ extremely long waits. There isn't much competition avaliable from the vendors I'm set up with. It's difficult to order expensive PPE like this without being able to test it or get some feedback beforehand.


- Jason

Jason, do you mind letting me know what you think of the hoods if/when they arrive? I would really appreciate it!

Hi Jason, you may want to challenge your current vendors! Lead times longer than 3-4 weeks are not acceptable. FYI, I don't think that company even manufacture's the suit products you are refering to; either American Safety (original heavy weight FRTC) or Steel Grip (*new* LT) I believe. That may be the reason why your lead times are so long?

The lightest weight HRC4 solution that I am aware of to date is an Oberon ARC40, 49 cal/cm2 ATPV at only 12.1 oz/yd2. Please correct me if I'm wrong....

Another pointer.... all arc flash suits are hot! Regardless of how light weight companies can make them. Any HRC4 solution on the market today requires more than one layer of fabric and therefore have high clo values (thermal comfort). Thermal or heat stress is a very serious threat while using AF suits for long durations. Suggestions are AF cooling vests to manage your core temperature and efficiently designed hood ventilation systems.

Cheers,
Jim

Jim,

Thanks for the information. I have access to several different vendors, and some of them are well known national companies. However, if you mention anything other than Salisbury they all go blank. When ordering Salisbury equipment, it isn't uncommon to get lead times longer than 4 weeks. In fact, I have a set of 8cal/cm2 jacket and overpants that isn't due until Jan 2011 (ordered a few weeks ago).

I don't have any experience with anything other than Bulwark (our daily wear) and Salisbury (gloves, jumpsuits, and 40 cal suits). We try to keep things simple around here since it's easy to confuse folks if you have a hundred different PPE options. Still, I want to check out these other vendors if they have a better product that might be more readily available.


- Jason

I hvave used the 40 LT amd they are much better than the non LT version.

Is it a completely different type of fabric, or just a lighter weight version of the standard? I thought that Salisbury manufactured their own suits, but someone told me otherwise in an earlier post.


- Jason

They manufacture thier own suits, but like most PPE companies, they don't make the fabric, The 40LT I believe is a 4 layer Indura Ultra Soft, vice 2 layers for the older version. Just going off memory, sure someone will correct me if I am wrong.

Yes the lead times for the cooling systems in the arc flash hoods can be a long time right now because of the manufacture.

Salisbury does have an alternate that may be able to help some of you out. Here is a link to the Salisbury ACAIR2000. We have plenty in stock and ready to ship out.

[url="http://www.mitchellinstrument.com/salisbury-acair2000-arc-flash-hood-cooling-system.html"]ACAIR2000[/url]

Hello Jason

In my experience Salisbury is indeed very slow at getting their product out.
NSA makes the 40 cal kits from the Protera fabric which is lighter weight and more durable then the Indura Ultra Soft fabric which helps with heat stress.

You can view the Indura Ultra Soft kits at the following web page and the Protera fabric kits are the same type of kits and are a stock item which means they usually ship in 2-3 business days.

[url="http://www.coverallsale.com/shop/level-four-kits-coat-overall-KIT4SC40NG-pid-255.html"]http://www.coverallsale.com/shop/level-four-kits-coat-overall-KIT4SC40NG-pid-255.html[/url]

The forced air hoods IMO should be required. They almost make donning the 40 cal suits bearable. Especially for those of us who have respitory issues.

Thank you very much!