Elektrishun
Well-Known Member
Here's the maintenance instructions on my shop extinguisher:
"Hydrostatic retest to 4033 kpa (585psi) every 12 years."
I think it depends on the type of extinguisher.
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Workplace Safety at work and in the home shop
- Thread starter Elektrishun
- Start date
Here's the maintenance instructions on my shop extinguisher:
"Hydrostatic retest to 4033 kpa (585psi) every 12 years."
I think it depends on the type of extinguisher.
Doggggboy
Ultra Member
Every year a tech comes out and inspects all the extinguishers. I think I have a dozen or so. Costs a couple of hundred bucks for the service call but saves a couple of hundred on insurance so it's a wash cost wise.
BaitMaster
Ultra Member
I’ve had numerous roles in regards to safety on the job. In management, COR auditor, also helped get COR and make safety programs in a few companies.
This doesn’t make sense if you know me since I’m quite salty about some safety regs.
That being said, some safety I take very seriously. I always say to apprentices there’s three things in our job you are likely to get killed doing:
1) live electrical work
2) working at heights
3) driving
I take safety in those tasks dead serious. I own my own Petzl harness and lanyards so I don’t get uncomfortable in them.
I “don’t” do live work. (Rare exceptions with extreme precautions in exception). People ask me your an electrician, how do you not get shocked?!?!? Turn the darn power off. My wife will testify that I will shut our whole house down if I can’t find a breaker. And I’m a pro.
Driving has killed more people that I know then anything else. You have to take it seriously. I’ve lost a friend in the last year to a head on. He was 17, helped us at the hunting camp. Good kid.
That being said I wear safety glasses, ear plugs etc…. I should put an extinguisher in my shop. Thanks for the reminder.
This doesn’t make sense if you know me since I’m quite salty about some safety regs.
That being said, some safety I take very seriously. I always say to apprentices there’s three things in our job you are likely to get killed doing:
1) live electrical work
2) working at heights
3) driving
I take safety in those tasks dead serious. I own my own Petzl harness and lanyards so I don’t get uncomfortable in them.
I “don’t” do live work. (Rare exceptions with extreme precautions in exception). People ask me your an electrician, how do you not get shocked?!?!? Turn the darn power off. My wife will testify that I will shut our whole house down if I can’t find a breaker. And I’m a pro.
Driving has killed more people that I know then anything else. You have to take it seriously. I’ve lost a friend in the last year to a head on. He was 17, helped us at the hunting camp. Good kid.
That being said I wear safety glasses, ear plugs etc…. I should put an extinguisher in my shop. Thanks for the reminder.
Downwindtracker2
Super User
That Blank Blank Blank that wired our house ran two circuits into one light box ! I got a 120volt zap.
The Fire Marshal inspected Al and my wiring of our Rock and Gem shop .That passed easily, but our fire extinguisher was out of date. His suggestion was that it was cheaper to buy a new one at Costco.
The Fire Marshal inspected Al and my wiring of our Rock and Gem shop .That passed easily, but our fire extinguisher was out of date. His suggestion was that it was cheaper to buy a new one at Costco.
Elektrishun
Well-Known Member
One of my jobs was a maintenance electrician at a hospital. A common task was replacing lighting ballasts. The newer part of the building was all 347V. I was shown to replace the ballast live because shutting off a breaker could take down 30 light fixtures affecting a number of areas. Never felt good about it but when in Rome... One day I read online about a study done in Ontario which listed the top 10 ways electricians die on the job. Number 1 was working in a live panel and 2 was replacing 347V ballasts. I stopped doing it live. Took a lot more planning but I found a way to shut-off the power.
BaitMaster
Ultra Member
I will and have shut down running factories completely because of my refusal to work on live gear. Unless they can get explain to me how it’s a bigger hazard for the power to be shut off then it is for it to remain on, I will shut it off.
I’ve been screamed at for this. I’ve told people to find different electricians. I’m not getting cooked alive from the inside to save someone a few thousand dollars. Or a few hundred thousand for that matter. Or a million. IDGA rip. Screw. That. My wife without a husband and my kids without a dad is enough of a motivator to make me extremely stubborn in that.
That being said, if it’s a hospital, and it was critical to life gear I was working on, I would work on it live if I had arc flash gear and it really was necessary.
Or a fire pump if there was a fire, etc.
But just for some money? Find a different sparky. He can die for you. I’m going to go home to my family.
All that being said too I’m certainly not against work, and will work hard and long when required, and I also understand the financial end of it has to make sense. I’m just not going to put myself in an extremely high risk situation for dollars and cents that aren’t even mine.
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ChazzC
Ultra Member
Typically this inspection consists of recording the serial numbers, inspecting for damage or slogged nozzles, checking the gauge and/or weighing the extinguisher (to check charge), checking the date of manufacture and hanging a new tag (for the owner to fill out monthly).
Downwindtracker2
Super User
In BC, if there is augment about what is safe, we can bring in Work Safe (WCB) . We can refuse unsafe work without penalty .yeah right. Our mill had a bad rep for safety with them. They got an improve or else with a long expensive list. Had they acted responsibly over time, they would not have been hit with everything at once.
Elektrishun
Well-Known Member
Yes, putting one's health at risk to avoid inconveniencing others doesn't make sense when there is options. I know 2 electricians who got caught working on 347V lighting. Both were very lucky to get away without serious injury.
While replacing a ballast with the power "on" this guy had his shoulder resting against the metal ceiling grid when his hand came into contact with the live wire. He claims that the current must have travelled through his hand and into the metal grid which tripped the breaker. He said his arm was out of commission for a few days.
The other guy was replacing a 347V light fixture while using an 8' step ladder. Said he used his meter to verify that the lighting whip was not "live" and then proceeded to terminate the conductors in the fixture. BOOM! Seen a big flash and sparks as he turned and jumped off the ladder. He landed on a clear spot on the floor. That room was under renovation at the time and there were materials all over the place. Burnt a hole through his thumb nail. When he checked the conductors for voltage he must have not had a proper ground.
Both were long time maintenance electricians. All things considered both were very lucky.
BaitMaster
Ultra Member
I once had a bad feeling about turning on a particular 30a 480v disconnect. I grabbed an FR coverall, welding gloves, earplugs, and stood way off to the side with my face protected.
I was using channel locks to turn the disconnect to add distance.
The disconnect exploded as I turned it on, the channel locks went flying about 30ft, and the welding glove had burnt spots.
The channel lock afterwords had a shiny and colourful “anodized” yellow, blue, and purple finish to the metal.
There was nothing external that suggested the disconnect would fail, I just had a feeling in my bones.
Very grateful I listened to my gut.
Makes me wonder if the disconnect had been sized to the appropriate fault level. Even that doesn’t mean that it’s not going to explode- just that the explosion will not rupture the enclosure.
Glad your sixth sense saved you!!!
TorontoBuilder
Sapientia et Doctrina Stabilitas
working while tired is such a risk I wont do it. It also means there are so many hours I wont work in the shop. Which is why I'm making a huge effort to get a shop a 30 walk away rather than a 20 minute drive away
I had a close call at work a few years ago. I was in the welding shop, heard the shear (~50’ away) power up, start to cut, and then the noise abruptly stopped. I stuck my head around the corner and saw my younger coworker staring at the machine in confusion. I walked over and asked what happened. She don’t know, shear just stopped mid cut.
Nothing overt on the outside, so I figured I’d have a look at the electrical box on the back of the machine. I asked her to turn off the breaker for the shear (dun dun dun…)
Opened the box, had a good look around. Hands in pockets, out of habit. Nothing looked burnt, no weird smells. Decided to flip the breaker back on, see if the machine would power up.
Except the power was still on, coworker had cut the power on an adjacent machine.
Shear is 600 volt 3 phase.
After thinking about it for a bit, I broke it to her gently that, if she needed the power off to the shear, that wasn’t the right box. She looked like she was going to throw up.
I should never have asked someone to cut the power for me, without directly confirming it was off. And I’m damned glad I didn’t touch anything.
(Turned out the pump motor had failed, swapped it out for a refurb)
Different coworker told me a story about wanting to check if a 600 volt 3 phase line was live, when he was younger. Decided to attach a piece of wire to a broomstick, and swipe the wire across the suspect line.
Wire vaporized, made a fireball that burnt his eyebrows and eyelashes off.
Probably live.
Nothing overt on the outside, so I figured I’d have a look at the electrical box on the back of the machine. I asked her to turn off the breaker for the shear (dun dun dun…)
Opened the box, had a good look around. Hands in pockets, out of habit. Nothing looked burnt, no weird smells. Decided to flip the breaker back on, see if the machine would power up.
Except the power was still on, coworker had cut the power on an adjacent machine.
Shear is 600 volt 3 phase.
After thinking about it for a bit, I broke it to her gently that, if she needed the power off to the shear, that wasn’t the right box. She looked like she was going to throw up.
I should never have asked someone to cut the power for me, without directly confirming it was off. And I’m damned glad I didn’t touch anything.
(Turned out the pump motor had failed, swapped it out for a refurb)
Different coworker told me a story about wanting to check if a 600 volt 3 phase line was live, when he was younger. Decided to attach a piece of wire to a broomstick, and swipe the wire across the suspect line.
Wire vaporized, made a fireball that burnt his eyebrows and eyelashes off.
Probably live.
ChazzC
Ultra Member
LOTO
Perhaps we should have a separate thread “Why Women live longer than Men”
I present exhibit A:
Of course it could just be that Men tend to do dangerous shit, whereas women tend to watch men doing dangerous things after calling the life insurance company to confirm the policy is still current…
(I realized my post was sexist, I’m sure there are lots of Women who do dangerous shit while their husbands call the insurance company. But from an actuarial perspective, I suspect Men get charged higher premiums on average)
I present exhibit A:
Of course it could just be that Men tend to do dangerous shit, whereas women tend to watch men doing dangerous things after calling the life insurance company to confirm the policy is still current…
(I realized my post was sexist, I’m sure there are lots of Women who do dangerous shit while their husbands call the insurance company. But from an actuarial perspective, I suspect Men get charged higher premiums on average)
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Elektrishun
Well-Known Member
@StevSmar
That picture of the Milwaukee portable bandsaw reminds of the first time I used one.
The foreman for the main contractor at one of the jobs I was a sub at was watching me install threaded rod into the ceiling that would be used to support unistrut. I was going to take it down because it was too long but he said I should leave it and cut it with a Milwaukee portable bandsaw. Never seen one before and he showed how to use it. The threaded rod was so long that I would need to brace it with one hand and cut with the other. A little tricky because it was the full-size bandsaw and I was standing on a step ladder. So the foreman offered to brace from below and I could use 2 hands. Bad idea. I had a feeling I shouldn't have done it that way but cut it anyhow. The foreman was putting pressure on the rod towards me and as soon as the bandsaw sliced through the 3/8" rod the loose end smacked hard into the left lens of my safety glasses and deflected away from my face. Without the glasses I might have lost an eye or at least ended up with a nice cool scar across the left side of my face.
That picture of the Milwaukee portable bandsaw reminds of the first time I used one.
The foreman for the main contractor at one of the jobs I was a sub at was watching me install threaded rod into the ceiling that would be used to support unistrut. I was going to take it down because it was too long but he said I should leave it and cut it with a Milwaukee portable bandsaw. Never seen one before and he showed how to use it. The threaded rod was so long that I would need to brace it with one hand and cut with the other. A little tricky because it was the full-size bandsaw and I was standing on a step ladder. So the foreman offered to brace from below and I could use 2 hands. Bad idea. I had a feeling I shouldn't have done it that way but cut it anyhow. The foreman was putting pressure on the rod towards me and as soon as the bandsaw sliced through the 3/8" rod the loose end smacked hard into the left lens of my safety glasses and deflected away from my face. Without the glasses I might have lost an eye or at least ended up with a nice cool scar across the left side of my face.
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Did the mobile base come with your drill press or was this something you purchased separately? I can see the Delta logo on the sticker.
Maybe.
I recently read a medical study that looked at why women live longer than men. The answer shocked me. The answer was THEY DON'T.
Lots of studies show women living longer than men. However, if you normalize the statistics for weight, they are the same as men. It's just that the average man weighs more than the average woman. If you plot men and women who weigh the same, their life expectancy is the same. It's consistent across all weights. Another outcome of that study is that small people live longer than big people.......
I wear safety glasses. I have a 20lb & a 5lb fire extinguisher in the shop, the 20 I picked up last spring at our meet. Occasionally I'll put on a face mask for grinding, sorta depends on the size of the job. I try do do as much cutting & grinding outside as possible, the little welding I do (so far) is at the open overhead door. I rarely put on hearing protection (I know, I know). Depending on what I'm cutting/sawing, I may wear a dust mask. Gloves, rarely. Sometimes while working w/ a nasty chemical I'll put nitrile gloves on.
That said, some of this safety stuff goes into the ridiculous. Started a new job a number of years back, had to take a s-load of safety modules. After blowing an afternoon on some of them (including one on ladder safety) I trundle past a two step step ladder which was used to stock top shelves. Now, everyone knows that you're not s'pose to stand on the top rung of a ladder. Fine. This company's policy was that you weren't s'pose to stand on the second rung from the top, either. In effect, rendering this two step ladder useless & against company policy.
In addition, safety policy is only as good as those administering it. Case in point: Everyone at this place, according to written company policy, was s'pose to wear safety boots. Period. Unless, of course, you got a Dr's note saying that your feet hurt wearing safety boots & you could wear whatever you wanted, sandals, sneakers, Crocs, etc.
They also put a significant emphasis on driving safety. Fine. I stop at stop signs, mirror check, shoulder check, signal, observe municipal speed limits, etc., etc., etc. anyway. No biggie. While there, I watched a number of members of the management team blow through stop signs, fail to signal at turns, text, surf & talk on their cell phones while driving, speeding, etc.
Yet, if you squealed, you'd have been toast. Rules for thee & not for me.
That said, some of this safety stuff goes into the ridiculous. Started a new job a number of years back, had to take a s-load of safety modules. After blowing an afternoon on some of them (including one on ladder safety) I trundle past a two step step ladder which was used to stock top shelves. Now, everyone knows that you're not s'pose to stand on the top rung of a ladder. Fine. This company's policy was that you weren't s'pose to stand on the second rung from the top, either. In effect, rendering this two step ladder useless & against company policy.
In addition, safety policy is only as good as those administering it. Case in point: Everyone at this place, according to written company policy, was s'pose to wear safety boots. Period. Unless, of course, you got a Dr's note saying that your feet hurt wearing safety boots & you could wear whatever you wanted, sandals, sneakers, Crocs, etc.
They also put a significant emphasis on driving safety. Fine. I stop at stop signs, mirror check, shoulder check, signal, observe municipal speed limits, etc., etc., etc. anyway. No biggie. While there, I watched a number of members of the management team blow through stop signs, fail to signal at turns, text, surf & talk on their cell phones while driving, speeding, etc.
Yet, if you squealed, you'd have been toast. Rules for thee & not for me.