EarthClean Corporation of St. Paul, Minnesota completed a series of wildland firefighting aerial drop tests earlier this summer in Appleton, Minn. The tests were jointly conducted by EarthClean, featuring its TetraKO® XL-P firefighting water enhancer, and Aero Spray Inc. and its Fire Boss aircraft. Management teams from both EarthClean and Aero Spray were on hand.
Observed results showed that TetraKO XL-P produced excellent coverage on both the canopy and ground level. In addition to its performance in the drop zone, TetraKO XL-P rapidly mixed into Aero Spray’s portable tank, with no dusting and without the need for any type of eductor system.
“Our TetraKO XL-P granulate formula performed as we expected: producing excellent coverage throughout the drop zone on trees, shrubs and other plant materials,” said James R. Grabek, EarthClean Corporation President. “Equally important, the granulate is very easy to mix and deploy, critical considerations in the all-hands-on-deck atmosphere of a wildland fire response scenario.”
“EarthClean has a good product, especially when it is pre-mixed with a land-based system for use with wheeled aircraft,” said John Schwenk, president of Aero Spray, Inc. “On the ground, after an aerial drop, it looks like TetraKO does an amazing job of coating the vegetation. I was really impressed with that. And the environmental benefits are its strong suit.”
Cornstarch-based TetraKO XL-P granulate easily mixes with water and can be poured directly into a wide range of existing wildland firefighting equipment, including air-pressurized fire extinguishers, backpack sprayers, skid units, utility vehicles (UTVs), helicopter buckets, and SEAT operations. The biodegradable mixed solution provides excellent Class-A firefighting and fire management performance and poses no known environmental risk to sensitive waterways, plant species, aquatic wildlife, birds and small omnivores and herbivores.
For more information, go to www.earthclean.com
