Gas Cylinder Safety Guidelines

9 Gas Cylinder Safety Guidelines C. Handling Compressed gases must be handled by properly trained persons. Training must include the contents in these guidelines as well as any specific information relevant to the gas being used. Training information is provided in Section 4 of these guidelines. Emergency information is outlined in th e Laboratory Safety Manual and should be included in site specific training. Requirements To safely handle gas cylinders: • Never drag or physically carry cylinders (lecture cylinders may be carried). • Never pick up by the cap. • Never paint a cylinder. • Never leave cylinders in areas where they will be subject to damage from falling objects, corrosion or public tampering. • Never subject cylinders to artificially created low temperatures without approval from the supplier. Lifting and moving requirements: • Wear hard-toed shoes. • Do not use ropes, chains and slings to suspend cylinders, unless the cylinder was designed for that use. • Do not use magnets to lift cylinders. • Use only suitable cradles or platforms to hold a cylinder when lifting. • Use a hand-truck designed for the transport of cylinders. • Secure cylinder caps during transport. • Vehicle Transport: ¤ ¤ Only transport cylinders or cryogenic liquid containers in university vehicles. Liquid containersmust only be transported in a truck bed and properly secured. ¤ ¤ Do not transport cylinders or cryogenic liquid containers in the passenger compartment of any vehicle. • Elevator Transport: ¤¤ Do not accompany a compressed gas cylinder containing highly toxic gas in an elevator. ¤¤ Place the cylinder in the elevator and press the destination floor. ¤¤ Attach a sign to the cylinder, telling others not to use the elevator during the cylinder’s trip. Proper cylinder hand-truck