Cleaning and other cold work_ - 1915_13.mht

§1915.13   Cleaning and other cold work.

(a) Locations covered by this section. The employer shall ensure that manual cleaning and other cold work are not performed in the following spaces unless the conditions of paragraph (b) of this section have been met:

(1) Spaces containing or having last contained bulk quantities of combustible or flammable liquids or gases; and

(2) Spaces containing or having last contained bulk quantities of liquids, gases or solids that are toxic, corrosive or irritating.

(b) Requirements for performing cleaning or cold work. (1) Liquid residues of hazardous materials shall be removed from work spaces as thoroughly as practicable before employees start cleaning operations or cold work in a space. Special care shall be taken to prevent the spilling or the draining of these materials into the water surrounding the vessel, or for shore-side operations, onto the surrounding work area.

(2) Testing shall be conducted by a competent person to determine the concentration of flammable, combustible, toxic, corrosive, or irritant vapors within the space prior to the beginning of cleaning or cold work.

(3) Continuous ventilation shall be provided at volumes and flow rates sufficient to ensure that the concentration(s) of:

(i) Flammable vapor is maintained below 10 percent of the lower explosive limit; and

Note to paragraph (b)(3)(i): Spaces containing highly volatile residues may require additional ventilation to keep the concentration of flammable vapors below 10 percent of the lower explosive limit and within the permissible exposure limit.

(ii) Toxic, corrosive, or irritant vapors are maintained within the permissible exposure limits and below IDLH levels.

(4) Testing shall be conducted by the competent person as often as necessary during cleaning or cold work to assure that air concentrations are below 10 percent of the lower explosive limit and within the PELs and below IDLH levels. Factors such as, but not limited to, temperature, volatility of the residues and other existing conditions in and about the spaces are to be considered in determining the frequency of testing necessary to assure a safe atmosphere.

Note to paragraph (b)(4): See appendix A for additional information on frequency of testing.

(5) Spills or other releases of flammable, combustible, toxic, corrosive, and irritant materials shall be cleaned up as work progresses.

(6) An employee may not enter a confined or enclosed space or other dangerous atmosphere if the concentration of flammable or combustible vapors in work spaces exceeds 10 percent of the lower explosive limit. Exception: An employee may enter for emergency rescue or for a short duration for installation of ventilation equipment provided:

(i) No ignition sources are present;

(ii) The atmosphere in the space is monitored continuously;

(iii) The atmosphere in the space is maintained above the upper explosive limit; and

(iv) Respiratory protection, personal protective equipment, and clothing are provided in accordance with subpart I of this part.

Note to paragraph (b)(6): Other provisions for work in IDLH and other dangerous atmospheres are located in subpart I of this part.

(7) A competent person shall test ventilation discharge areas and other areas where discharged vapors may collect to determine if vapors discharged from the spaces being ventilated are accumulating in concentrations hazardous to employees.

(8) If the tests required in paragraph (b)(7) of this section indicate that concentrations of exhaust vapors that are hazardous to employees are accumulating, all work in the contaminated area shall be stopped until the vapors have dissipated or been removed.

(9) Only explosion-proof, self-contained portable lamps, or other electric equipment approved by a National Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) for the hazardous location shall be used in spaces described in paragraph (a) of this section until such spaces have been certified as “Safe for Workers.”

Note to paragraph (b)(9): Battery-fed, portable lamps or other electric equipment bearing the approval of a NRTL for the class, and division of the location in which they are used are deemed to meet the requirements of this paragraph.

(10) The employer shall prominently post signs that prohibit sources of ignition within or near a space that has contained flammable or combustible liquids or gases in bulk quantities:

(i) At the entrance to those spaces;

(ii) In adjacent spaces; and

(iii) In the open area adjacent to those spaces.

(11) All air moving equipment and its component parts, including duct work, capable of generating a static electric discharge of sufficient energy to create a source of ignition, shall be bonded electrically to the structure of a vessel or vessel section or, in the case of land-side spaces, grounded to prevent an electric discharge in the space.

(12) Fans shall have non-sparking blades, and portable air ducts shall be of non-sparking materials.

Note to paragraph (b): See §1915.12(c) of this part and applicable requirements of 29 CFR part 1915, subpart Z for other provisions affecting cleaning and cold work.

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§1915.14   Hot work.

(a) Hot work requiring testing by a Marine Chemist or Coast Guard authorized person. (1) The employer shall ensure that hot work is not performed in or on any of the following confined and enclosed spaces and other dangerous atmospheres, boundaries of spaces or pipelines until the work area has been tested and certified by a Marine Chemist or a U.S. Coast Guard authorized person as “Safe for Hot Work”:

(i) Within, on, or immediately adjacent to spaces that contain or have contained combustible or flammable liquids or gases.

(ii) Within, on, or immediately adjacent to fuel tanks that contain or have last contained fuel; and

(iii) On pipelines, heating coils, pump fittings or other accessories connected to spaces that contain or have last contained fuel.

(iv) Exception: On dry cargo, miscellaneous and passenger vessels and in the landside operations within spaces which meet the standards for oxygen, flammability and toxicity in §1915.12, but are adjacent to spaces containing flammable gases or liquids, with a flash point below 150 °F (65.6 °C) when the distance between such spaces and the work is 25 feet (7.62 m) or greater.

Note to paragraph (a)(1)(iv): For flammable liquids with flash points above 150 °F (65.6 °C), see paragraph (b) of this section.

(2) The certificate issued by the Marine Chemist or Coast Guard authorized person shall be posted in the immediate vicinity of the affected operations while they are in progress and kept on file for a period of at least three months from the date of the completion of the operation for which the certificate was generated.

(b) Hot work requiring testing by a competent person. (1) Hot work is not permitted in or on the following spaces or adjacent spaces or other dangerous atmospheres until they have been tested by a competent person and determined to contain no concentrations of flammable vapors equal to or greater than 10 percent of the lower explosive limit:

(i) Dry cargo holds,

(ii) The bilges,

(iii) The engine room and boiler spaces for which a Marine Chemist or a Coast Guard authorized person certificate is not required under paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section.

(iv) Vessels and vessel sections for which a Marine Chemist or Coast Guard authorized person certificate is not required under paragraph (a)(1)(iv) of this section.

(v) Land-side confined and enclosed spaces or other dangerous atmospheres not covered by paragraph (a)(1) of this section.

(2) If the concentration of flammable vapors or gases is equal to or greater than 10 percent of the lower explosive limit in the space or an adjacent space where the hot work is to be done, then the space shall be labeled “Not Safe for Hot Work” and ventilation shall be provided at volumes and flow rates sufficient to ensure that the concentration of flammable vapors or gases is below 10 percent by volume of the lower explosive limit. The warning label may be removed when the concentration of flammable vapors and gases are below 10 percent lower explosive limit.

Note to §1915.14: See appendix A of this subpart for additional information relevant to performing hot work safely.

[59 FR 37857, July 25, 1994, as amended at 60 FR 14219, Mar. 16, 1995; 67 FR 44541, July 3, 2002]