foot switches

[squad 51 fan]

does anyone still use foot switches for your airhorn or siren for hands-free operation?

 

[shues]

I don't know anyone who doesn't use foot switches.

 

[EVModules]

I don't know of anyone who DOES use foot switches & never installed one! It's always through the horn ring. In my opinion, using a footswitch costs more in parts, labor, and more complicated. Personally, using foot switches is a poor excuse for not using the horn ring connections. It isn't hard to connect and makes more sense to do it this way.

 

[shues]

In modern fire apparatus the horn ring is not within reach of the officer's seat. If the officer is going to control the siren and the horns, foot switches are a must.


Also, if the engineer is going to control the siren and the horns, the horn ring can only be used for one of these functions. As such, using a foot switch on the left side for the air horns compliments the horn ring for siren control.

 

[EVModules]

Well of course. I assumed the topic was in regards to typical patrol vehicle type installs.

 

[shues]

I gotcha. We were talking about two different types of vehicles.

 

[JohnMarcson]

I see dash switches and steering wheel controls in ambulances around here and foot switches in fire vehicles where the officer controls the horn...

 

[MJDNRP-6885]

In modern fire apparatus the horn ring is not within reach of the officer's seat. If the officer is going to control the siren and the horns, foot switches are a must.

Also, if the engineer is going to control the siren and the horns, the horn ring can only be used for one of these functions. As such, using a foot switch on the left side for the air horns compliments the horn ring for siren control.

The FD that I was on, had all the controls for all audible warning (Fed-Q, Air horn, and electric siren) mounted so that only the engineer/driver had control over them. The officer's job was radio operation and reading the map and giving directions, and he also had access to the Bell, but no one ever really used it except for parades, it was more ornamental for tradition.

 

[grfd711]

On both FDs I'm on, footswitches are used on the apparatus for Qs, and one rig on my vollie dept uses footswiches for an airhorn on an '86 Mack/Pierce. In my POV, I had to wire up a footswitch for the Whelen Alpha 12Q due to already using my horn ring for my Unitrol TMD.

 

[John Hearne]

I'm going with foot switches for our future patrol car installs due to a lack of outlets on the Cencom. If you want to use the horn ring, it costs you an output.

 

[TNFF412N]

that doesnt make since, how does Horn Ring take an output but the foot switch doesnt ?

 

[JohnMarcson]

that doesnt make since, how does Horn Ring take an output but the foot switch doesnt ?

+1 if one works the other will...