When PRESSURE WASHING, be sure to ALWAYS DO THE FOLLOWING:
- Wear a bright colored Safety Vest – REQUIRED
- Mark off area with Safety Cone(s) to protect the employee – REQUIRED
- Watch for vehicles – REQUIRED
- Take breaks often – See the Pressure Washers Instruction Manual – REQUIRED
- Pressure wash during slow times. If you are near an entrance, use cones, or block that entrance and have customers use other entrances. Water can be tracked into the store, causing slips and falls.
- Do not use the pressure washer when outside temperatures are near freezing. This could result in water freezing and turning into ice causing extremely dangerous walking environment.
- Do not use makeshift mats such as sheets of cardboard. These can be worse than walking on a wet floor.
- Consider having a second crew member present to assist and redirect customers away from the area being worked on, and also watch for cars.
- Only utilize the smallest pressure washer needed for the job. Larger pressure washers are heavy and difficult to transport, many times resulting in sprains and strains. Also, the pressure at the nozzle causes the handle to be difficult to hold, and can cause arm, wrist, and shoulder injuries.
- Never use a pressure washer while on a ladder! Even if the unit is on the ground and the crew member is holding the hose and nozzle, the pressure can knock the employee off of the ladder, or he may reach and extend, causing the ladder to tip and fall, resulting in serious injuries to the crew member.
- If the pressure washer is over 50lbs, always use a two person lift if removing it from storage, or loading/unloading onto a truck.
- Wear personal protective equipment as required by the pressure washer manual. This may include gloves, safety glasses, or rubber boots.