Observing Basic Safety Rules
I’ve heard that some people are accident prone, but I just don’t believe that – especially when it comes to welding. Welding accidents occur when welders act carelessly, don’t read instructions, and don’t follow safety regulations. Every year, thousands of people are injured because they don’t take safety precautions while welding.
In many ways, welding safety is a habit. It’s the result of taking the appropriate precautions over and over, every time you weld. Following are a few safety tips that you should make a habit of in your welding shop:
❯❯ Don’t take chances while welding.
❯❯ Don’t use any welding equipment or supplies until you’ve thoroughly read the instructions and any additional safety information.
❯❯ Any time an accident occurs, be sure to fix the problem that caused it before doing any additional welding.
In addition to these very basic safety tips, you also need to be familiar with a few more-involved safety goals, and that’s what I cover throughout the rest of this section.
When it comes to your welding area, practice good housekeeping. Take the time before, during, and after a welding project to make sure the area is tidy and organized. Here are a few pointers to help you accomplish the goal of maintaining a shipshape welding shop:
❯❯ Designate a place for all tools, and when you’re done using a tool, be sure it goes back in the correct place. At the end of a welding project (or at the end of the day), clean all tools and inspect them for any damage that may have occurred while you were welding.
❯❯ Keep cables neat and free of knots. Nothing makes for a worse tripping hazard than messy tangles of cables.
❯❯ If you have any combustible items in your shop, be sure they’re stored away safely before you start to weld. (“Storing flammable liquids and gases” later in the chapter gives you the lowdown on proper safekeeping of such items.)
❯❯ Be sure your work area has adequate lighting. A well-lit workspace is less likely to become cluttered and disorganized.
❯❯ Keep all scrap metal out of your welding area.
❯❯ If a spill occurs, stop what you’re doing and clean it up immediately.
❯❯ When your waste or garbage container becomes full, take the time to go and dump it.
Your welding shop is bound to contain pressurized containers full of liquids or gases. Take special care to ensure that none of those containers (or the tools that you attach to them) has leaks. Checking for leaks is a simple process:
1. Mix one teaspoon of dish soap in a spray bottle full of water.
2. Spray the mixture onto any area of a pressurized container that is likely to have a leak.
Fittings and valves are usually the most likely sources of a leak.
3. Look and listen closely for bubbles.
If you see bubbles or hear a bubbling noise, that probably means you have a leak. If the bubbles are popping up near a fitting, use a wrench to tighten up the fitting. Then reapply the soapy water and check again for bubbles. If you see bubbles on or near a valve, it may be time to replace the valve.
Welding produces byproducts, and while you’re welding you can be exposed to a number of dangerous gases. These gases are created when metals are heated above their melting points, when certain electrodes (with special coatings) are in use, and when you don’t scrape or clean certain materials (paint, for example) off a section of metal before you weld it.
FIGURE 3-4: An example of a leaking oxygen hose.
If you want to stay healthy, you certainly don’t want to inhale those gases, so make sure your welding area is properly ventilated before you begin any welding operation. You can use natural ventilation if you have windows, doors, or garage doors in your welding shop that you can open safely to allow a breeze in. You can also utilize forced air movement with fans and blowers. For detailed information on how to ensure a suitable level of ventilation in your welding workspace, check out the welding-specific information provided on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) website at www.osha.gov/SLTC/weldingcuttingbrazing.
You may need to keep several flammable liquids and gases on hand in your welding shop, including acetylene, propane, and natural gas. You need to treat these materials with a great deal of care and respect because they can cause a huge amount of injury and damage in no time at all.
Store all flammable liquids in sealed containers and keep the containers in a flammable liquids locker like the one depicted in Figure 3-5. These lockers are made of metal and have a door that closes securely. You can buy a flammable liquids locker at your welding supply store or even a home improvement warehouse. As you can imagine, you don’t want to put the locker anywhere in your shop or welding area with a source of heat nearby.
FIGURE 3-5: A common flammable liquids storage locker, appropriately labeled.
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