Working as an electrician carries significant risks. There are many dangers associated with handling electricity, necessitating careful attention to prevent injuries or electric shocks while on the job.
It’s important for anyone who is considering electrical work to do their research on how to protect themselves before getting started.
In this article, we will discuss tips for protecting yourself from injury and what you should know about safety gear.
Electrical Hazards to Look Out For
Electrical work can be dangerous, but there are several hazards that you should be aware of.
- Electrocution: this is when an electric current enters the body through contact with a live conductor or from touching two different conductors at once.
- Shock hazard: in some cases, people may not know they’re coming into contact with electricity and will get shocked without warning. This can cause medical complications as well as serious burns to the skin where it comes into contact with metal parts such as wires or screw terminals.
- Arc flash hazards: these occur when high voltage surges through gas molecules near electrical equipment leading to sparks that could ignite flammable substances nearby like oil vapors, dust particles, and paper fibers among others. These can lead to explosions or fires.
- Grounding hazards: the risk of being shocked increases when any part of your body is grounded because it creates a complete circuit with the ground, and electricity will flow through you to get there.
- Hand contact hazards: this can happen if one hand touches an electrically live surface while another hand has metal on them or close by that completes a circuit–in some cases even without skin contact! If both hands are touching an energized conductor and they’re not at least three feet apart, then touch becomes lethal.
- Foot contact hazard: if only one foot is in contact with an electrical line like a power line transmitting a high voltage current (above 600 volts), then that person could receive enough electricity to stop their heart!
How to Ensure Everyone’s Safety During Electrical Projects
There are many steps that can be taken to ensure everyone’s safety during electrical projects.
First and foremost, it is important to wear the right gear when working with electricity. This includes a nonconductive leather work glove or rubber gloves as well as insulated clothing like insulating jackets and pants.
They’re also recommended for those who will often be climbing in high voltage areas such as utility linemen.
It may also help to use protective equipment like an arc flash hood which blocks out sparks with metal mesh while preventing dangerous gases from entering your lungs, eye protection goggles if you’re going into high voltage zones, earmuffs that block loud noise levels (over 85 dB), steel toe footwear, so toes don’t come into contact with live wires, and also safety goggles to protect the eyes from high voltages.
When doing electrical work, it’s good to also keep a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) handy which will trip off if current flows through the grounding cord. These are required for all new construction and most appliances so it’s not necessary to buy one when doing electrical work yourself–just make sure that you use them!
Why Hire a Professional Electrician
The wisest thing to do to avoid any serious injuries as a result of electrical work is to hire an experienced electrician. An electrician will be trained and certified in all the safety precautions that are necessary for this type of work, which means no chance for accidents or injury on your end!
With a professional electrician, you also have the reassurance that they will be knowledgeable about electrical codes and regulations ensuring everyone’s safety.
Electricians are also available for emergency requests 24/hours, meaning that if there’s a problem with the electrical work or an appliance at any time of day or night–they’ll be able to come and help you out!
The Final Words
The danger of electrical work is often underestimated. If you’re going to be working with electricity, it’s important that you take the proper precautions to protect yourself and your loved ones from a potentially deadly shock or electrocution.
To make sure things go smoothly, always remember these safety tips for electrical workers! Even if this post wasn’t about something related specifically to your line of work, hopefully, there was at least one point mentioned that resonated with you and will help keep you safe on the job site or around the home.
Let us know what we can do better next time by leaving a comment below-we’d love to hear from our readers!
