Safety Showers
Do all forklift battery charging or filling stations require a safety shower, or will a portable eyewash station that is capable of 15 minutes of continuous flow enough?
Beyond that particular situation, When do you determine that a shower is required? It seems to me unless you are wearing a full body suit, if a corrosive chemical is capable of getting into your eyes, it is equally possible to get on the body, and would require a shower. Have you used the portable shower solutions, and if so, what do you think?
Comments (2)
Overall, if you're just refilling a battery, then they should be wearing goggles to protect the eyes, so if there's any splashback, it's most likely to get on the torso, legs, etc. unless your face is directly over top of the battery when the splashback occurs.
The need for emergency showers or eyewash stations is based on the properties of the chemicals that workers use and the tasks that they do in the workplace. A proper risk assessment can provide an evaluation of the potential hazards of the job and the work areas. The selection of protection -- emergency shower, eyewash, or both -- should match the hazard.
In some jobs or work areas, the effect of a hazard may be limited to the worker's face and eyes. Therefore, an eyewash station may be the appropriate device for worker protection. In other situations, the worker may risk part or full body contact with a chemical. In these areas, an emergency shower may be more appropriate.
A combination unit has the ability to flush any part of the body or all of the body. It is the most protective device and should be used wherever possible. This unit is also appropriate in work areas where detailed information about the hazards is lacking, or where complex, hazardous operations involve many chemicals with different properties. A combination unit is useful in situations where there are difficulties handling a worker who may not be able to follow directions because of intense pain or shock from an injury.
Portable ones work fine as long as they deliver the full 15-minutes of flow at the specified flow rate, and the water temperature remains "tepid". Just don't rely on the portable "wall stations" (with 1 or 2 bottles of saline on the wall) to meet the requirements of the eyewash station. Those are just designed for a quick rinse so that you can see to get to an actual eyewash station or shower.
This standard interpretation might help. It references the ANSI standard that gives more detail
https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/standardinterpretations/2009-06-01