I've been at my new shop almost a year now and most of the time has been just setting it up and getting used to it. Now that I have something I like and I'm not moving tools around every other week I want to start focusing on safety. About the only thing I wear consistently is a respirator when Im sanding or spraying. I don't have a big dust collector yet so i need to wear it when I'm batching out pieces but i dont. I also have a bad habit of stacking things in the way of walking from the overhead door to the door into the house.
Here are my thoughts on ways to improve my work habits and im open to all suggestions.
First I want to get some safety tape and mark out a walk way from the overhead door to the house. That will be a visual reminder to keep that area clear and a boundary my girlfriend can stay behind when she comes out to jibber jabber away about who knows what.
Next up is upgrade my first aid kit as well as my fire extinguisher. Both are small and came out of my old truck so not really shop rated.
Finally I have my big tools set up in "areas" with planer, band saw and table saw in one group and router table and miter saw in another group. Things will change as i get more but for now im thinking of keeping ear muffs, safety glasses, and a mask at each area. That way im not hunting for where i last set that stuff down at and can just grab whats close by and go to work.
I cant stand ear plugs that fit inside the ear so those are out of the question.
And until my electrical is upgraded I have one heavy extension cord that runs on the floor that I cant get routed overhead. So i'm thinking of getting either taping that down with safety tape or getting a cord ramp. A cord ramp is a bit pricier but would protect the cord as well.
My younger brother comes over quite often to help with projects and learn so I want to make sure I build good habits and have as safe of space to work for not only myself but him as well. If I'm teaching him the little I know then I should be doing it the right way.
That got long but I had a lot of thoughts. Like I said I'm open to suggestions unless its about ear plugs that go in the ear…seriously its gross.
Single use earplugs are cheap by the box and in some sense cleaner than a set of well used monkey ears.
Ear protectors need to be properly sized to be effective. Adult sizes will not properly seal on a child and will be considerably less effective. Get enough set to protect the max number of kids, limit the number of kids or give the souvenir single use foam plugs they can keep.
Keeping extra ear & eye protection at individual stations is a good idea but taping caution lines to keep your significant other back is a silly idea that will eventually cause issues (DAMHIKT)
Cord ramp isn't that expensive. Check uline.com , they also have all the safety and signage you need for an oil refinery much more a less shop.
I have a pair of 3M worktunes I've used for several years. The key is to keep them in a set place so you know where to look when needed and build a habit.
I would think hearing and eye protection for just about every power tool use-centrally locate your glasses and ear muffs to make it easier to use them consistently. I would think push sticks or other jigs (e.g. feather board) for safety at all the applicable machines. Different protection for different tools (e.g. a grinder might need a full face shield and gloves). Think about adding a knee switch to your saw-makes it easier to shut it off with only your knee. Make sure your lighting is sufficient-weak lighting can lead to safety issues. Loose power cords is a bad idea-so using a ramp or routing them overhead-maybe using carabiners attached to the ceiling-is a good idea. I think a power cord reel is a good idea.
Single use earplugs are cheap by the box and in some sense cleaner than a set of well used monkey ears.
Ear protectors need to be properly sized to be effective. Adult sizes will not properly seal on a child and will be considerably less effective. Get enough set to protect the max number of kids, limit the number of kids or give the souvenir single use foam plugs they can keep.
Keeping extra ear & eye protection at individual stations is a good idea but taping caution lines to keep your significant other back is a silly idea that will eventually cause issues (DAMHIKT)
Cord ramp isn t that expensive. Check uline.com , they also have all the safety and signage you need for an oil refinery much more a less shop.
I hadn't consider the disposable plugs or glasses for visitors. Thats a great idea! The safety tape was a reminder to myself to keep that area clear as a pathway. My GF is more than welcome in the shop. She even has her own locker out there I just need her to think and move more cautiously while out there. (We've had issues with a plane being knocked off a bench). Thought maybe the tape would be that trigger…ya know think safety first past this line sort of thing.
And thanks for the Uline link. Was looking for a place other than Amazon but was drawing a blank on who we used to order from when i worked construction.
I have a pair of 3M worktunes I ve used for several years. The key is to keep them in a set place so you know where to look when needed and build a habit.
I would think hearing and eye protection for just about every power tool use-centrally locate your glasses and ear muffs to make it easier to use them consistently. I would think push sticks or other jigs (e.g. feather board) for safety at all the applicable machines. Different protection for different tools (e.g. a grinder might need a full face shield and gloves). Think about adding a knee switch to your saw-makes it easier to shut it off with only your knee. Make sure your lighting is sufficient-weak lighting can lead to safety issues. Loose power cords is a bad idea-so using a ramp or routing them overhead-maybe using carabiners attached to the ceiling-is a good idea. I think a power cord reel is a good idea.
I forgot to mention I have new LED shop lights on order. I will be converting the single bulb fixtures in the ceiling to outlets and plugging in the linkable LEDs there. I have feather boards at the router table and a couple pair for the table saw. I only have one push stick at the TS but i find myself using the pair of GRR-Rippers I have more often than push sticks. I also have a couple GRR-Rip blocks on order for the router table.
Don't drown out the "music" of the tools with real music.
Shop safety requires you to hear the tools to get advance notice of binding, jamming, galling, etc. Light background music is ok, but don't use earbuds or headphones in place of real hearing protection.
Also, safety standards for hearing have been forcing manufacturers to reduce sound emissions. Newer gear is a lot quieter than in the past. My planer, TS, and DC are all new and much quieter than the tools they replaced.
My old lunchbox planer my helper & I used hand signals, my new G0889 we can talk over.
Fair point and it makes sense. I mean when using my hand planes on wood i cant get a good read on the grain the sound of the blade can tell me a lot of info. Makes sense that part of safety is using all your senses to be aware of whats going on.
I still have a lunchbox planer and it might be the loudest tool i've ever used. I've run 120 lb jack hammer in a 7 ft deep hole surrounded by nothing but bedrock and I think the lunch box is louder than that.
I wear prescription glasses, so when using the major machines (TS, Chop saw, Planner, Jointer) the full face shield is required.
If you have a first aid locker, maybe include a bottle of eyewash solution.
Also concur with Madmark on the sense of hearing. You can tell when the jointer, or planner are chipping.
As for guests (grandchildren) hearing and eye protection is mandatory. That is a "No Butts"
After 32 years in the Bell System- "No job is so important and no service is so urgent that we cannot take time to perform our work safely" I still have a plague above the door in my shop.
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