LFA Chapter 4 Advanced Cleaning and Inspection - Particulate Blocking Hoods 8 2 23

ADVANCED CLEANING AND ADVANCED INSPECTION OF PARTICULATE BLOCKING HOODS
This video was produced by LION TotalCare dedicated to keeping you safer longer.
This video will demonstrate how to perform an advanced cleaning and inspection of a particulate-blocking protective hood.
An Advanced Inspection requires a clean hood, so that’s our first step.
ADVANCED CLEANING
Hoods should be cleaned annually at a minimum.
If your hood is exposed to products of combustion, contamination, smoke, blood, body fluids or hazardous substances, it must be cleaned soon as possible after exposure.
Avoid the spread of chemical contamination or hazardous combustion products to other laundry. Always wash your hood separately from other items. Never wash your hood at home or in public laundry facilities.
Never use high-velocity power washers or pressure hoses for washing hoods. The water pressure generated by these tools can severely damage protective materials and seams.
Whether spot cleaning, pre-treating or machine washing, use commercially
available detergents with a pH greater than 6.0 and less than 10.5. Many household detergents fall within this range.
StationCare from LION TotalCare® is designed for the cleaning of NFPA 1971 Hoods.
Always check MSDS and product's instructions before use. To spot clean:
Apply the cleaner one or two times on soiled areas according to the cleaning product’s instructions on dilution and application.
Gently rub the fabrics together.
Thoroughly and carefully rinse the hood with cool water.
Do not use petroleum-based solvents to spot clean. These products may reduce the limited protective qualities of the hood.
To pretreat your hood
· Apply the pretreating product onto the soiled areas according to product instructions on dilution and application.
· Thoroughly and carefully rinse the hood with cool water.
· Place the hood into the washing machine and follow LION and machine manufacturer’s instructions
HEAVILY SOILED AREAS
· Air dry the hood before applying cleaning product.
· Saturate the heavily soiled and surrounding area according to the cleaning product’s instructions on dilution and application. Follow the cleaning product instructions for duration of soaking.
· Gently rub the fabrics together.
· Thoroughly and carefully rinse the Hood with cool water.
· Repeat steps if necessary.
· Place the hood into the washing machine and follow LION and machine manufacturer’s instructions
MACHINE SETTINGS
· Wash temperature should not exceed 105o F (40o C).
· Use low extractor speeds less than 100 g’s.
· Double rinse. Double rinsing removes residual dirt and ensures detergent removal. If your machine will not automatically double rinse, a complete second rinse cycle should be run without adding detergent.
· Load machine with hoods to be washed. Follow machine manufacturer’s instructions for proper load size. Overloading the machine can lead to incomplete cleaning and other poor cleaning results.
· Add cleaning product per manufacturer’s instructions.
· Set washing machine on normal cycle and start the wash cycle.
DRYING
Remove the hood from the washing machine. If the hood is not already inside out from washing, turn it inside out to expose the inner surfaces. Dry by hanging in a shaded area that receives good cross ventilation or use a fan to circulate the air.
Do not use automatic dryers. The mechanical action and excessive heat may damage or shrink your hood.
Do not hang the hood to dry in direct or indirect sunlight, or in fluorescent light. Light will severely reduce the strength of the seams and will discolor and greatly reduce the strength and protective qualities of the components of the hood.
Never dry-clean your Hood. Dry-cleaning will damage the Hood and reduce its protective qualities.
HAND WASHING IN A UTILITY SINK
LION does NOT RECOMMEND hand washing your hood in a utility sink. However, if no other options are available, hand washing is preferable to no washing.
· Before washing, make sure you comply with all federal, state, and local guidelines for handling effluents from utility sinks.
· Wear rubber gloves to protect against exposure to contaminants.
· Use the same cleaning products as used for machine washing.
· Make sure water temperature does not exceed 105o F (40o C).
· Using a hand brush, gently scrub surfaces. Over-scrubbing may damage your hood’s materials or reduce its useful life.
ADVANCED INSPECTION OF PARTICULATE BLOCKING HOODS
Specifically, we will demonstrate a Light Evaluation of hood particulate blocking layers. A smoke evaluation can also be performed as well.
For more information on smoke evaluation testing, reference section 12.2 of the 2020 Edition of the NFPA 1851 Standard.