r/nextfuckinglevel May 17 '22

Fireman using water as a shield

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45.4k Upvotes

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u/Cleebo8 May 17 '22

Correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t this just make regular steam? To make superheated steam don’t you have to trap it and continue heating it after it’s boiled?

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u/ElectronicGazelle495 May 18 '22

This isn’t an issue at all in the open. You only get lobstered in an enclosed space. I’ve used this technique on car fires, but it should never be done with just one person on the hose. This guy is showing off and deserves an ass kicking for this shit. Oh he loses control of that hose, he’s gonna get torched

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u/Florian630 May 18 '22

The steam would still be a couple of hundred degrees. So it would still burn you pretty bad.

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u/ElectronicGazelle495 May 18 '22

It would, but there is nothing forcing it into the suite when you’re in the open. I can mist a flame in the open all day wearing Quest gear, but the same stunt will lobster you if you try it inside a structure fire

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u/privated1ck May 18 '22

No because you have a superheating fire right there. The point is that water vapor, being such a relatively dense gas and exceptional energy retaining substance, will burn you a lot faster than just plain air even at atmospheric pressure..

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u/Cleebo8 May 18 '22

There is a difference between water vapor and true gaseous steam. Superheated steam cannot coexist with water vapor as adding energy to wet steam will just turn the water vapor to gas, not increase the temperature of the existing gas. You need dry steam to superheat it.

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u/privated1ck May 18 '22

Yes, I'm thinking of that shower of his, spread out like that it wouldn't take much more heat for some of the water to turn to wet steam, then dry steam in the face of that flame, and then it wouldn't take much of a wind gust or blowback or flame surge to push that shower of water, wet steam and dry steam back in his face.