PROTECTING YOUR BODY IN THE SHOP

Motor, Mar 2005 by Bell, Sam

The most versatile tool in the shop is your body, but most of us pay precious little attention to protecting it when we work. In Part 1 of two parts, we tell you what you need to know about equipment to keep yourself safe.

Like you, I do battle with frozen bolts, grease, rust, gunk, fumes and particulates on a daily basis. Sometimes I lose small chunks of flesh, but I generally emerge able to continue the fight the next day. Over the years, I've seen a variety of disabilities sideline fellow techs, and have tried to avoid making the same mistakes they did. I'd like to share with you some of what I've learned.

There are hundreds of products out there designed to keep you safe around the shop-and you're no doubt familiar with many of them. But any safety-related product is worthless if it doesn't get used.

Oh, My Aching Back!

You've heard it before, but this time, listen: Don't play hero. Ask for help when moving heavy or bulky loads. Better yet, let transmission jacks, engine hoists and dollies do the heavy lifting. You don't try to hold the car up with one hand while you change its oil with the other, do you?

If you must wrangle heavy loads, wear a back brace or lifting belt and lift with your legs, not with your back. Never bend just from the waist to lift; bend your knees. Back injuries are the number one cause of long-term disability in our industry.

Hand-to-Hand Combat

You wouldn't think it needs mentioning, but every year many technicians are injured when they get their hands caught in a moving drive belt or sliced by a fan. Obviously, wristwatches, bracelets and neckwear are taboo in this line of work since they can drag you along with them into the maw of a hungry engine. If you must work on a running engine, choose appropriately long extensions to keep your hands out of harm's way. As to wedding rings, I understand why your wife insists you wear one every day. Even so, you'd be safer not wearing it during working hours. A ring that completes an unintended circuit between an alternator battery terminal and ground gets hot enough to remove a finger.

Speaking of heat, remember to use appropriate protective gear around hot stuff. Full leather gloves and aprons are no more a sign of weakness on you than they were on a samurai warrior. Wear 'em with similar pride. If hot sparks are raining down, add a leather cap as well. Heat sleeves provide an insulating layer between the tender skin on the inside of your forearm and a hot exhaust pipe.

With hands, the question is, to glove or not to glove? Leather gloves for cutting and welding are a pretty obvious choice, but technicians often disagree about glove usage in other contexts. Latex gloves, for those not allergic to them, offer reasonable dexteritv and easily affordable disposability. The powdered types are easier to get on and off. On the downside, they can become very slippery after exposure to oil and they lose their elasticity in the presence of most common solvents. They also offer minimal protection against sharp edges.

Vinyl gloves offer greater puncture resistance and can be reused for longer periods. They're available with textured fingertips, allowing a surer grip on oily parts. Their greater thickness may result in some loss of dexterity compared to latex gloves.

Some technicians complain that gloves make their hands sweat too much, and even cause their skin to become too soft. On the other hand (pardon the pun), research has shown that prolonged skin contact with used motor oil is carcinogenic, although prompt washing reduces the risk. You'll need to balance the pros and cons of glove usage for yourself. I stock both latex and vinyl gloves and use each for certain tasks throughout the day. For example, washing parts or removing slush-covered tires will usually find me in vinyl gloves, while I'm more likely to wear latex gloves to change spark plugs. Most of the time, however, 1 prefer to work ungloved for dexterity's sake and to keep my calluses intact.

Relatively new to the market are several versions of so-called mechanic's gloves. These offer both padding and wrist support while allowing the fingertips to remain free. When your day's work includes a lot of air tool use, these gloves can help reduce soreness and fatigue.

The Eyes Have It

Protect your eyes with safety glasses. Wear them just about all the time-certainly when using cutting or grinding equipment, chemical sprays and impact tools, or when working around batteries. If you have to wear corrective lenses anyway, make sure they can double as safety glasses. The number one cause of accidental blindness among adult males is from exploding batteries when a stray spark ignites accumulated hydrogen in or near the battery. The number two cause? Particles hitting the eye during cutting or grinding operations. That's why OSUA regulations require that you leave those pesky eye shields in place on your bench grinder.

Just as mountain climbers and skiers must protect against snow blindness with dark lenses, you must protect your eyes the same way whenever you engage in welding or cutting operations. Retinal damage may build up slowly, then suddenly accelerate. Play it safe by wearing the appropriate dark goggles all along. The new auto-darkening welding helmets respond quickly while still allowing you to see the work clearly even before you strike an arc.