Steve Dech battles fires by day and stinky hockey equipment by night.
Well, OK, sometimes it's the other way around as the 43-year-old Winnipeg firefighter and father of three hockey-playing sons also pulls his share of night shifts

But it was that odoriferous hockey equipment that was causing him to lose sleep, partly because of the fumes but mostly knowing it's bacteria that causes the stench -- bacteria that could hurt his children.

"I've got three sets of hockey equipment in my house and I just got tired of smelling it and I figured there's got to be a better way," said Dech, who along with wife Maureen have sons Ryan, 14, Kyle, 12 and Travis, six, involved in hockey. "I'm immersed in hockey from September through June and I know a number of people in the hockey community and everybody says the same thing. The stuff reeks! That's an indicator. If it stinks, it's got bacteria."

Dech has brought the first Sports-O-Zone machine to Manitoba -- a stainless steel machine that looks like a giant barbecue -- and he's been operating it out of Dakota Community Centre since last fall. It uses ozone gas to kill the odour -- and infection-causing bacteria, particularly the deadly MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria, viruses and fungus living in sports equipment. Rashes and serious infections in athletes of all ages have been linked to bacteria-laden gear.