Breathe Easy respirator with rechargeable battery for a SCREAMING DEAL.

JTknives said:
I find that the hose is short too. I end up rotating the pack more to the side which gives me more length.
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Have you guys tried using the duffel bag it came in as a vest? According to the instruction manual it shipped with (the thinner one), the duffel converts into a vest that holds the filters/motor, and the system can be carried this way as an alternative to the strap/buckle. I haven't messed with it to see how/if this works, though.
 
Hey Fish, did you ever find out whether or not the second charger that you received which didn't light up works? Mine doesn't light up either, but I tested the battery with a volt meter and it read about 5.3 volts and it worked when I plugged it into the "turbo" pack unit. However, I haven't used it since that day I turned it on a few times to test it out, and I just turned it back on today and the power supply seemed good/normal for about 15 seconds, but now it all of the sudden seems like it's extremely low powered, because the fan is barely running and I can definitely tell a difference. :confused: All of this "testing" was done without the filters on in yet, just to make sure they weren't a variable.

Maybe it just needs a good, solid, full charge, but I just now checked it again with the volt meter, (which is about 15 minutes after testing it and the fan running pretty low/slow) and it reads pretty much right at 5 volts, maybe 5.05, but you get the idea. So it's a bit lower, but it seems like it should be running as low powered as it is. :confused: Is it possible for the battery to give off a small "jolt" of power for the first few seconds after turning it on but then returning to it's actual power level (low) after the battery has rested, or not been used for a little while?

Anyway I figured I'd check with you (or anybody else here) regarding your charger that doesn't light up to see what to expect if I tried charging it over night. I don't know if it doesn't light up because the prongs on it haven't been cleaned or lubed (although they don't look or feel dirty), or if the light itself on it just went bad and the charger still works or what. I DO know that when I first tried charging it for a few minutes, that the charger became warm, so "something" was going on, I think! lol.

If it's not already obvious, I'm pretty much completely ignorant when it comes to wiring or anything electronic etc. etc. so please forgive me. :o

So that is "my" update regarding my Breath Easy system so far. Everything seems to work great, but I'm not sure about the charger and now I'm not sure why the power is running so low while the battery still has 5 volts... maybe that is about when it needs to be recharged due to lack of power??

Thanks for any and all help or suggestions. :)

~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
... (It's been quite a while since I've posted any new vids)
 
I got mine last week. My first impressions were: wow this mask is small! It does not fit glasses at all. Big problem for me. So I cant get a perfect seal. I went ahead and used it for a couple hours. Its not perfect, but it is tons better than my 3m half mask. It is fairly comfortable to use and finally I dont have to deal with my safety goggles fogging. Word of caution, make sure you take the plugs off the filters before you strap in and turn on! lol.
 
coldsteelburns said:
Hey Fish, did you ever find out whether or not the second charger that you received which didn't light up works? Mine doesn't light up either, but I tested the battery with a volt meter and it read about 5.3 volts and it worked when I plugged it into the "turbo" pack unit. However, I haven't used it since that day I turned it on a few times to test it out, and I just turned it back on today and the power supply seemed good/normal for about 15 seconds, but now it all of the sudden seems like it's extremely low powered, because the fan is barely running and I can definitely tell a difference. :confused: All of this "testing" was done without the filters on in yet, just to make sure they weren't a variable.
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My chargers both light up and seem to work fine. If you are concerned that your charger's battery connection prongs or the battery's female plug are corroded, then try connecting the charger to the battery and disconnecting it repeatedly several times (with the charger unplugged from the wall). A little bit of very, very fine sandpaper or 0000 steel wool on the charger's male battery connector might help, too. I would not put any lubricant on the plugs.

If this does nothing, then you still may have either a dead charger or a dead/broken battery... You might try contacting the seller. When one of mine showed up with a cracked mask, he/she messaged me that he/she would put a new mask in the mail. It took a couple of days to get a response, which may have been due to the weekend.
 
Coldsteel, my charger did in fact work even though the light doesn't. I charged the battery for around 20 hours and it has run the blower the 4 or 5 times I tried it so far. I would guess that these battery packs are 5 NiCad cells which should in fact generate 6.0V, I don't know that but given the voltage amounts I have seen people quoting it would make sense that these are 5 cell battery packs. The performance you are describing fits the way that a NiCad battery performs when it is aged--to recover it typically needs several full recharge/discharge cycles. I would follow Catalytic's advice, the seller said he could come up with another charger for me if mine actually didn't charge the battery. Batteries are particular suckers, and perform all over the map sometimes--I would try and discharge your battery bu plugging it in and letting it run until it died, and then charge it for at least 12 Hrs and discharge it again, 4 or 5 cycles like this and you will probably get the maximum performance that this particular battery pack is going to give.

Good luck--let us know what you end up with.
 
Great info here. I will be using mine probably just on the weekends. Should I let it run until dead on say sunday night and then do a full recharge for use the next weekend?
 
Just realized that the program I used to work on, that is still in my building, fields hazmat gear. Just scored these with more to come.
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timos- said:
Great info here. I will be using mine probably just on the weekends. Should I let it run until dead on say sunday night and then do a full recharge for use the next weekend?
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Yes, that's what I would try.

Good Luck
 
That's really sweet Kdog, do they have battery chargers and batteries for your obtainage??

Good on you brother!
 
yeah, I lucked out. I think they may have the chargers and batteries around. In fact im sure of it, just need to dig around.
 
Instead of the FR-57 cartridges, which filter dust and various kinds of toxic vapors and chemicals, I just wanted dust filtering. The 3M 2291 filter is rated P100 for dust filtering, and is much lighter, more compact, and less than 1/10th the cost of the FR-57 cartridge. I got three 3M 701 Cartridge/Filter Adapters which enable the 2291 filters to screw onto the fan unit directly.
 
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The 3M 701 adapter has threads on one side, and the three-pronged attachment for the 2291 filter on the other. The 2291 filter screws into the 701 adapter, and the 701 adapter screws into the same threaded socket that the FR-57 cartridge screws into. Each adapter is about 1 3/4" diameter (except for two small tabs that stick out that help you turn it in the threads) by about 7/8" high. I found it pays to shop around a little for the 701 adapter.
 
I was not much of a fan of the face mask because the hose felt two short and kind of pulled my head to the side. I purchased the Versaflo m 107 mask pictured elsewhere in this thread. The current hose does not fit the new mask. I called 3M and he told me they were not compatible systems and there was not an adapter available.


I duct taped the hoses together and it appears to work fine:o
 
I just use a piece of PVC pipe and stick it in the end of the two hoses. If the fit isn't tight by itself, I use tape. You may have to grind a little taper to the PVC pipe to get it started.
 
JMJones said:
I was not much of a fan of the face mask because the hose felt two short and kind of pulled my head to the side. I purchased the Versaflo m 107 mask pictured elsewhere in this thread. The current hose does not fit the new mask. I called 3M and he told me they were not compatible systems and there was not an adapter available.


I duct taped the hoses together and it appears to work fine:o
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That's interesting... I have the 3m breathe easy, not the racal unit, but I ordered the 3M BE-324 hose and it fits perfect. If you want to take some measurements I can let you know if this hose would work on yours... of course 3m will tell you the racal unit and theirs isn't compatible =)
 
I found out that the MSA Millennium mask ( uber tactical and light as it's what police and special forces often use) accept 3M bayonet attached p100 filters. Light, easy breathing, no fog, and no batteries to deal with.

Sent from my XT1095 using Tapatalk
 
razor-edge-knives said:
That's interesting... I have the 3m breathe easy, not the racal unit, but I ordered the 3M BE-324 hose and it fits perfect. If you want to take some measurements I can let you know if this hose would work on yours... of course 3m will tell you the racal unit and theirs isn't compatible =)
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What measurements? Inside and outside diameter of both hoses?

thanks
John
 
JMJones said:
What measurements? Inside and outside diameter of both hoses?

thanks
John
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Well I know that the BE-324 hose will fit the M-107 mask, so I would just need the measurement (od of the pipe the tube fits over) and maybe a pic of the base blower unit where the hose connects to it...
 
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