Page 15 - Occupational Health & Safety, January/February 2020

EMERGENCY SHOWERS & EYEWASH
Weekly Testing Ensures Eyewash/
Safety Shower Protection and ANSI Compliance
Testing is an essential part of ensuring that emergency systems work.
BY RYAN PFUND
www.ohsonline.com
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020 | Occupational Health & Safety 11
You may remember that long, high-frequen- cy and screeching tone on your television or radio: “This is a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. This is only a test.” (In the actual event of a local, state or national emer- gency, vital information would then be announced.)
Whether it’s the Emergency Broadcast System1 or your facility’s plumbed emergency fixtures, test- ing is an essential part of ensuring that emergency systems work. Regular testing is a failsafe way to validate operational readiness and identify areas for improvement.
Emergency eye wash and shower equipment are used by people in dire exposure situations. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that these fixtures are inspected, tested and verified weekly to ensure immediate, reli- able and proper usage. Weekly safety equipment tests are also required by the ANSI/ISEA Z358.1 standard (with a more in-depth evaluation to be conducted an- nually). Violations for inappropriate or inadequate equipment may result in costly penalties, not to men- tion the possibilities of life-altering injuries.
Work settings that involve hazardous materials are oftentimes in flux. ANSI’s definition of “hazard- ous material” includes caustics, as well as additional substances and compounds that have the capability of producing adverse effects on the health and safety of humans. Changes in materials, employees, machin- ery, operations and worksite risks are a moving target. Weekly tests and inspections ensure the placement and readiness of each fixture in such dynamic work environments.
Each weekly inspection should check that plumbed emergency equipment:
■ isincompliancewiththeANSI/ISEAstandard ■ worksproperlywithnomissingorbrokenparts ■ wasflushedtocleardebrisandstagnantwater
■ is protected against freezing
■ uses tepid fluid between 60- and 100-degrees
Fahrenheit or 16- and 38-degrees Celsius
Here are guidelines on how to ensure compli- ance with ANSI weekly minimum performance
requirements:
Per ANSI/ISEA Z358.1, emergency drench show-
ers, eye and eye/face washes must be inspected and activated one time per week. This activation ensures that nothing is blocking the flow of the flushing fluid and eliminates any chance of contamination from stagnant water. It’s important that all heads of the de- vice are activated, including the eyewash or eye/face wash head, as well as the showerhead.
Take time to flush lines long enough to clear the line of sediment and debris. Self-contained units should also be visually inspected weekly. Inspection tags are