Fire Hose and Mill Hose

There are many industrial uses for fire hose and nozzles. When a fire hose will be used for fire fighting, it's important to choose a fire hose assembly with a Factory Mutual (FM) approval or U.L. listing. For industrial use, customers can save money by purchasing a product referred to as Mill Hose. Mill hose has an appearance and composition similar to fire hose but Mill hose is not FM or U.L. approved for fire fighting.

Originally, fire hoses were made of riveted leather. By 1880 a fire hose constructed of stitched, rubberized canvas strips replaced the fire hoses of the day. Two years later, a machine which could loom fabric in a tubular shape was designed for production of a cotton-jacketed rubber hose. It soon became the industry standard for manufacturing fire hoses.

Today, there are several styles and materials available for industrial use and municipal fire hose. Typically, the hose contains an EPDM rubber tube and then a single or double layer of external woven textile reinforcement. The external textile reinforcement is referred to as a jacket and specifications for products are usually written as Single Jacket or Double Jacket. In most cases, a synthetic textile such as polyester is used to weave the jacket. EPDM rubber is popular because it resists the effects of water and is affordable. Newer designs of mill hose and fire hose sometimes substitute EPDM rubber and polyester jackets with other materials to provide the benefits of this hose for use with liquids other than water.

Colors are usually added to fire hose through the use of performance enhancing coatings such as nitrile or hypalon. The coated product typically has improved abrasion resistance.