Leather Boots Vs Rubber Boots

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Permalink Reply by Jeff Schwering on September 28, 2009 at 3:19pm

We recently went to the Globe leather boots, wouldn't go back to rubber, unless we had to. They wear like many Brothers and Sisters have said, like tennis shoes. I would definately speak to the distributors to get studies on decon. No more blisters.

KTF

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Permalink Reply by Todd McKee on September 29, 2009 at 1:52pm

Brent:

You bring up a great point with decon, but we should never get our self into a situation where we need to decon our boots. This is one of the down falls to some fire departments, not having on going training with Hazardous materials incidents. If we stop think and start at the Awareness level we should stay out of the mess until the proper PPE can be worn. Sorry my buddy Brent. With that being said leather boots are more durable than rubber boots making them last longer than rubber boots. There is also more ankle support in a leather boot. I feel that the leather boot is a safer boot, you may want to talk to manufactures. They are the best sellers for the boots and they may be able to provide you with some tips.

Your friend, Todd McKee

Brent Sanger said:

How are the leather boots at being able to be decontaminated after exposure to hazardous materials? From what I have known, that has always been a leather boots main drawback. I agree they are much more comfortable and durable than rubber boots. I wore the toe cap down to the steel toe of a pair of rubber boots, that were brand new, when I went through Firefighter 1 at the academy (we did a LOT of crawling). I have not had the opportunity to be able to afford a pair of leather boots, and cannot wait for the day I can.

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Permalink Reply by Wayne Benner Jr (Casper) on September 29, 2009 at 3:15pm

.When we talk about decon. There is a test which i will find and post shows that Leather is easier to clean then rubber. However booth maintain some levels of chemicaI which is caused by fire, rescues NOT HAZMAT situations of course as there are boots for that purpose. After your working calls you should be Deconing (Cleaning) your boots as to not bring it into other calls such as EMS runs.

I believe this test was done by Globe.

I wear rubber and they are the heaviest boots ever. And they are the shoe fit. I personnaly wear my bunker pants to almost 90% of my runs. Yes this includes EMS. So Im in my suppression boots more then others.
I presently do not get to wear leather but its a push that Im trying as they last longer and cause less of a beating on your back..

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Tibbitts on September 30, 2009 at 1:37pm

I just bought a new pair of the globe's I absolutely love them I tried a few different brands but these were great. A bonus for them is that they can actually be refurbed down the line which is cool, they are way more comfortable than rubber, loads better features for truck co. ops (only down fall is if you guys do alot of basement pumping) They have better ankle support saving on injuries they dont use a steal plank in the bottom which helps keeping you warmer in winter. My lt recently came off a 2 story roof this past winter shortly after switching to the globes, the doctors even stated that the boots saved his leg. He had a mild fracture but it would have been alot worse. The way my dept dos it is they pay for the rubber boats but if you want leather they will kick in what they would pay and you have to kick in the rest. Im not a big fan of this however the way I see it one long night on the fireground and they have paid for them selves. A bunch of us got ours from Churchville fire equip. I want to say they coast $290 a pair give or take a few bucks. Hope this helped. Take care and be safe.

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Permalink Reply by Chris McMahon on September 30, 2009 at 9:07pm

I think it was W.L. Gore, the makers of Goretex that released a study stating that leather decons better than rubber. I don't have the actual study because I gave it to the safety committee to try to get leathers for the membership. I'm sure you could find it easily online. We talked the Deputy into spilling the cost. The department issues rubber but will reimburse up to $150 for individuals to get what fits. Make sure you try on the boots before you buy and don't be fooled into putting "gel" or soft footbeds into any boots you wear at work. I know for a fact that support to your heal and arch will increase the comfort and decrease back pain in kind of footwear. 15 years of fitting ski boots and sports footwear has proven this time and time again. Be safe

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Permalink Reply by Rich Long on October 1, 2009 at 1:55pm

My district does not issue leathers but most of our staff has bought their own. In my opinion the leathers are more comfortable and for our drivers some even drive on a regular basis with bunker pants on while using leathers, our policy states that wearing of bunker pants while driving is up to the operator b/c of the limited mobility of Rubber boots. With decon in mind you could possibly use the spiller pays laws replace any damaged equipment due to hazardous materials.

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Permalink Reply by Tom Henderson on October 2, 2009 at 11:23am

If you do a search on fire engineering for "leather vs. rubber boots in decon test" you should be able to view the test data that has been compiled. The leather boots actually held less residual than the rubber. If you cant find data i will e-mail you the link. Be safe.

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Permalink Reply by Brandon Buckley on November 1, 2009 at 12:54pm

Here is the link to a summary of the study done by W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc



http://www.fireengineering.com/index/articles/display/347481/articl...

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Permalink Reply by Chris Fleming on November 2, 2009 at 4:20pm

Neil,
NIOSH is doing a study on the medical benefits of leather vs. rubber boots as it pertains to injuries. They would be a good contact if you want to gather up some scientifically aquired info. As I understand it, leather boots have come a long way in comfort and weight. I'm making the jump to leather boots this year. Who says old dogs can't learn new tricks? Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by Nick Miller on November 14, 2009 at 8:22am

Not sure about Decon procedures with leather boots. Our dept. normally does a full re-fit for contaminated gear anyhow. I know that NIOSH was doing a study this past year on Leather vs. Rubber boots, and the effects that the rubber boots have in correlation with ankle, knee, and back injuries. I have not heard on a report being released yet.

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