Fire department using trailer trucks

[car55]

Why is some fire departments using trailer trucks I believe it is called.


PFD Ladder 20 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3022/...63c6161c81.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7115/7...d22b1464_z.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2786/4...9e265f49_z.jpg

It seems a lot of the older cities use them like Philadelphia ,Los Angeles , Atlanta fire ,New York and Baltimore .


Yes even the San Francisco fire department use them.
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3023/2...cb0_z.jpg?zz=1


And the suburbs seem to use these smaller ladder trucks.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8164/7...1fb2e3eb_z.jpg


I would like to know the pros and cons of the use of those big trailer trucks and why some fire departments still use them mostly in the city than the suburb.

Also why these big trailer trucks never took of in Canada or other countries.

[phillydjdan]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.3.5; en-us; ZTE-N910 Build/GRJ90) AppleWebKit/533.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/533.1)

They are called tillers, and are used primarily for thier ability to make tight turns (in Philly's case, the rear wheels steer independently by a rear operator, or "tiller man")

[car55]

Originally Posted by phillydjdan

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; U; Android 2.3.5; en-us; ZTE-N910 Build/GRJ90) AppleWebKit/533.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile Safari/533.1)

They are called tillers, and are used primarily for thier ability to make tight turns (in Philly's case, the rear wheels steer independently by a rear operator, or "tiller man")

Those tiller trucks do they have any other advantage the ladder being bigger use for high-rise buildings where other ladder trucks can't go that high.

Many of the suburbs are getting these types of ladder trucks http://www.mysouthborough.com/wp-con...ck-400x300.jpg or http://s3.freefoto.com/images/28/18/28_18_36_web.jpg

But they may be use for buildings under 6 stories and buildings higher than 6 stories use tiller trucks

[Jay911]

nec208, I mean car55: Tillered ladder trucks are not necessarily longer ladders than straight trucks. A major fire apparatus manufacturer I'm familiar with sells a tiller which is only available in one length - 100 feet (30 meters). The same company's straight truck ladder is available in 100ft (30m), 114ft (35m), and 134ft (41m) lengths.

The benefit, aside from tradition (meaning the department doesn't want to give up tillered aerials because they've always done it that way), is an easier turning radius in cities with smaller streets with narrower turn angles.

[AF5JQ]

Tiller trucks are normally preferred by departments that have a need for the tighter turning radius. They also have more compartment space than a standard aerial truck. The only real downside is you need two drivers to operate it, and they had better be very well trained because these things are a whole different animal. There has to be constant communication between the front and rear drivers at every turn. Just about anyone who has every been a tiller operator will tell you it's more than a little awkward to get used to. When the truck is turning right, he or she is spinning the steering wheel to the left, basically aiming the rear wheels at oncoming traffic, and then straightening out to finish the turn.

[milf]

Correct, if you ever want to see tiller ladder artists in action, check out Memphis FD, some of those guys can back em in the station at nearly road speeds. I think we have 1 or 2 left here in Indy, the magority are now mids and standard rear straights. Oh BTW, the other "trailer" units in action are towed tankers, HAZMAT/Utility, and MUTS (Multi Use Trailer Systems). And of course the mobile command centers and SOWs (Site On Wheels) aka towed radio site.

[Jay911]

You had me going there for a second, milf, thinking you were referring to other tillered apparatus instead of other trailered apparatus. I don't think I've ever seen a tillered tanker (tender)

[milf]

LOL now that would be awesome! A tiller tanker..... Nahh not happening, but I have seen 3 towed tankers with water cannons on a pedestal on the top rear, and 2 with pumps on rear deck and "filter tip" hoses to suck out ponds....

Oh but I have seen a towed tank become a tiller.... Something broke on the fith wheel, and the tank tilled a nice row in the dirt.... All you needed was seeds and fertilizer.. Had a supply of 2500 gallons of H2O lol.

[PJH]

This is one of the better video's showing coordination on operating one. I've only operated on a tower/ladder...learning to tiller would be fun, but not for me!

Truck-13 TillerCam responds to a structure fire - YouTube
Truck-13 TillerCam - YouTube