Valve on Firefighting Equipment

[Capt. Bas]

And whats the big advantage in the pressure indicator in the cylinder valve?
The only thing I can think of is the quick indication when the cylinders are stored?
Or is this a secondary means for the partner to have a quick check of his colleagues pressure. It makes the valve unit a lot more complicated.

I did not see this in European SCBA sets for the FD, at least in the Netherlands its still a DIN screw connector.

 

[FF / EMT]

And whats the big advantage in the pressure indicator in the cylinder valve?
The only thing I can think of is the quick indication when the cylinders are stored?

Correct!
For every air pack on a rig, there needs to be a second bottle for it Per NFPA 1901.
These are often stored in wells behind and in front of rear wheels on fire apparatus, but they can be other places too

 

[Sawdust82]

And whats the big advantage in the pressure indicator in the cylinder valve?
The only thing I can think of is the quick indication when the cylinders are stored?
Or is this a secondary means for the partner to have a quick check of his colleagues pressure. It makes the valve unit a lot more complicated.

I did not see this in European SCBA sets for the FD, at least in the Netherlands its still a DIN screw connector.

In ny area its standard procedure to switch tanks while the pack is still on the firefighters back if he quickly needs to go back to work, and its used to show the firefighter that his new tank is indeed full before its installed. When the valve is opened, the spg is checked to ensure it matches what the tank guage says. Also easy to tell in the confusion of a fireground which tanks are full or empty, as well as help a mobile cascade operator determine what tanks need to be filled without wasting time hooking them to the cascade to check