Safety Tips
Compressed gas cylinders have to be handled properly. Otherwise, associated hazards such as fall, fire, explosion or hazardous gas leakage may happen. That’s why a safety guide on compressed gas cylinders handling is vitally important.
Here are some safety tips on how to handle gas cylinders safely:
- Compressed gas cylinder should be kept in a special room, fenced and locked.
- Authorized and trained workers can only have access to the gas cylinders room.
- Protect gas cylinder against mechanical damage, by using appropriate racks or other means to hold them securely.
- When the gas cylinder is not used, valve caps should always be in place.
- To move the gas cylinders manually use sturdy hand trucks, which can hold one or two gas cylinders.
- Do not handle gas cylinder with electromagnets, ropes or slings.
- Put appropriate label and symbol on the cylinders, which describes content and pressure.
- Do not allow cylinders to be in direct sunshine or expose to high temperature (>120 deg F) for extended periods.
- Keep flame away from contact with cylinder surface.
- Keep flammable materials away from the cylinders.
- Use suitable piping, valves, fittings and others apparatus for the contained gas and pressure.
- Make sure we have provided valves, regulators and safety relief devices.
- Always open cylinder valve slowly to wide-open position.
- Maintain gas cylinder and its accessories in good condition.
- Never use defective safety relief device or leaking cylinder. Mark it and separate from the good ones.
- Separate and mark empty gas cylinders from the full cylinder stock.
- Do not accept gas cylinders without clear gas name and in good cylinder condition.
- Calculate exactly your compressed gas consumption. It is unsafe to store many compressed gas cylinders for 1 year consumption.
Compressed Gas
Compressed Gas Safety is vital to the success of any company engaged in gas distribution, storage, welding supply, medical and the food and beverage business. Below are some links pointing to some great information to keep your employees and business protected while handling compressed gases.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration has published numerous guidelines which coincide with the Department of Labors compliance regulations. Find the OSHA safety info here.
The Food and Drug Administration has numerous articles about regulatory compliance, best practices and general handling guidelines for medical grade gases. This link will take you to the search results page on the FDA website. These articles range in target audiences from medical practitioners to current vendors to new product designers.
Beverage Gases require a completely different set of regulatory compliance. Along with the handling and storage of the bulk tanks, the entire CO2 monitoring system must be maintained by a qualified vendor. Check out the Wikipedia link for Carbon Dioxide here… it contains many uses relevant to the food and beverage industry along with welding and dry ice applications.
Material Safety Data Sheets are a critical document when preparing to work with any type of material, chemical or gas. You can find a link to all of our major suppliers MSDS publications on our MSDS links tab. MSDS documents provide you with the proper handling, storage, use and safety information for a given product. They are vital to your safety and those around you!!
Welding Safety
Welding Safety is vital to the success of any welding business, contractor, employee or by-stander. Improper welding techniques can pose possible injuries due to weak welds resulting in catastrophic failures of pipes, metal plates, consumer products etc… Improper training can lead to health issues, retinal burns, fires, explosions, personal injury and can cost millions of dollars in legal and insurance fees.
The American Welding Society has dedicated numerous resources to ensuring that all AWS members and public are aware of the numerous welding safety regulations, guidelines and best practices. Their website has tons of free information to insure that companies provide safe places to work in our industry and that every welder has the opportunity to review and stay informed about compliance regulation changes.
OSHA guidelines for safe welding and brazing functions are located here. Due to the natural hazards associated with welding, OSHA has developed their own standards for this industry.
Material Safety Data Sheets are a critical document when preparing to work with any type of material, chemical or gas. You can find a link to all of our major suppliers MSDS publications on our MSDS page. MSDS documents provide you with the proper handling, storage, use and safety information for a given product. They are vital to your safety and those around you!!
A well dressed welder is a successful welder. Your Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) will aid in providing a safe and comfortable working environment. A welder should be wearing the following PPE to stay safe.
- Safety Glasses – a must for prepping welding surfaces, grinding welds and handling solvents and gases.
- Welding Bandana – vital for keeping the brow dry and sweat from running into the eyes
- Lightweight Welding Jacket – welding jackets are a key piece of clothing to keep a welder protected. They protect bare skin, personal clothes, help protect from the elements when working outdoors and provide a flame retardant barrier, depending on style, to reduce the risk of burns.
- Helmet – an industrial grade welding helmet with auto darkening lenses will ensure your eyes remain in top shape. Protecting against retinal burns, by shielding both the visible and invisible rays, (ultraviolent and infrared) ensures you will be able to see the finer things in life… Auto darkening helmets allow you to setup the weld with the helmet in place removing the common welding “head snap” to lower the shield. It also minimizes the “sloppy starts” cause the torch moved and the constant raising and lowering of the helmet for tack welds.
- Welding Gloves – protect the hands, wrists and forearms from the intense heat, sparks, and glowing material that can cause burns. A high quality glove should be comfortable to wear, fit properly on the hands yet provide the flexibility needed to handle the welding equipment all while providing the peace of mind that your hands are protected.
- Leather Apron – critical for protecting the lower torso from sparks, weld spatter and heat. Aprons are the first line of defense in ensuring that your legs are being protected from the hazards of the job. When choosing an apron, make sure you know what you like and that it is constructed from a strong durable material. Aprons come in various lengths so you can choose the right apron for the job.
- Denim Pants w/o cuffs – Jeans are the leg covering of choice for most welders. When welding, make sure to wear a durable denim based pair of pants at a minimum. For more protection welding pants are available, just make sure the meet the EN and ASTM specifications… they should remain Flame Retardant after 50 wash cycles.
- Leather Shoes – gravity has the same effect when welding as it does in all other activities. Wearing a good leather shoe will protect the feet from burns. We recommend a steel toed shoe or boot to further protect your feet from material fall off while still protecting you from burns. These are a must when using plasma or torch cutters where the fall off may strike the floor or working platform.
See one of our fully stocked welding supply stores for all of your PPE needs.