Does my Rainwear Protect Against Flash Fire Exposures?
ASTM F2733, Standard Specification for Flame Resistant Rainwear for Protection Against Flame Hazards, contains minimum performance specifications and other requirements for rainwear used to protect workers from hydrocarbon or petrochemical flash fires in wet conditions.
The intent of this standard is to outfit workers with products that will lower the percentage of body burn and burn severity from a 3 second flash fire, thereby increasing survivability.
Similar to its ASTM F1891 counterpart for arc flash rainwear, key performance requirements of ASTM F2733 include:
- Flame Resistance: Rainwear material shall be flame resistant and shall not melt or drip when tested in accordance with ASTM D6413 and shall exhibit no more than a 2 second after-flame time and less than 6” char length.
- Thermal Protection: Rainwear material shall be tested in accordance with ASTM F1930, a design test, after one washing and one drying.
- Flash Fire Protection: Total body burn must be less than 40%.
- Leak Resistance: Material must withstand water pressure of 30 psig without leaking. The seams of the rainwear must not exhibit any evidence of leakage when exposed to water at 3 psig for 2 minutes.
- Tear Resistance: Material shall have a trapezoidal tear resistance of 6 pounds in the warp direction and 6 pounds in the fill direction.
- Moisture Vapor Transmission: If the rainwear is marketed as being breathable, it must be tested.
- Markings and Reflective Materials: These materials attached to the rainwear shall be permanent and shall not degrade the performance of the rainwear.
- Rainwear Construction: Utilize materials, stitchings, tapes, coatings, fasteners, and closure materials that minimize heat conduction for the construction of compliant FR rainwear. Fasteners and closures used, for example, zippers, snaps and buttons that are made from metal shall be covered with a layer of rainwear material on the inside of the garment such that these items of construction will not contact undergarments or skin.
NASCO industries is a leading manufacturer of FR raingear in the USA; watch NASCO’s video of flash fire raingear testing according to ASTM F2733:
NFPA 2112 is often seen as the parallel, or complementary, standard to ASTM F2733 as both set forth minimum requirements to maximize protection for workers facing flash fire hazards. NFPA 2112 governs flash fire protective work shirts, pants, and coveralls while ASTM F2733 is specific to flash fire rainwear.
ASTM F2733 was last updated in 2009 and is available for purchase through ASTM.
If your workers face an arc flash hazard and are not exposed to flash fire, read our post on ASTM 1891, Standard Specification for Arc and Flame Resistant Rainwear for more information about arc protective rainwear.
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The correct type of rainwear directly supports comfort in wet conditions, and Tyndale makes it easy to outfit your workforce with proven, cost-effective rainwear—complete with the direct-to-user spend enforcement, OSHA audit tracking, reporting, and customer service you know and trust from your FR clothing program.
Contact us today to discuss your requirements, explore our rainwear catalog, and choose one of our flexible program extensions to outfit your workers for safety, compliance, and comfort.
