slefain
slefain PowerDork
4/7/20 9:51 a.m.

So the recent hammer store recall post got me thinking. For the first time I ever I actually LOOKED at my jack stands. Checked for broken welds or cracks, and if the teeth were actually contacting solidly. But what other shop stuff should I be inspecting while I'm stuck at home? And how?

Quick & dirty list based on what I own:

Check floor jack for leaks

Check air compressor tank for rust

Check jack stands for cracks or broken welds

Check battery charger cables (and jumper cables) for missing insulation

Check extension cords for bare wires or missing ground prongs

 

I only have a partially supplied shop, so I bet there are a bunch of folks out there that have a better handle on this kind of thing. I don't have a welder or a lift, so maybe folks could chime in on their safety checks.

spandak
spandak HalfDork
4/7/20 11:00 p.m.

Anything that moves needs some sort of lubrication. That's a good place to start in the shop and on cars. 
 

Appleseed
Appleseed MegaDork
4/8/20 8:05 a.m.

Anything involving a death wheel. 

slefain
slefain PowerDork
4/8/20 9:31 a.m.
Appleseed said:

Anything involving a death wheel. 

AKA - put the guard back on the angle grinder.

SVreX (Forum Supporter)
SVreX (Forum Supporter) MegaDork
4/8/20 9:58 a.m.

Do you have and USE safety gear and PPE?

- Safety glasses with side splash protection?

- Goggles?

- Full face shield?

- Gloves?

- Well equipped (and current) first aid kit?

- Welder's helmet?

- Chemical resistant apron?

- Coveralls?

- Skid/ chemical resistant shoes?

- Hearing protection?

- Various appropriate respirators?

- Flammables storage?

- Lift safety jacks?

- Grounded electrical and GFCIs?

- Remove damaged or underrated electric cords, splitters, etc?  (an office style surge protector or a light weight power cord does not belong in your shop)

- Safety shields on all power tools?

- Good lighting?

- Good ventilation?

 

 

Don't dress like Stampie!

dherr (Forum Supporter)
dherr (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand Dork
4/8/20 10:07 a.m.
slefain said:
Appleseed said:

Anything involving a death wheel. 

AKA - put the guard back on the angle grinder.

Even with a guard, these things are death wheels, so inspect yours carefully and put the item you are cutting in a vice and not your hand!

TasdevEngineer2of3
TasdevEngineer2of3 New Reader
4/8/20 4:07 p.m.

Check the water separator/oiler bowl (if you have one) on your compressor for cracks. They can go boom - scared the crap out of me.

And stand to the side when you crank up your bench grinder - just in case.

Karacticus
Karacticus GRM+ Memberand Dork
4/8/20 4:17 p.m.

Lube your garage door

Toebra
Toebra Dork
4/8/20 7:35 p.m.
SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

Do you have and USE safety gear and PPE?

- Safety glasses with side splash protection?

- Goggles?

- Full face shield?

- Gloves?

- Well equipped (and current) first aid kit?

- Welder's helmet?

- Chemical resistant apron?

- Coveralls?

- Skid/ chemical resistant shoes?

- Hearing protection?

- Various appropriate respirators?

- Flammables storage?

- Lift safety jacks?

- Grounded electrical and GFCIs?

- Remove damaged or underrated electric cords, splitters, etc?  (an office style surge protector or a light weight power cord does not belong in your shop)

- Safety shields on all power tools?

- Good lighting?

- Good ventilation?

 

 

Don't dress like Stampie!

You forgot Fire Extinguisher, vitally important equipment that you hopefully never use.

SVreX (Forum Supporter)
SVreX (Forum Supporter) MegaDork
4/9/20 7:10 a.m.

In reply to Toebra :

You're right.
 

I knew I'd forget something, and someone would call it out! cheeky

alfadriver (Forum Supporter)
alfadriver (Forum Supporter) MegaDork
4/9/20 7:22 a.m.

Expendables.  

After not using my welder all that often, I ran out of gas in the morning, and then wire in the afternoon.

Toyman01 (Forum Supporter)
Toyman01 (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
4/9/20 7:39 a.m.

Lube your jack. I spent 10 minutes lubing the pivots and wheels on my floor jack and it made a huge difference in ease of use. 

 

Apexcarver
Apexcarver UltimaDork
4/9/20 8:05 a.m.

Hell, if you are looking for something to do. Clean, inspect, and organize your hand tools.  

 

Chipped screwdrivers, rachets that dont work right, etc.  How many times has something stupid simple let go and made you ram a knuckle somewhere sharp and rusty?

 

It sounds trite, but its worth doing regularly.  Whens the last time you actually wiped all the dust out of your toolbox or drawer?  Degreased your sockets and wiped them down with WD-40?  Its a good sit in front of the TV task really.    tub of soapy water with a toothbrush, tub of rinse water, a few towels to lay things out to dry on and a can of WD.

 

If you do it all in one go, it lets you inventory what replacements you need. Plus, work always goes faster with your tools cleaned and sorted.

 

So says the guy with a shop that looks like a bomb went off. 

oldopelguy (Forum Supporter)
oldopelguy (Forum Supporter) UberDork
4/9/20 8:19 a.m.

-Change the oil in your air compressor, and now would be a great time to automate the tank drain or make it easier on yourself to manually drain it.

-Open up the welder and blow the dust and muck out of the inside. Same for anything else in the shop with a cooling fan.

-Replace the half used up grinding stones on the bench grinder. Same for that wire wheel that's been flinging out wires for a year now. 

-Sharpen chisels and drill bits. Clean up the mushrooming on the ends of punches while you are at it.

-Check and repair or replace any loose hammer heads.

-Replace key chucks with keyless, or make sure you have the proper size keys at hand. 

-Gather up damaged or failed tools for replacement, especially screwdrivers.

-Lube ratchets and ratchet wrenches. 

-Inspect tie down straps and take damaged ones out of service. 

-Inspect chains for stretching or other damage, replace hooks and hook safety catches as necessary. 

-Find or make a spot for wheel chocks, and buy or build a set to keep there.

-Wax drawer sliders or lube ball bearings.

-Fix the wiring on your trailer. Grease the bearings while you are at it.

-Just throw away the mostly used up saw blades you have stashed around everywhere, including the dull pos that's been on your circular saw since the Clinton administration and the bent Sawzall blades rattling around in the case. Put a new blade on everything. 

-Clean the lenses in your welding helmets. Replace pitted safely lenses.

-Consider getting kid size protective gear if you have them in your life. If the kids have safety glasses or gloves that fit then they will work better, and the kids will be more likely to use them. 

ultraclyde (Forum Supporter)
ultraclyde (Forum Supporter) PowerDork
4/9/20 8:31 a.m.

Sweep up the dead rats

Discuss proper defecation location with the large lizard that lives in the corner

assess the viability of all half-finished beers

Water the vegetables growing in the old coffee cups

make sure the gas cans stored behind the welder have their caps on THIS time

 

NOHOME
NOHOME MegaDork
4/9/20 8:35 a.m.

How did you all manage to squeeze into my shop without me even noticing?

 

Explains why the beer fridge is empty.

1-fill beer fridge

 

Pete

pirate
pirate HalfDork
4/9/20 9:40 a.m.

Was told fire extinguishers should be shook up occasionally to keep powder from clumping in bottom. Who knows if that is true but can't hurt. 

Toebra
Toebra Dork
4/11/20 9:59 a.m.
NOHOME said:

How did you all manage to squeeze into my shop without me even noticing?

 

Explains why the beer fridge is empty.

1-fill beer fridge

 

Pete

If you stock it with light beer again, that fridge will be tipped over instead of empty, next time we raid your garage, ya cheap bastage.  

wheelsmithy (Joe-with-an-L)
wheelsmithy (Joe-with-an-L) GRM+ Memberand UltraDork
4/11/20 10:23 a.m.
pirate said:

Was told fire extinguishers should be shook up occasionally to keep powder from clumping in bottom. Who knows if that is true but can't hurt. 

I work at a community college, and as we were bring 50 or so up to date, the extinguisher guy said he looked it up and it was a myth that they needed to be shaken, etc.

Still, you're right-can't hurt. 

NOHOME
NOHOME MegaDork
4/11/20 11:02 a.m.

In reply to Toebra :

That's a lie...you cheap bastards will stoop to drinking American beer if that is all that was in the fridge! "Free and cold" is your brand!

Grtechguy
Grtechguy MegaDork
4/12/20 7:25 a.m.
NOHOME said:

In reply to Toebra :

That's a lie...you cheap bastards will stoop to drinking American beer if that is all that was in the fridge! "Free and cold" is your brand!

but we won't be happy about it

ultraclyde (Forum Supporter)
ultraclyde (Forum Supporter) PowerDork
4/12/20 3:59 p.m.

I had to get out of the house for a bit today so I cleaned out a long-neglected corner of my shop where I've been piling stuff. The amount of general dirt, mouse poop and grunge I swept out was epic. I may be the guy that catches hantavirus because I was avoiding coronavirus.

Greg Smith (Forum Supporter)
Greg Smith (Forum Supporter) Dork
4/17/20 12:58 a.m.

Not safety, but maintenance. 

Cleaned out the convertible top drains in the NC. (having a very wet passenger floor was a clue!) 

Now this will go on the maintenance checklist every 15K with air filters at a minimum. 

Apexcarver
Apexcarver UltimaDork
4/17/20 11:25 a.m.

https://www.kmov.com/news/massive-warehouse-fire-in-metro-east-spreads-smoke-for-miles/article_511192b6-801f-11ea-a94d-438a3da77868.html

 

If you have a welder, have at least a bucket of water standing by in addition to minimum of 1 extinguisher. 

 

I saw on another forum that that place housed several Formula Fords, Formula Vees, Spec Miatas, GTU cars, a Europa, datsun 510's, and the list goes on...  All lost.  

 

Word is that it started with someone welding on their car. They tried to push it out of the building and failed. Then the sprinklers didnt work. Then the hydrants didnt work...   

 

So, do YOU have adequate firefighting apparatus in YOUR shop?

 

I have been meaning to make a welding cart, its getting a space for a separate extinguisher from the one I mount on the wall by the door. 

 

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