Do you handle hazardous materials? If so, you have to be prepared for spills -- and for cleaning them up quickly. Read on to discover how hazmat spill kits can help you do your job.
No matter what your facility's hazardous materials, there's a spill kit made for cleaning them up if they should spill or leak. So as you decide what to get, you need to start by deciding what it is that you need to clean up.
Consider the type of hazardous materials
Mostly, you'll be fine with a high quality hazmat spill kit. They're made to handle most hazardous materials. But some substances require more specialized spill kits. If you handle mercury, you'll need a mercury spill kit, and if you handle battery acids and other corrosive substances, you'll need a kit specially made for those.
Be prepared for the size of potential spills
Next, you need to figure out just how big a spill you might potentially have to deal with. If you only store and handle small amounts of hazardous materials, a small hazmat spill kit will be sufficient.
Next, you need to figure out just how big a spill you might potentially have to deal with. If you only store and handle small amounts of hazardous materials, a small hazmat spill kit will be sufficient.
However, if you handle larger amounts, or if you transport entire truckloads of them, you need much bigger hazmat spill kits, or even a number of them.
You may find that a 30 gallon spill kit is sufficient for your needs. Or you may need an even bigger kit, maybe a cart, or more.
And if you're transporting truckloads of hazardous materials, you'll need to be prepared to contain the spill quickly, so you also need a set of spill berms to contain the spill before even trying to clean it up.
Focus on quality
Once you know what kinds of kits to get, you should be sure to focus on quality. Hazardous materials are called that for a reason. They can cause damage to your employees, the facility, as well as to the environment. So it's crucial to select high quality supplies as you prepare for potential spills. The EPA has guidelines to protect people and the environment from such spills, and they will help you determine what you'll need to be on the safe side.
As you shop for your hazmat spill kits with a high quality safety equipment supplier, you'll also find that you can get a lot of good advice. Not only will you be assured that the supplies you get will be of excellent quality, but they will also meet the requirements of any EPA and OSHA guidelines.
And that's important, not only because it will help you avoid fines, protect your reputation, and give you peace of mind, but also because protecting your company, your employee, and the environment is the right thing to do.
Want to know more about hazmat spill kits? Get valuable tips and the latest news about absorbents and other environmental safety products on Travis Zdrazil's Safety Maintenance News blog and get his free newsletter too. Travis is an expert on environmental safety products and has supplied businesses with products to aid in meeting EPA and OSHA requirements for more than 10 years. You may publish this article, but must keep the resource box ©2009 PCI Products Company. All rights reserved. |
