Safety
7 Materials That Make FR Clothing Work
May 5, 2023
Workwear that is rated as fire- and flame-resistant is designed to protect the wearer from fire, heat, and sparks. But what’s in that gear? Here’s a quick look at the fabrics that go into these safety-minded clothes and how they are designed to keep you safe on the job.
Stay Safe with the Right Base Layers
Before you wear just anything under your FR workwear, including jackets, pants, and hats, check out the Coastal article on proper FR base layers in arc-flash environments.
Acrylic, Polyester and/or Nylon: While not ideal for base layer fire protection, these three fabrics can offer fire resistance when blended with wool, silk, or other manmade fabrics.
Kevlar: Similar to Nomex, Kevlar is manmade and uses a chain or polyamide chemicals to create a fire-resistant and strong fabric.
Modacrylic: This synthetic fiber is soft, light, resilient, and fire resistant. Additionally, this fabric is easy to weave into almost any clothing.
Nomex: This manmade fiber uses a chain or polyamide chemicals to create a fabric that is both fire resistant and strong enough for most work environments.
Silk: Some FR clothing use silk in a blend of fabrics. Silk burns slowly and is difficult to ignite. However, silk is not used as extensively for base-layer FR workwear as it can melt under high temperatures.
Viscose Fiber: Also known as viscose-T100, this manmade fiber uses phosphorous and a blend of other fabrics. Similar to wool, viscose keeps the wearer comfortable in both cold and warm weather.
Wool: The most common and natural of all fibers used for fire-resistant clothing is generally made from wool or a blend of wool and other fabrics. Why? Because wool is difficult to ignite, extinguishes itself quickly, and it keeps the wearer warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
Discover FR Clothing at Coastal
The right fire-resistant clothing for your job is at Coastal. That includes base layers, jackets, pants, hats, shirts, and a lot more. Stop by today and go home with everything your country needs to stay safe on the job.