Nbc suit question

[12mp82]

Nothing wrong with British army NBC suit, if its good enough for military use its good enough for anyone. They have a shelf life of 8/10 years i think (its been a long time since i did nbc training) so check dates on any gear you buy.

Is that why they are being sold online to anyone, because they are out of date, might be good for paintballers and anglers but not a lot else, I wonder if TPTB would use chemical and biological stuff on the population? and if they saw someone wearing a suit like this what would happent to them?

[Magenta16v]

^^^^^
That's my point really . Are they good and will they still work . Pointless buying if they won't work

[secdp2001]

hi

yes they work and the british nbc kit is good , however as with any nbc gear the suits have a shelf life and are only good to be used for 48 hrs then you need another one as the active ingredients in the suits once exposed only work for that long. also you cant get em wet or they don't work so you would then need a waterproof suit over the top.

as for feet there are rubber over boots don't know if they are available to buy haven't looked.

then you will need a gas mask/ respirator again the canisters on these are only good for a limited time.

[ORAC1]

The suit has a black charcoal lining to help against penetration of chemical agents. If the suit gets to water logged the protection becomes degraded.

As the other members have stated the suit is just part of an overall system:

Suit - jacket and trousers
Gloves - inner and outer
Overboots rubber
Respirator and cannister
Decontamination kit - pads, fullers earth
Atropin kit for nerve agents
Warning or test kit, velcro pad sticks to arm and changes colour depending upon the agent

Most people have no idea what is is like to spend 24 hours in an NBC suit trying to eat; drink and sleep with a respirator on

You should give it a try, you may rethink the idea.

I was in the RAF many years ago and we were forever practicing with this kit but it is only as good as the warning you have. It takes time to get all this gear on and sealed correctly. The different agents could be airbourne; contact with skin or both.

the training I got involved:

Sealed room with a CS gas released
Take respirator off and then put back on
Change cannister
Drink water
Eat food

The CS would burn your sweaty skin if the seal was poor and you would choke if the respirator seal was poor or you were not quick enough doing the above. My point is if you take NBC seriously you need to practice and adjust your kit to fit you exactly.

Let us hope chemical or biological agents are never a real problem

[CardiffGuy]

All good points made, whilst its good to prep and have that added level of protection, as ORAC1 has stated unless you train constantly and also have access to the same advanced warnings as the MOD/Intelligence Services have then there maybe limited protection.

My reason's for possibly needing a full face or half face respirator may differ from a few people but for me it would have to be in cases of civil unrest where certain gases maybe deployed for dispersal of the unpleasant members of society that take part.

C.G.

[Attack Warning Red]

for me it would have to be in cases of civil unrest where certain gases maybe deployed for dispersal of the unpleasant members of society that take part.

C.G.

That's why I always pack a mask and a fresh filter when there's a protest/riot planned in London. AFAIK the UK police haven't deployed tear gas since 1970s Northern Ireland, but I'm sure they have stocks of it ready in case things REALLY kick off!

[Lowlander]

T

[12mp82]

I'm familiar with a few of the bits here, but some of the abbreviations have me stumped?

NAPS?

POL?

Atropine is derived from Deadly Nightshade and a few other sources, which is also what is used to make Nerve agents.

CBRN is Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear, but you have put that these suits are no good in a Bio Environment?

As with most things there is a shelf life with these suits, after a certain lenght of time the chemicals used in the suits become less effective so surplus kit is generally past those shelf dates and that is why TPTB are disposing of them, even S10 respirators are likely to be next to useless if bought as surplus.

I agree that with a full out CBRN situation i.e. all out super-power warfare the military are going to be the only ones equiped for it, until then though I'll prep for the more likely scenarios

[Lowlander]

For 12mp82
NAPS-Nerve Agent Protective System, little tablets you take one every 8 hrs
POL- Petrol.Oil,Lubricants- (basically any get on filter its stuffed)
The complete kit as issued would protect you in a BIO environment, the problem is Decontamination. The suit is not waterproof, and the only safe way to decontaminate Bio agents is with a Bleach solution. British Kit was NBC rated, Fullers Earth is what is used to decon those agents, it is no good against BIO agents. I only left Military this year, and I was up to date on kit.When raising questions about BIO, you would never get a straight answer.So I did a lot of research on it.
To be safe you are better buying new civilian respirators than ex-mod, as the rubber will have started to go brittle and the seals will not be 100%.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Moldex-898225-S ... YBRR0SS3P8
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Moldex-Filters- ... 1443CX8UXW
and DeWalt GOGGLE Concealer Clear Goggle DPG82-11D- or something similar.
Would do the trick to get you through for a short time.
Hope that clears it up a wee bit.
SORRY ONE FINAL NOTE, ALL RESPIRATOR SEAL'S ARE INEFFECTIVE IF YOU ARE NOT CLEAN SHAVEN GENTS, FACIAL HAIR PREVENTS A CLEAN SEAL.

[12mp82]

Thanks for the explanation, though how anyone would get POL on their resp filter is an odd one.

When the CBRN stuff is happening it is going to be close to end game anyway for civilian population, especially the Bio and chemical, R&N doesn't need the same protection as localised B&C.