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Thread: Fire escape

  1. #21
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    Thanks for keeping it real.
    Back to my hair brained idea of putting in a bigger window, maybe.

  2. #22
    Site Sponsor avf100's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Knightclimber View Post
    Sorry, but as a firefighter it terrifies me when I hear about people planning on using a fire extinguisher to fight their way to an exit. It isn’t the fire that kills people. It is the smoke. A fire extinguisher will do nothing to save you if it is to the point you need an extinguisher to get to the exit. If you are unable to use the emergency exit to get out then you need to look at a different floor plan. Sounds harsh but it is a fact. Have removed people from houses that died rooms away from the fire because of the smoke alone. Keep doors closed at night and be prepared to bail out a window.
    My friend's neighbor died in a house fire,from smoke inhalation.
    People keep telling me to follow my dreams...so I went back to bed

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  3. #23
    Site Team Ynot4me2's Avatar
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    Hum, I like the bigger window idea. Something to look into. I'll also be investing in a 5lb to keep beside the bed somewhere. I know smoke will kill ya but it will give us a fighting chance at least. There's no way, that DW and I can get out that small window in seconds. Maybe not even a couple of minutes. Just being realistic.

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  4. #24
    Site Sponsor ajg617's Avatar
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    Thank you Knightclimber. Smoke is a killer. There is a protocol for aviation fires for a reason. The video below (about 4:30) by a commercial pilot/former firefighter is sobering. Not much difference in the materials in a commercial aircraft (my guess is better fire retardant) and an RV. Either way, in an enclosed tube/rectangle there are some similarities and good advice.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xw2XYr62fjc

    We always kept an emergency ladder in the bedrooms of our home but smoke detectors became the priority.
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  5. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by Knightclimber View Post
    Sorry, but as a firefighter it terrifies me when I hear about people planning on using a fire extinguisher to fight their way to an exit. It isn’t the fire that kills people. It is the smoke. A fire extinguisher will do nothing to save you if it is to the point you need an extinguisher to get to the exit. If you are unable to use the emergency exit to get out then you need to look at a different floor plan. Sounds harsh but it is a fact. Have removed people from houses that died rooms away from the fire because of the smoke alone. Keep doors closed at night and be prepared to bail out a window.
    As a LEO and former fire rescue team member, what scares me even more is that from experience that the monoammonium phosphate in a fire extinguisher makes it 10X harder to breathe than your garden variety house fire smoke. Change that "garden variety" house fire smoke to a RV fire with the higher concentrations of Styrofoam insulation and the higher heat, and then add the monoammonium phosphate, 99% are going to stop dead in their tracks and then if they can get back into the bedroom, then they have lost any remaining oxygen that was in the bedroom. Being first in and without SCBA and attacking with an ABC extinguisher, BTDT, lost the battle to the powder.

    Our plan is Kelly goes out of the window first, feet first and then I let her go from full extension so she will have about a 3 foot drop. Dogs and if I can readily find the cat ae next and then I make the decision as to the window or front door and that will be a heat driven decision as opposed to smoke. If I decide to go to the front door, Kelly will try to open it as I go to it.
    Last edited by ThePowells; 04-18-2021 at 03:35 AM.
    Jerry & Kelly Powell
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  6. #26
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    I sincerely hope I am misunderstanding people when they say they plan on “fighting” their way out using an extinguisher. If you can’t get to the door to escape without an extinguisher you definitely will be dead before you can even engage the extinguisher if you open the bedroom door. I hope people mean they are hoping to catch the fire when it is the size of a small trash can or smaller and put it out to save the camper. There literally is no “fight your way through fire with an extinguisher. I have been involved with several mobile home and camper fires over the years. The smoke it extremely toxic and they burn FAST! Armed with SCBA and a hose that shoots out water at 95 GPM still makes for a nerve wracking experience. An extinguisher is for if you are cooking and catch the fire as it starts. The fires in movies are nothing like in real life. A five pound extinguisher lasts a very short time and is only good for a small waste basket size fire. As the guy who has to either save people or remove their body afterwards, I am begging you to have a legitimate escape plan. If you literally can’t get out the emergency window in a life or death circumstance, you need to consider a different floor plan or resign yourself to a possibly bad outcome. I don’t know how to say that any less harshly. But it is a fact people need to be aware of.
    Last edited by Knightclimber; 04-18-2021 at 09:27 AM.

  7. #27
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    What do you all think about this:

    https://www.amazon.com/iEvac-only-Am...xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==
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  8. #28
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    Not familiar with those but a quick glance suggests they are a better option than trusting using an extinguisher to get out.

    Quote Originally Posted by Dopperud View Post

  9. #29
    Left The Driveway
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    We have a 303, have not tried to use, but would need firm surface from bed to window and a blanket. Then lots of luck... As a doctor, former medivac in arctic, I am surprised by the design. We have also had a family who had severe medical problems and had to be taken out by a medical team. No way from most 5th wheels, too narrow, angles too sharp. Nightmare. It would be great if the window were larger and go down lower, both for fire and medivac. I guess, suggestion to GrandDesign.
    Wayne and Becky Carlson
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  10. #30
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    The windows are designed for emergency escape by the Governments idea of the average fit body size. Just look at the ones walking their dogs in the morning the back side of most of these women and some men are so big they would never fit through any escape window. They are so unfit they are never going to make out under any circumstances but want to laugh and giggle in an attempt to practice a fire escape plan.
    I did fire restoration for many years. In conversations with the relatives during reconstruction, most people didn`t get out because of smoke not fire. They never made it to a window but were found on the floor or still in bed when they died. The materials used in the construction of campers create a toxic mix that will suffocate you in a couple of seconds. You don`t have time to wait for the "big one" to try to get out a to small window or even a larger window. You do what you want but covering your mouth, crawl on the floor and heading for the door is the best plan IMO, yes I know I know even through the fire.
    My wife, an retired insurance adjuster saw this scenario play out many times in her career and understands how not funny this is and should be taken very seriously, so much so she keeps her weight in control and we had practiced the window routine. She made it out faster than me. But we realized this takes to much time and the smoke at that level would be blinding or toxic. Trying to fight a fire is useless especially with the fire extinguishers supplied with your typical camper. If your camper catches on fire no matter how small it will be totaled because you can never really get all the smoke smell out of it. Get out and watch it burn, remember when seconds count they are only minutes away. Just hope it doesn`t happen to you.
    Last edited by bshgto; 04-22-2021 at 08:45 AM.

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