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Eyewash stations are often essential part of industrial safety programs. If your company does not have one, maybe it’s time to invest and buy emergency eyewash station for your workplace. Having in mind that eyewash stations ca be no denying the value of a worker’s vision and the impact that an injury to an eye can have on your company and your workers, maybe it might make you not hesitate to finally make your purchase. Even many of employers provide proper protection to their workers, eye injuries are still very often, risking long-term, short-term or sometimes permanent vision loss to workers.
Employers who select the right emergency eyewash station can highly reduce the severity of an eye injury. The best way to ensure eyewash compliance in your workplace is by adding it into the safety plan of your company. Employ a safety manager or use a third-party vendor to be responsible for training your employees and maintaining the eyewash stations. If employees require personal protective equipment, like gloves, glasses, face shields, etc, the workplace require an eyewash as well. Planning where and how the eyewash will be used will help you determinate what type will be the best fit.
Once you decide your needs, it’s time to purchase the eyewash station and here is how to choose the right one:
Plumbed Eyewash
These type of eyewash stations are used for more than hundred years. They deliver plumbed tap water in plentiful amounts. What is not so good about this units, is the fact they require weekly maintenance, are impractical to move and expensive to install. Because the temperature isn’t easily regulated, water from a top is usually too cold or too hot. It also doesn’t fit the natural pH of the eyes, so flushing with it can cause irritation. Water flow pressure is another important maintenance task these units require.
Portable Eyewash Station
This station includes water, saline solution or in some cases 100% sterile saline which is maintained inside the unit. To ensure delivery performance, these stations require monthly rest of the water flow through the eyewash. What also is important, is changing the water with time because it becomes importable. Portable stations provide some benefits over plumbed ones. Their fluid is maintained at room temperature, flushing fluid requires least maintenance and the saline solution closely match the pH of the eye. New types of portable eyewash stations are equipped with RFID technology to help manage inventory, provide instant maintenance schedules, more using a hand-held computer and track expiration dates.
Secondary Eyewash Bottles
Lot of workplaces consider secondary eyewash stations. Available in different sizes, these eyewash bottles are small and portable, while also can be made available at the site of any hazard. In the case of caustic or chemical injury, these bottles provide immediate treatment and will reduce the risk of irritation on the way to medical care.
Where to Place Eyewash Station
It is important to find a place which is easily and quickly accessible during and emergency. Consider environmental effects as well. If placed outdoors, keep the station out of extreme cold or direct exposure to the sun in order to avoid damaging rinsing temperatures.
Maintaining
If you maintained properly, eyewash stations could cause adverse effects to an injured worker. Plumbed units should be activated weekly in order to ensure proper water pressure and to rinse harmful particle buildup. Portable stations require cleaning, disinfecting and chaining the fluid ever tree to six months.
