Maintenance of Fall Protection Equipment During COVID-19
The dos & don’ts of equipment care to keep workers & gear both safe & productive
The care and maintenance of safety products are vital to their efficacy and longevity, especially during COVID-19. New concerns about germs and how they spread has led to improper techniques that put both equipment, and the workers that use it, at risk. This article dispels myths and provides accurate information about keeping safety products clean and working their best, including care and maintenance schedules, cleaning, inspections, storage, sharing and replacing products.
Regular care and maintenance of fall protection equipment—harnesses, lanyards, tool tethers and more—is vital for the efficacy and longevity of these safety products. During the COVID-19 global pandemic, it’s especially important to adhere to best practices, and avoid improper care techniques based on the speculation that they may kill germs on surfaces. Dispelling myths and providing accurate information about keeping safety products clean during COVID-19 is critical to keeping products working at their best, and users as safe as possible.
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Within the safety industry, there has been an increasing amount of questions about whether germs can adhere to, live on and be transferred by the various materials and surfaces of safety equipment. While there is no direct evidence that this happens, based on what is currently known about COVID-19, spread of the virus from person to person happens most frequently among close contact (within about 6 feet), transmitted via respiratory droplets. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), transmission of coronavirus occurs much more commonly this way than through touching objects and surfaces. However, some evidence suggests that the SARS-CoV-2 virus may remain viable for unknown periods of time on surfaces made from a variety of materials.
If you are falling behind on any of the steps related to the proper cleaning and maintenance of safety equipment, you increase the risk of not only an injury from a fall, but also the transfer of unwanted dirt and germs that may be on the equipment. Your first step is to be compliant and increase your own safety by following the already-robust existing product care guidelines and recommendations, which are based on proven researching and testing.
Concerns about COVID-19 have many people altering the recommended steps provided by equipment manufacturers and safety standard-setting organizations, and experimenting with their own unproven methods. The problem here is that inappropriate methods of cleaning and maintenance may actually achieve the opposite intended effect of enhancing a user’s safety by weakening the equipment and making it less effective.
Maintaining a Stringent, Regular Schedule for the Care of Fall Protection Products
- Care and maintenance processes are recommended by product manufacturers and standard-setting organizations based on the latest, most proven and tested techniques for enhanced safety of the user. The manufacturer that designed the equipment and understands all the characteristics of the materials that comprise the products, are the best authorities on how to care for and maintain those products. They know what the products can and can’t sustain, and how the components may be compromised, if specific care instructions are not followed. For example, certain actions outside of their recommendations, such as using strong chemicals (such as bleaches or turpentine) or tools (such as sharp scrapers, like putty knives), in an attempt to remove germs, can break down the material, leading to compromised safety and product failure, which may increase risk injury or death. Manufacturers collaborate closely with standard-setting organizations to combine research and engineering to arrive at the latest recommendations for protecting equipment, which ultimately protects users.
- An added benefit to following care and maintenance procedures is that the products will last longer.
Best Practices for Caring for Fall Protection Equipment: Before, During & After COVID-19
The Basics
Before work even begins, and any equipment is handled, follow the primary recommendation by the CDC and World Health Organization: wash your hands. Washing hands with soap and water for a minimum of 20 seconds, or, if soap and water are not available, using hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol content, are primary deterrents against exposure to the virus. If possible, wash and sanitize hands before and after handling equipment. Also mitigate the risk of germs and other unwanted debris, by keeping the cleanest work environment possible. Thoroughly sanitizing surfaces at the jobsite and maintaining the recommended 6 feet of social distancing among workers can greatly reduce the presence of germs, wherever they may be.
Cleaning Equipment
The primary method of cleaning any piece of fall protection equipment can be found in the product instructions. These steps should be taken after every use of a product. Avoid the temptation to hurry to the next job or end the day by throwing equipment in the back seat of a vehicle or a large storage bag, where products are intermingled. Research and testing have proven that dust, dirt and debris left on a product, especially over time, can be abrasive to the product material and break it down … eventually to the point of failure. Begin by removing dust (the most common dirt on fall protection equipment) by gently wiping the product in every nook and cranny with a soft, clean cloth.
Next, fully clean the entire product with a solution of plain water and mild soap, such as a common liquid dish detergent, which works as a surfactant. The use of warm water is permitted but should never exceed temperatures of 130° Fahrenheit. Allow product to fully dry in a well-ventilated location. Remember that softer surfaces, such as webbing and padding, will take longer to dry. Do not machine dry, or dry in the sun or under UV lights. Never use aggressive cleaners such as naphtha, turpentine, acetone or other similar products. Never use sanitizing liquids, gels or other substances. These include, but are not limited to, bleach, rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide or other products with sanitizing or disinfecting claims. The effects of these substances on equipment may not have been evaluated by the manufacturer and, thus, may compromise material integrity. Weak spots—such as where harsh chemicals cause brittling (the breakdown of fabrics, similar to when webbing on a lawn chair starts to thin)—may be in places that are tough to detect during inspection and thus may be overlooked. Each product should be cleaned individually and not in a batch with other products, which could cause cross-contamination and further abrasion of materials.
Remember to only use equipment after it has dried completely, as moisture may attract unwanted debris.
Inspection
Cleaning a product inch by inch is an opportune time to conduct a visual inspection. Diligently follow inspection schedules for every product and conduct inspections before each use. At least every 12 months (or as local condition regulations may require), have a competent employees conduct a complete, formal inspection of all fall protection items.
Keep accurate and current inspection logs. This is not only important for ensuring items have been thoroughly inspected for integrity, but also for tracking which item belongs to which worker. Ensuring everyone is using their own equipment may reduce the transference of debris and germs from one person to another.
Inspection schedules for products can be found on product hangtags; more detail can be found in inspection checklist forms that many manufacturers provide online as part of instruction manuals. See samples for self-retracting devices, harnesses and other products.
If a product fails inspection in any way, immediately remove it from service and contact the manufacturer or distributor about returning, repairing or replacing it.
Timing
Consider having every worker keep multiples of any frequently used products, so they can rotate their use, allowing longer periods of time for any existing germs that may have remained on one product to expire while the other product is in use. Using time to your advantage may lower the risk of germ transfer.
Proper Storage
Once items have been thoroughly cleaned, keep them stored individually—separate from items and away from contact with other surfaces. Retain and use any storage systems you received with the equipment at purchase. These systems—primarily appropriately sized bags—are made to fit and protect products from exposure to dust, dirt and other dander, and elements such as rain, heat, snow and sun. All of these elements may contribute to the degradation of the products’ integrity.
Sharing Equipment
When possible, do not share fall protection equipment. If sharing equipment is unavoidable, clean the equipment using recommended guidelines before transferring it to another user. If you are an employer that provides fall protection equipment for workers, consider assisting workers with the purchase of their own equipment, or assigning products to each worker to care for and use over the course of the project.
Harnesses are the most commonly shared of all fall protection products. During COVID-19, ideally, each harness should be used by only one person to reduce the risk of transference of germs. This is also an everyday best practice in that workers are more comfortable, and therefore more likely to use the products that they own, because they fit them best and they know the history of care. They also don’t need to adjust/alter/handle their same harness as they would if it was shared among different people with different body sizes and shapes. Workers are most familiar with products they own and use regularly.
Although it is common practice among workers at height, fall protection items shouldn’t be sold in the aftermarket, such as in an online marketplace for previously used equipment. Buyers will not be fully aware of the product’s use or care history, nor whether the product has been exposed to fall.
Considerations for Certain Environments
Painters at height expose their fall protection equipment to paints and stains. Paints and stains harden the softer elements of safety equipment, such as the webbing on harnesses, which makes those areas less flexible or rigid. If paint and stain are allowed to remain on the gear, it will begin to break and deteriorate. Real-time exposure prevention and spot cleaning are best practices in these situations.
In salty environments, such as in the marine industry, metal components of fall protection equipment can be particularly vulnerable to compromise. If the components weren’t properly galvanized and/or if rust or surface pitting is visible, the fall protection product should no longer be used. These imperfections will be apparent if timely and thorough cleaning and inspection procedures are followed.
Replacement
One of the more common questions about safety equipment during the COVID period is if it should be replaced more frequently. This is not necessary. There is no research that indicates greater transference of germs on older, used equipment. Continue to follow best practices and watch for indicators that do trigger replacement—such as worn, cut, rusty and/or damaged product components.
When you do purchase new products, look for those that feature removable components – such as harnesses with removable padding — which allows for even more thorough cleaning and inspection.
Be a Safety Ambassador
Watch for and discourage unconventional care and maintenance of fall protection equipment when on the job. Myths about how to further rid safety equipment of germs have led to common yet inappropriate actions, such as exposing products to ultraviolet rays via sunlight to purportedly kill germs, and more extreme measures, such as putting items into containers and “gassing” them for contamination. Educate others on best practices for properly cleaning and caring for their equipment, during COVID-19 and every day thereafter.
Since the detection and elimination of virus-causing germs on safety products is fully understood at this time, the best defense against germ transference, or any safety risk, is to strictly follow current recommendations for proper care and maintenance of fall protection equipment. One silver lining in the midst of COVID-19’s dark cloud is the increase in compliance and best practices, which is a means to the same end: to save as many lives as possible.
