Hazards: Sulfuric acid splash to eyes and skin · Hydrogen from gassing batteries · Crushing from a dropped battery · LP-gas leak, fire and cold burns · Ignition sources in the charging or fueling area
Why it matters
On August 15, 2017, a worker testing batteries was splashed in the face and took acid in both eyes; he was hospitalized with damage to both (OSHA Accident Search, Summary Nr 102738.015). On January 31, 2022, a laborer filling propane cylinders pulled the hose before shutting the gas off and froze his hands badly enough to be hospitalized (Summary Nr 143825.015). Nobody was driving. This is the part of forklift work we do at the end of the shift, tired and in a hurry.
Key points
- Acid into water, never the reverse. 1910.178(g)(7). Face shield, goggles, apron and gloves, and know where the drench station is before you open anything — 1910.151(c).
- No ignition sources in the charging area. 1910.178(g)(10) and (g)(11): no smoking, no open flames, no sparks or arcs. Charging batteries give off hydrogen, and (g)(2) requires ventilation to disperse it.
- Park it, brake it, then touch it. 1910.178(g)(8): the truck is positioned and the brake applied before you change or charge a battery. Vent caps working, cover open to let heat out — (g)(9).
- Lift batteries with equipment, not with people. (g)(4) requires a conveyor, overhead hoist or equivalent, and (g)(6) a carboy tilter or siphon for electrolyte. A traction battery weighs as much as a small car. Keep tools and metal off the top — (g)(12).
- Two LP cylinders, and nothing leaking. 1910.110(e)(13)(ii). Close the valve, let the line bleed down, gloves and eye protection for the swap; 1910.178(p)(4) forbids operating with any fuel-system leak, and (p)(2) forbids fueling with the engine running.
- Store cylinders like they are full. 1910.110(f): valves closed and protected, away from exits and stairways, away from heat and ignition. Not standing loose in a travel aisle.
Do / Don't
Do
- Put on the face shield before you break a connection.
- Sniff and listen after hooking up a cylinder — then look at the fitting.
- Report a cracked case, a hot cable or a bad quick-disconnect.
Don't
- Check an electrolyte or fuel level with a flame or a lighter.
- Muscle a battery out by hand because the hoist is in use.
- Leave a propane truck parked next to a heater or a hot process.
Quick site check
- Drench station and eyewash: present, unblocked, and flushed this week?
- Charging bay: ventilation running, no combustibles, nothing stored under the chargers?
- Cylinders: secured upright, valves closed, none in an aisle or by a door?
Discussion — ask the crew
- Where is the nearest eyewash and drench station to our charging area, and when was it last flushed?
- Who has actually been shown how to change a battery on our trucks, and who just figured it out?
- What ignition sources are within reach of the charging bay right now — grinding, smoking, a space heater?
- How do we handle a propane cylinder that hisses after we hook it up?
- Do we wear the face shield and gloves for a cylinder swap, or only for a battery?
Refs: 29 CFR 1910.178 — Powered industrial trucks ((f) fuel handling and storage, (g) changing and charging storage batteries, (p) operation, (l)(3)(i)(K) training) · 29 CFR 1910.110 — Storage and handling of liquefied petroleum gases ((e)(13) industrial trucks inside buildings, (f) containers awaiting use) · 29 CFR 1910.151(c) — Quick drenching and flushing facilities for corrosive exposure · OSHA Accident Search — Summary Nr 102738.015 (08/15/2017) and 143825.015 (01/31/2022)Sign-in sheet included in the printed version