Thread: 100% Flax linen fire hose

I recently bought a 2' length of this off the bay and it is starting to form small fuzzballs on the working surface......what's up with that? I have not treated it with anything and have only done around a hundred or so laps on it. I've already pulled them off or I would have posted some pictures.

Has no one had fuzzballs appear on their linen????

Well,,,not yet,, probably because I have used it only once. I'm not sure how many of these fire hose strops are out there; so the reply's might be few.

Originally Posted by Hirlau

Well,,,not yet,, probably because I have used it only once. I'm not sure how many of these fire hose strops are out there; so the reply's might be few.

lol! Your right, I didn't think about that...
Thanks!

I have one, I have used it may be 15-20 times but have not noticed any fuzz balls form on it.
I'd guess yours is releasing fibers that form into balls. I have seen videos where such fuzzballs are removed with a multiblade cartridge razor, just shave them off.

Yes, what Stefan said.. shave them off, don't pull them off. Don't have one, but wool clothing will do the same and this is how I fixed it. For a while, at least...

Will do, thanks guys!!

Because of the type of fiber it is flax is pretty resistant to that type of thing especially compared to wool and cotton.

It may well depend upon the source of the fire hose. If the hose was used actively on a fire truck, then it probably has some wear. It is was a fire hose inside a building that was occasionally stretched out for inspection, but never actually used, the linen might be in great condition.

Even if a hose is never used, it still has to be replaced when it reaches the end of its expected life. The linen might still be in great shape, but the liner might be to brittle to hold full water pressure.

The other thing is, are you sure it's flax based linen and not canvas.