{"id":4325,"date":"2017-04-12T21:50:07","date_gmt":"2017-04-13T02:50:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/?page_id=4325"},"modified":"2025-09-10T14:53:45","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T19:53:45","slug":"housekeeping","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/housekeeping\/","title":{"rendered":"Housekeeping"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-modular-content-collection>\n<p><strong>A principal cause of laboratory accidents is poor housekeeping.<\/strong>&nbsp; <em>A clean work area is much safer than a cluttered or dirty one, and all laboratory personnel&nbsp;must strive to maintain an orderly and safe laboratory setting as this impacts not only their safety but the potential safety of others who work\/visit the lab<\/em>.&nbsp; As an added safety precaution, be considerate and aware of custodial&nbsp;staff since the custodial&nbsp;staff generally are not as familiar with laboratory chemicals and their hazards as most laboratory workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>General Housekeeping Practices<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Access to emergency equipment, showers, eyewash stations, and exits must never be blocked<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keep all work areas, and especially work benches, clear of clutter and obstructions.\u00a0 Properly store items when not in use.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do not place chemicals within two inches of the edge of a lab bench\u00a0(to avoid accidental knocking off of bench).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Chemicals must be <a href=\"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/incompatible-chemicals-chemical-storage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">stored properly<\/a>\u00a0(e.g., incompatibles are separated), and must not be stored in\/on fume hoods, desks, or lab benches.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keep all aisles, hallways, and stairs clear of all chemicals and other obstructions; <em>never store or place chemicals on the floor<\/em>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Never stack chemicals in the laboratory; containers must be stored upright.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Coats, bags, and other personnel items must be stored in the proper area, not on the bench tops, or near chemicals or equipment that is in use.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>All work surfaces and floors should be cleaned regularly.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keep all floors and work surfaces dry.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Promptly clean up all spills, including water spills and ice, and properly dispose of all spilled chemicals.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Clean up work areas at the end of the operation or day.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keep drawers and cabinets closed to avoid accidents.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To avoid the presence of noxious fumes arising from the sewer lines, each Laboratory Supervisor should ensure that a liter of water is poured down each laboratory drain at least monthly to ensure that the drain trap is functional.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Hallway doors of all laboratories must remain closed to maintain the proper negative airflow from the hallways into the labs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Promptly dispose\/recycle packing materials and empty cartons.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Inspect faucets to see that they work properly and do not drip.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Make sure that hose\/tubing connections on faucets and other items are secure, and that hose\/tubing is not brittle.\u00a0 Immediately replace any old or degraded hose\/tubing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Glassware and Sharps (e.g., needles and blades)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Make sure that disposal containers for broken glass and sharps are well labeled and placed in low-traffic areas.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Properly dispose of broken glassware and sharps.\u00a0 If these items are contaminated with a hazardous substance, they need to be treated as hazardous waste and disposed in the appropriate waste container.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Never use cracked or chipped glassware; promptly discard these items in the broken glass container.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do not\u00a0stack beakers, flasks, etc.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If glassware is stored on open shelving then use the black storage bins, or some other type of guard, to keep the glassware from falling off the shelf.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Wear appropriate gloves to clean glassware; do not pile up dirty or clean glassware.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Wash glassware carefully (dirty water can hide glass fragments).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Electrical Equipment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Electrical equipment should be maintained by trained individuals only.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Never overload circuits; use surge protection power strips and Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters as needed.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Properly ground all electrical equipment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Be sure that all cords are well placed, in good shape, and away from water. Keep cords out of aisles.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Immediately report any electrical failure or suspicious heating of equipment to the stockroom manager.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Refer to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nap.edu\/read\/12654\/chapter\/8#149\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Chapter 7 of \u201cPrudent Practices\u201d<\/a> for guidelines for handling assorted electrical laboratory equipment.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A principal cause of laboratory accidents is poor housekeeping.&nbsp; A clean work area is much safer than a cluttered or dirty one, and all laboratory personnel&nbsp;must strive to maintain an [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":156,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4325","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/156"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4325"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5926,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4325\/revisions\/5926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/chemical-hygiene\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}