# Coolest FR CAT2 Work clothes



## gpop (May 14, 2018)

Bulwark FR Long Sleeve Tagless T-Shirt. In real hot places we try to keep the shirt wet with sweat. 

The worst ones are the button up shirts as the FR coating makes the shirt stiff so it fells like you nipples are being sanded off.


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## stiffneck (Nov 8, 2015)

I've used Bulwark button up "4.1" ATPV tan colored shirts for hot humid weather. The problem is buying the same thing twice, as they are always making changes. Plus, I couldn't find any other useful tag information other than "4.1" to differ from other Bulwark products. "4.1" may not be high enough rating depending on the situation. However, for 90*+ ambient and 70*+ dew point it works well
Just realized, you are needing Risk Cat-II and these shirts are Cat-I.


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## BillyMac59 (Sep 12, 2019)

I too have be subject to the all day - every day wearing of hot FR2 clothing. We maintenance guys petitioned the employer through our JHSC (of which I'm a member) to work in cotton t-shirts provided we carried the FR shirt with us AND put it on when required. One of our key selling points was that a sweat soaked FR shirt has less than half the protection of a dry one. Good luck....


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## Lone Crapshooter (Nov 8, 2008)

I don't know weather this is fact or just my opinion but I believe all FR clothing does is give you a false feeling of safety. I am talking about clothing not flash suits.
If you are waring FR pants and shirts and get them contaminated with a hydrocarbon or some other flammable chemical an then are involved in a arc flash incident any place that on the garments that is contaminated will burn.
My solution would be to use cotton clothes and depending on the type of work needing be done use flash suits. When I worked in the plant We used 40 cal suits for every thing . Once size fits all, KISS Keep It Simple Stupid.
We also had a unwritten policy of using 2 electricians to do jobs some jobs. A switcher to turn the power off and a worker to do the work after the power was off. This was for real quick jobs. For longer jobs the switcher would remove his flash suit
and work with the crew.

LC


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## stiffneck (Nov 8, 2015)

Lone Crapshooter said:


> I don't know weather this is fact or just my opinion but I believe all FR clothing does is give you a false feeling of safety. I am talking about clothing not flash suits.
> If you are waring FR pants and shirts and get them contaminated with a hydrocarbon or some other flammable chemical an then are involved in a arc flash incident any place that on the garments that is contaminated will burn.
> My solution would be to use cotton clothes and depending on the type of work needing be done use flash suits. When I worked in the plant We used 40 cal suits for every thing . Once size fits all, KISS Keep It Simple Stupid.
> We also had a unwritten policy of using 2 electricians to do jobs some jobs. A switcher to turn the power off and a worker to do the work after the power was off. This was for real quick jobs. For longer jobs the switcher would remove his flash suit
> ...


I agree, FR clothing can be great, or an added problem and it does have to be clean, which is not always possible. If I was allowed some latitude to make decisions for myself, problem solved. But we're not allowed to, instead some desk jockey or insurance/workman's comp/osha agent does. You know the type, the one that never did any electrical work of any kind.


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## Lone Crapshooter (Nov 8, 2008)

Talk to other electricians outside of your organization to see how they are handling a similar situation. Sometimes you have to roll with the punches .
It cannot a every man for himself . If that were the case in this day and time I believe people would would be working 13.2 hot wearing nothing more than boars shorts and flip flops wile others are wearing 100cal full flash suits and 15 KV gloves to change out a 15 amp receptacle on a LOTOed circuit.

LC


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## Lone Crapshooter (Nov 8, 2008)

Talk to other electricians outside of your organization to see how they are handling a similar situation. Sometimes you have to roll with the punches .
It cannot a every man for himself . If that were the case in this day and time I believe people would would be working 13.2 hot wearing nothing more than boars shorts and flip flops wile others are wearing 100cal full flash suits and 15 KV gloves to change out a 15 amp receptacle on a LOTOed circuit.

LC


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## niteshift (Nov 21, 2007)

em158 said:


> The plant that I am working at for the foreseeable future is 100% FR required all day, every day. What is the lightest, coolest long sleeve shirts in your opinion. Temperatures here in Md. don't compare to many areas with extreme summers but our humidity more than makes up for it.
> 
> As of now Carhart long sleeves T's are the most comfortable that I have found. I am getting ready to order new clothes and wanted options that might be even cooler.
> 
> Winter here is usually not too severe and I can layer to deal with that.:help::sweatdrop::icon_redface:


I can only add I have not found any that are comparable to non-FR pants/shirts, their all hot. 
You said it's a plant, can't they secure a uniform service? You shouldn't have to provide your own.


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## gpop (May 14, 2018)

niteshift said:


> I can only add I have not found any that are comparable to non-FR pants/shirts, their all hot.
> You said it's a plant, can't they secure a uniform service? You shouldn't have to provide your own.


We had the uniform company and the first few years it was terrible as they only offered one option. Then a new company came in and told us to order what we liked. 
Relaxed fit jeans boot cut and sweat shirts instead of button up was a lot better. 

Tested one of mine. Weird sensation. Didn't catch fire so that was a bonus.


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## Coppersmith (Aug 11, 2017)

"Coolest FR CAT2 Work clothes"

When I saw the title I expected the first post to have a picture of some very fashionable and hip FR clothing perhaps being modeled by some young people. Guess you meant something else.


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## em158 (Jul 7, 2016)

niteshift said:


> I can only add I have not found any that are comparable to non-FR pants/shirts, their all hot.
> You said it's a plant, can't they secure a uniform service? You shouldn't have to provide your own.


I am a contractor working for the plant. My company supplies my CAT2 FR clothes, and I have been told to order what I want. I have been there for a couple years now and need to replace some items. I was just hoping that someone from really hot/humid from TX, MS, or LA might know of something cooler than the Carhartt long sleeve T's. They have held up well, but I was wanting to know if anything cooler was on the market that I did not know about.


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## Lone Crapshooter (Nov 8, 2008)

On the other side of the coin you figure that FR is hot in the summer they will keep you warm in the winter. WRONG. From my experience FR is just as cold or colder than regular clothes.
One thing that I have done and for me I think it worker some what . Police officers that ware bullet proof vest under there close where a special T shirt to keep them cool. You can get them from uniform stores but they are more expensive than regular T shirts.

LC https://www.221btactical.com/collections/all-gear 
https://coolshield.us/


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## niteshift (Nov 21, 2007)

em158 said:


> I am a contractor working for the plant. My company supplies my CAT2 FR clothes, and I have been told to order what I want. I have been there for a couple years now and need to replace some items. I was just hoping that someone from really hot/humid from TX, MS, or LA might know of something cooler than the Carhartt long sleeve T's. They have held up well, but I was wanting to know if anything cooler was on the market that I did not know about.


I can give this advice, if wearing FR clothes, stay out of the summer sun. I work nights, and it' all inside. When I do venture out during daylight hrs with FR on, it is like wearing a blanket.


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## paulengr (Oct 8, 2017)

They have GREATLY improved. Carhartt is cotton. The old tech is Nomex which is heavy but breathable. The latest is modacrylic. I have a couple long sleeve T shirts. It is purposely much more porous. They make pants and shirts with it. Much cooler. But even the newer Milliken stuff is better. I know Key, some Tyndale, and Ariat use it. Carhartt is good for winter.

The oil field guys are looking for NFPA 2112. They don’t really care about ATPV. It’s just the reality that there is almost always something on fire in a refinery so everything is FR but not necessarily very thick.

But...There is FR and then there is ATPV. The FR rating basically means it doesn’t sustain a flame, regardless of the thickness. Thickness or insulative value determines ATPV. So other than making it more porous (think wool) you can’t really avoid the fact that everything that is ATPV 8-10 (HRC 2) is going to be pretty close to wearing twill work pants and a work shirt. Twill is thinner than jeans but still thick. So if you have to have a certain ATPV there is only so much you can do.

Linemen are limited by regulations to a minimum of ATPV 4. This applies everywhere no matter what the actual calorie rating is. OSHA 1910.269 requires this. So they have really nice light weight comfortable shirts that are 4-6 ATPV. Like Drifire for instance, and they are hi viz too but very expensive. Usually around $100 for a shirt. Lineman pants tend towards heavy jeans since they take a lot of abuse. I can find both sometimes cheap at a local store that often has some discounted ones. Jharlen.com is a lineman store (no discounts) and Carolina Apparel is more of a discount store. Most uniform rentals also sell their new or used stuff too,

A third option is layering. Up to 12 ATPV is all single layer. Above this you can wear say a T-shirt (6 ATPV) with say a sweatshirt (12 ATPV) and the combination might be say 35 ATPV but it requires testing so you have to search the internet for tested combinations. But 40 ATPV is quite literally equal to heavy insulated winter coveralls. So if you can just throw on a rain suit or a set of light coveralls over regular arc rated clothing to hit a higher ATPV that you won’t die from heat exhaustion in, that’s a much better option.

Personally my older stuff is Carhartt that was heavily discounted at a mine. I have a few newer lineman shirts and overalls that are much more comfortable in summer. I have the Salisbury 40 cal suit and winter overalls and jacket that are 40 cal. If I have to do 40 cal in summer I get the stuff on and shut off power as quick as I can then strip down. It is simply not possible to work in it for more than about 20 minutes in summer without risking heat exhaustion. Even in air conditioned rooms there is a limit to how long you can safely work.

In the coastal South we get pretty close to the same temperatures over the whole area fed by the Gulf. Right now the whole week has been mid 90s with heat indexes around 105-110. West Texas and points further West are much lower humidity which is much more tolerable with lower heat indexes even though they are 10 degrees hotter.


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## Flyingsod (Jul 11, 2013)

Lone Crapshooter said:


> Talk to other electricians outside of your organization to see how they are handling a similar situation. Sometimes you have to roll with the punches .
> It cannot a every man for himself . If that were the case in this day and time I believe people would would be working 13.2 hot wearing nothing more than boars shorts and flip flops wile others are wearing 100cal full flash suits and 15 KV gloves to change out a 15 amp receptacle on a LOTOed circuit.
> LC


Hell no i aint wearing flip flops... my Huaraches have rubber soles!


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## em158 (Jul 7, 2016)

My question was never about why I should wear FR Cat2 clothing, or what to wear when switching. In this plant FR Cat2 is mandated from the time you enter until the time you leave. It does not matter if you are changing lightbulbs, drinking coffee or cutting the grass. I have a 40 cal suit when it is required for switching. I have company issued clothing, and I can pick whatever brand I want as long as it meets Cat2 and NFPA 2112. I was just hoping that someone in an even hotter, more humid climate could let me know if a shirt meeting those ratings that is cooler, and lighter than the Carhartt long sleeve T's is available.
:sweatdrop::sweatdrop::sweatdrop:


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## paulengr (Oct 8, 2017)

em158 said:


> My question was never about why I should wear FR Cat2 clothing, or what to wear when switching. In this plant FR Cat2 is mandated from the time you enter until the time you leave. It does not matter if you are changing lightbulbs, drinking coffee or cutting the grass. I have a 40 cal suit when it is required for switching. I have company issued clothing, and I can pick whatever brand I want as long as it meets Cat2 and NFPA 2112. I was just hoping that someone in an even hotter, more humid climate could let me know if a shirt meeting those ratings that is cooler, and lighter than the Carhartt long sleeve T's is available.
> :sweatdrop::sweatdrop::sweatdrop:



Yes. Carhartt cotton stuff is not that great.

Can’t give you much in names but pay close attention to the manufacturer of the cloth. It seems like every uniform company uses similar stuff from the same mills. Nomex is heavier but much more breathable. Glenguard is lighter but also more breathable. So top of the line fir shirts is Drifire or Dragonwear but a lot of their stuff is barely 8 cal. Linemen only want their minimum, 4 cal. I have a couple Glenguard Henleys. Very comfortable. Either way this is like Under Armor. It does not absorb sweat unlike cotton so the trade off is you will feel more sticky and sweaty instead of dry.

The whole key is air flow but everybody is different. I mostly sweat around my legs. Some guys are back sweaters, some face and arms. Wherever you sweat, get maximum air flow and go as loose as possible. So if you sweat at your waist and crotch consider getting rid of the belt. That means suspenders or bibs. With pants go twill and baggy. Cargo pants, carpenter/dungaree, or loose fit. Forget crotch riding Ariat. With underwear it’s a trade off. Going commando gets rid of a layer but also lets your pants rub more down there. I swear mostly through my legs so this all helps me a lot.

For shirts do the same thing. So I’m basically a large but I get XL. Roll up the sleeves to your elbows and unbutton down to your chest. Get Henleys (lineman shirt) or full button down shirts. This is as close to a short sleeve T shirt as you can get. Ditch the undershirt if you can.

Also you transfer more heat through your head, hands, and feet than the rest of your body. So gloves only when you need them. Wear knit gloves at even n. not leather or nitriles if you can. Wear the 6 or 8 point harness full brim hard hat if you have to wear a hard hat with a dew rag wrap on the front. These ones get extra air flow and better shade. If you only need E1 the new Klein hats are vented and cooler. If no hard hat best is nothing on top. We tend towards short hair cuts even fully bald in the South for a reason and not just because we support the military. I would go hatless but I sunburn way too easy there so I settle for short ball caps or hard hat. Go white if you can.

Aside from all that the big thing is acclamation. Spend at least 2-3 hours every day in the hottest condition you can stand when it gets warm out. Daddy is an ogre when I chase my kids out of the air conditioned house every day for at least a couple hours but they appreciate it when we’re outside somewhere and their friends are choking on the heat. Within a couple days your body starts to adjust. After a week to 10 days you are fully adjusted. Its far more of a big deal than how you dress. Same thing in winter. I used to drop down to short sleeves at 50 degrees when I lived North if Green Bay. I was so used to cold that 70 degrees seemed miserably hot. Now at 50 I’m in a sweatshirt and at 40 the bibs are on. I went for a job interview not long ago in an outdoor plant in Northern Wisconsin at right around zero in full arctic Carhartts. I forgot what crunchy snow and having it hurt to breath the air felt like. I don’t miss it and glad I didn’t get the job.

I know Mastec guys though that have to wear Carhartt button down shirts and jeans year round. In the bucket they are required to wear sleeves and gloves. That is pretty bad but they just practice acclimation and get through it.

Also...use a fan. Dewalt and Milwaukee make nice battery ones.

One last thing. Your body loses potassium quick in heat. Gatorade does NOT help this. Eat one to two bananas or a slice of cantaloupe or honeydew every day with a least 1 or 2 meals. This avoids the cramps. I used to work in a foundry. Every summer HR would wait until July to bring on more help. So no acclimating those guys. HR threatened them all with getting fired if they missed work. First day they would be miserable but fight through it. So they went home and usually felt sick so they didn’t eat or drink. They would drink beers instead of water. No fruit. Next day they would be even worse. By day three if they didn’t fall out we would find them cramped up puking their guts out. Often turning leaf green. They tried to fight through it but with no food, no potassium, and not enough hydration they would be seeing a doctor and out several days. Every time we warned them. Most didn’t listen. After they puked their guts out and missed work they paid more attention. We only closed down the plant floor when it got up over 110. Our sister plant in Lynchburg didn’t stop even then but they were much better ventilated.


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## Quickservice (Apr 23, 2020)

ValeoBill said:


> I too have be subject to the all day - every day wearing of hot FR2 clothing. We maintenance guys petitioned the employer through our JHSC (of which I'm a member) to work in cotton t-shirts provided we carried the FR shirt with us AND put it on when required. One of our key selling points was that a sweat soaked FR shirt has less than half the protection of a dry one. Good luck....


Yes... we have the hot plus crazy humidity... makes you want to wear as little as possible! :vs_laugh:


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## Quickservice (Apr 23, 2020)

paulengr said:


> Yes. Carhartt cotton stuff is not that great.
> 
> Can’t give you much in names but pay close attention to the manufacturer of the cloth. It seems like every uniform company uses similar stuff from the same mills. Nomex is heavier but much more breathable. Glenguard is lighter but also more breathable. So top of the line fir shirts is Drifire or Dragonwear but a lot of their stuff is barely 8 cal. Linemen only want their minimum, 4 cal. I have a couple Glenguard Henleys. Very comfortable. Either way this is like Under Armor. It does not absorb sweat unlike cotton so the trade off is you will feel more sticky and sweaty instead of dry.
> 
> ...


Super idea... one that I failed to mention.


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