COSHH, asbestos and PPE basics

Plumbers meet dusts, fumes and chemicals every day, so controlling exposure is a core safety skill. Three ideas anchor it: COSHH, asbestos awareness and the correct place of PPE.

Under COSHH, employers assess exposure to hazardous substances such as flux fumes, jointing compounds, dusts and cleaning chemicals, then prevent exposure or control it adequately. Start with safer products and methods and controls at source, supported by suitable protective equipment where needed. Asbestos, lead and radioactive substances have separate legal controls; their exclusion from COSHH does not remove the duty to manage their hazards.

Asbestos is a particular danger in buildings constructed or refurbished before it was banned. Disturbing asbestos-containing materials releases fibres that cause serious, often fatal, lung disease many years later, so it must never be cut, drilled or broken without the proper controls.

The key behaviour is caution: if you suspect a material might contain asbestos, stop, do not disturb it, and get it assessed by a competent person before going further.

Personal protective equipment such as gloves, eye protection and the correct respiratory protection is important, but it is the last line of defence. It is used after you have reduced the risk by other means, not as a substitute for proper control.

This is safety-critical revision. Follow the current HSE guidance and any site-specific assessments for real work, and never rely on memory for asbestos or hazardous-substance procedures.

Check the safety data sheet first

Before using a chemical product such as solvent-weld cement, flux, descaler or a cleaning agent, read its safety data sheet and label rather than judging it by smell, colour or a colleague's memory. The data sheet sets out the hazards, the precautions for safe use and storage, and what to do in an emergency, so it is where you find out what controls a product actually needs.

A safety data sheet supplies hazard information; it is not the completed risk assessment for your work. Consider the quantity, method, exposure routes, duration and people involved, then choose controls such as extraction, suitable gloves and eye protection, safe storage and disposal. Keep products classified as flammable away from ignition sources.

Choose PPE for the hazard

Different hazards need different PPE, so match the equipment to the task rather than reaching for whatever is nearest:

• A hard hat where you could be struck by falling or moving objects.
• Eye protection for cutting, grinding, drilling or anything that throws chips, dust or splashes.
• Hearing protection where noise is loud enough to damage hearing.
• Respiratory protective equipment (RPE) where dust or fumes could be breathed in, such as when cutting masonry or concrete.

Cutting or grinding materials such as concrete, brick and stone can create fine respirable crystalline silica dust. Inhaling it can cause serious, permanent lung disease. Control generation with suitable water suppression or on-tool extraction and use the required RPE; a nuisance mask is not an adequate substitute.

For tight-fitting RPE, the selected model must pass a fit test on the wearer and seal properly whenever it is worn. Keep the sealing area clean-shaven and perform the wearer’s seal check. Poor fit lets contamination bypass the filter and can greatly reduce protection. Loose-fitting hoods use different arrangements, so a face-fit test is not a requirement for every type of RPE.

Employers must provide required PPE free to employees and to the other workers covered by the Great Britain PPE rules, with suitable maintenance, storage and replacement. Genuinely self-employed people have different responsibilities. In every case, choose protection for the hazard and ensure it fits and works with other equipment.

Before you drill or cut

Before drilling or cutting, check available plans and service information, inspect the area and use suitable cable or pipe locating equipment. Know its limitations: no indication does not prove the surface is clear. Arrange safe isolation and verification where needed, and stop if you cannot establish a safe route.

In a building built or refurbished before the year 2000, also consider whether the material could contain asbestos: it was used extensively until it was banned in 1999, in products such as pipe lagging, textured coatings, boards and floor tiles. If you are not sure, stop and get it checked before you disturb it.

The most hazardous asbestos work — removing sprayed coatings, lagging or most work on asbestos insulating board — is licensed work. It must be carried out by a contractor holding an HSE asbestos licence, not by a plumber who has simply had asbestos-awareness training.

Noise and vibration limits

The daily or weekly noise action values are 80 dB(A) and 85 dB(A). At the lower value, assess exposure, provide information and training, and make hearing protection available on request. At the upper value, provide protection and designate hearing protection zones while reducing noise through other controls. The 87 dB(A) exposure limit takes the protection worn into account. Peak noise has separate criteria; a brief conversation test does not establish a safe daily exposure.

For hand-arm vibration, 2.5 m/s² A(8) is the daily exposure action value and 5 m/s² A(8) is the limit that must not be exceeded. At the action value, a programme of technical and organisational measures is required. Risk reduction is also required below it: the figure is not permission to ignore vibration until the threshold is reached. A(8) converts the day’s exposure to an equivalent eight-hour value using vibration energy, not a simple average of tool readings. HSE’s corresponding exposure scores are 100 and 400 points.