Firefighter protective garment having a thermal barrier with spacers to increase dissipation of metabolic heat

A firefighter protective coat comprising:

• a plurality of superimposed layers, the plurality of superimposed layers comprising:
• an outer shell defining an outermost layer of the firefighter protective coat;
• a moisture barrier inwardly affixed to the outer shell;
• a thermal barrier inwardly affixed to the moisture barrier, the thermal barrier defining an innermost layer of the plurality of superimposed layers;
• and
• an array of spacer pads inwardly affixed to the thermal barrier;
• and
• a network of air circulation channels separating neighboring spacer pads from one another.

A firefighter protective coat comprising:

• a plurality of superimposed layers, the plurality of superimposed layers comprising:
• an outer shell defining an outermost layer of the firefighter protective coat;
• a moisture barrier inwardly affixed to the outer shell;
• and
• a thermal barrier inwardly affixed to the moisture barrier, the thermal barrier defining an innermost layer of the plurality of superimposed layers;
• and
• an array of spacer pads inwardly affixed to the thermal barrier, each spacer pad of said array being made of closed cell foam, the spacer pads being covered by a fire-resistant mesh fabric.

A firefighter apparel comprising:

• a firefighter protective coat comprising:
• a plurality of superimposed layers, the plurality of superimposed layers comprising:
• an outer shell defining an outermost layer of the firefighter protective coat;
• a moisture barrier inwardly affixed to the outer shell;
• and
• a thermal barrier inwardly affixed to the moisture barrier, the thermal barrier defining an innermost layer of the plurality of superimposed layers,
• suspenders having a back portion;
• a support frame affixed to the suspenders, the support frame extending in the back portion of the suspenders;
• and
• an array of spacer pads inwardly affixed to the support frame, the array of spacer pads being configured to maintain a gap between the support frame and a firefighter's body when the firefighter garment is worn by the firefighter.

A firefighter apparel comprising a firefighter protective coat, the firefighter protective coat comprising a plurality of superimposed layers, the plurality of superimposed layers comprising an outer shell defining an outermost layer of the firefighter protective coat, a moisture barrier inwardly affixed to the outer shell, and a thermal barrier inwardly affixed to the moisture barrier, the thermal barrier defining an innermost layer of the plurality of superimposed layers, the firefighter apparel comprising:

• suspenders having a back portion;
• a support frame affixed to the suspenders, the support frame extending in the back portion of the suspenders;
• and
• an array of spacer pads inwardly affixed to the support frame, the array of spacer pads being configured maintain a gap between the support frame and a firefighter's body when the firefighter garment is worn by the firefighter.