"The One Product We Hope You Never Use"

Practical Simplicity Works When Panic Strikes.

   No one ever plans on having a fire emergency – but should that misfortune ever happen to you or your family, you’ll be better prepared with Smoke Escape. Three out of four fire fatalities are caused by smoke inhalation. Ideal for airplanes, hotels, high rise buildings, or homes, the highly portable Smoke Escape™ Hood provides a safe supply of filtered air for up to 20 minutes -- time which can be spent finding your way to safety. Laboratory Tested. One Size Fits All. Easy To Use.  (See below for efficacy and assessment test results)

   Studies show that the most important thing you can do to survive a fire is to maintain your source of breathable air. In just a few seconds, you can easily put on this Smoke Escape Hood (with 360 degree visibility) and breathe filtered air for the time it takes to escape. And this is great news if you are a risk management analyst, an office manager, or a parent.

   The number of people who die as a direct result of severe burns during a fire emergency are minimal compared to the number who suffer from smoke related injuries. 

  Are you an office or building manager? Do you have an Emergency Escape Plan for your building? Do you need a discount on a quantity order (over 50 units)? EMAIL
 

Yes, it seems a bit odd to be selling the Smoke Escape Hoods & Masks on The Freeman Institute website, given what we do at the Institute. I am the first to admit it. Someone close to me had 7-year old son who was killed in a house fire because he was overcome by smoke and became disoriented, walking straight into the fire. 90% of his body was burned and he ultimately died. This made an indelible impression on me.

   I knew that if that young boy had worn a Smoke Escape Hood, he would probably still be alive today. When I heard about these Hoods a few years ago, I decided to offer them as a low-cost courtesy to people who visit our site. We barely cover the costs/time associated with offering them, but it feels good to make them available.
                                                               Thanks,   Joel A. Freeman, Ph.D.

--- Comment:
 "Good idea but you can't stick your face in a fire with it." 
     Response:
 This is true of course, but firefighters cannot stick their face in a fire wearing their protective equipment. 

--- Question:
 What temperature does the polymer melt at?
     Response:
 155ºC (311ºF) -- Given that if you are in a room where the temperature is 212ºF, you're boiling like a kettle, at 311ºF you're dead a long time ago. 

--- Comment:
 "An oxygen molecule is the same size as a cyanide and a carbon dioxide molecule therefore if oxygen can pass through the filter so can cyanide and carbon dioxide". 
     Response:
 No cloth filter, at any cost, can filter out cyanide or carbon dioxide. While these substances are poisonous they are also odorless and tasteless, and not immediately irritating or fatal to ones eyes or lungs. To exaggerate this point, if someone wishes to commit suicide in a garage by leaving the engine running and closing the door, it would take over an hour before death occurred. In a real fire you only have precious seconds to get out. It is the carbon particulate, yes little pieces of burning charcoal just like those in your barbeque but much smaller, which cause the irritation to your eyes and lungs. Carbon particulate is the real culprit in a fire, causing thousands of senseless deaths due to smoke inhalation.

--- Question:
 Does the Smoke Escape Hood filter out gases?
     Response:
 No -- Since 3 out of 4 fire-related deaths are caused by smoke inhalation, gases are not the primary focus of most people who are looking for a simple-to-use device that gives a person up to 20 minutes to get out of harms way. Even though this is a morbid thought...as mentioned in the response above...if one wanted to commit suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning, it would take 45 - 90 minutes under planned conditions for one to do so. Most fire-related deaths occur when the victim becomes overcome with smoke, begins coughing, gets confused and disoriented and start walking or crawling...right into danger.

--- Question:
 Why no canister-type filter in the Smoke Escape Hood?
     Response:
  The filter is made with a patented tri-layered, ionized construction-approved material, designed for respiratory protection against airborne particles. Smoke filtration is so effective that even tobacco smoke will not pass through the filter. Plus the filter offers low resistance to breathing oxygenated air. A canister in the mouth prohibits yelling for help or giving directions to others in the burning building. As we have already stated, "Simplicity is King in a Panic Situation."

--- Question:
Does the Smoke Escape Hood have an elastic band, rubber seal, or draw string around the neck to keep the smoke out?
     Response:
 The manufacturer wanted to develop a safety product that even a person with arthritis in his or her fingers could use with ease. There is no elastic band, drawstring or rubber seal. It has been deliberately designed without the elastic neck band or drawstring to keep everything as simple as possible. When panic strikes simplicity is the key. The Hood must be grasped around the neck by the left or right hand, permitting the person to use the other hand for holding a child or feeling one's way through the smoke-filled room. An elastic neck band or drawstring creates more confusion in a panic situation.

Pus, if an elastic band were used for this product, it would have to be just the right size for everyone, from a child (with a small neck size) all the way to a professional body builder (with a much larger neck size). This would be impossible, unless different Hood sizes were manufactured. But even then, an elastic band, which may allow a person to get the Hood over his or her head, may not be tight enough to keep the smoke out around the neck. Which means that the person is right back to grasping the Hood around the neck to ensure that smoke is being kept out. As stated before, this Hood is a simple design -- one size fits all. Both children and the elderly can more readily use this method. It even fits easily over glasses.

The main point of any such device is to keep the smoke on the outside of the Smoke Escape Hood. The right or left hand instinctively knows the exact pressure that needs to be applied to keep the smoke out while escaping the dangerous situation.

--- Question:
Has the Smoke Escape Hood ever been recalled for any reason?
     Response:
 No...(unlike the Evac-U8 hoods, which was recalled in 2006. According to Ernst and Young, Brookdale International Systems (manufacturer of the Evac-U8 respirators) subsequently filed for bankruptcy March 2007.)

--- Question:
Is the Smoke Escape Hood certified or rated with UL or NIOSH?
     Response:
 The Smoke Escape Hood is the world's first DISPOSABLE respirator. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the United States does not have a rating for disposable respirators...neither does Underwriters Laboratory (UL).

  The European Union (EU) does have a standard. The Council of European Communities and their Council Directive 89/686/EEC, adopted Dec. 21, 1989. Performance Specifications EN 149 and EN 143 of the Council Directive for filter efficiency, are met by the Smoke Escape filter media. The Smoke Escape Hood is CE Certified according to EU Directive 89/686 Category 1. In the absence of harmonized standards in North America, we have conducted Laboratory Testing for filter efficiency (see below). The data is verifiable and available to the general public.

  Here's some more technical stuff: NIOSH Standard N-99 (which means filter efficiency) is at 99% at 0.3 micron particle size, is for dust mask configurations ONLY. NIOSH is solely based on configurations and not on FILTER MEDIA EFFICIENCY RATES. The filter media used in the construction of Smoke Escape has a 99% filter efficiency at 0.3 micron particle size. Therefore meets NIOSH Standard N-99. NIOSH regrettably does not have a Configuration Standard for Flat Sheet Disposable respirator hoods, only for dust mask configurations which you see in the hardware stores, and which DO NOT Protect the wearers eyes from particulate matter, as is the case with Smoke Escape Hood. Hopefully one day NIOSH will catch up.

~  A     M e a n i n g f u l    G i f t  ~

ORDER HERE

COST?
An Astonishing $15.99 Per Hood...
C O M P A R E

Others charge $30 - $160 for the same type of smoke escape safety product. Some of the more expensive ones have cumbersome external filters.

What are the lives of your loved ones worth?
What is your life worth?

The one product we hope you never use...

~ Another Fine Product ~

SMOKE ESCAPE MASK

This is an escape mask that seals to your face using medical adhesive. The hypoallergenic medical adhesive creates a tight seal that enables the filter and protective anti-fog eye-shield to provide maximum protection. Masks that apply with elastic straps or hoods and "seal" at the neck with ties or pull strings can allow gaps around the edges of the mask or around the neck where contaminants can enter.  This mask's patented sealing system takes into account all of the variations in facial sizes and shape and prevents contaminants from entering the perimeter edges of the mask and prevents the eyes from becoming a pathway of transmission. ORDER HERE

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    These quick response hoods have undergone rigorous laboratory testing and are specifically designed to be a one-time use item, providing a full 360 degree visibility and easy voice communication with 20 minutes of protection provided for the escape. 

   The Smoke Escape Hood is endorsed by and used by many fire and police organizations throughout North America. The filter is made of a US Patented tri-layered, ionized construction-approved material. The Hood shell is constructed of .002 optically clear random copolymer UL rated "VTM-O" by UL Test #94. 

   We have checked out the alternatives. Other types of smoke escape hoods are harder to store, do not allow for easy voice communication during panic situations, less portable, are relatively cumbersome, with limited visibility and much more expensive.

    In dangerous situations all of the extra "bells and whistles" merely get in the way of a quick solution. This item is extremely portable and it can be used by young people and older people alike. No draw strings to mess with. In a matter of seconds it is out of the box, over the head and the person is clutching the plastic tightly around the neck with one hand -- running toward safety with as much visibility as is possible under the circumstances.

    Frankly, we were "underwhelmed" when we first saw the Smoke Escape Hood. It is small and just looks like an ordinary plastic hood. But we soon discovered that the "underwhelming" factor is it's strength. It has been specifically engineered to be easy to use. Under dangerous circumstances all the other fancy stuff, like drawstrings and extra filters, get in the way, especially for a child or a senior citizen. Practical simplicity works when panic strikes.

    At this low, low price, the Smoke Escape Hood is an “ounce of prevention” that everyone can afford. Get several to store throughout your house or to take along when you travel – they just might save some lives! This is a product we hope you will never have to use.