Safety & environmental issues

Workplace environmental precautions

It is essential that the workplace allows workers to practise good standards of personal and industrial hygiene, by providing:

• Splash guards on machines, face shields, working overalls and impermeable gloves, to eliminate all unnecessary contact with oil.
• Arrangements for the extraction of fine oil mists and sprays.
• Adequate washing facilities: accessible hand basins and a supply of soap, towels and cleansers.
• First aid advice, backed up by adequate medical facilities.

Hygiene

Excessive or prolonged skin contact with any mineral oil or synthetic fluid may remove the natural fats from the skin, causing dryness and subsequent irritation. Lower viscosity products have a greater tendency to cause such effects. To ensure workers are not at risk, they should:

• Use oil-impermeable gloves. Where that is impractical, use oil-repellent barrier creams.
• Avoid unnecessary contact with oil by using protective clothing and keeping machine splash guards properly adjusted.
• Never put oily rags or tools into pockets.
• Never use dirty rags to wipe oil off the skin.
• Remove metal particles and swarf from machines with the implements provided.
• Wash regularly to remove oil from the skin, especially before meals, before using the toilet and after work, using soap or a proprietary skin cleaner. Solvents such as kerosene or petrol must never be used to remove oil from skin.
• Never wear oil-soaked clothing.

Storage precautions

• Keep products away from children, and never store them in open or unlabelled containers.
• Lubricating oils are generally unaffected by prolonged storage if they are adequately protected from extreme low temperatures and from the ingress of water.
• Store drums under cover where possible. Where drums must stand outside, lay them on their side with the bungs at the three and nine o’clock positions so water cannot collect around the closures and be drawn in.
• Keep containers closed when not in use, and keep dispensing equipment clean to avoid introducing contamination.

Handling, spillage and disposal

• Contain spillages immediately and absorb them with sand or a proprietary absorbent. Do not wash oil into drains, watercourses or the ground.
• Petroleum products should be kept away from sources of ignition. Although lubricating oils are not classified as flammable, they will burn once heated above their flash point.
• Dispose of used oil, contaminated absorbent and empty containers through an authorised waste-oil collector or recycler. Never burn used oil in an unsuitable appliance and never dump it.
• Piston Power is a participant in the recognised waste-oil recovery arrangements for the industry; ask your branch for the current collection contacts in your area.