When Fred put his customer's car up on the lift, he didn't notice the wet spot along the side of the gas tank. He had promised the customer he would have the new shocks on in half an hour. So to save time removing the old shocks Fred wheeled his acetylene torch over to the car. He slipped on his goggles, lit the torch, adjusted the flame and took aim at a rusted nut.

The first firemen that arrived at the scene tried their best to rescue poor Fred but the flames and smoke drove them back. The fuel tank explosion had toppled the car off the hoist, pinning poor Fred underneath. By the time they were able to extinguish the flames, there was not much left of Fred's station, the customer's car or Fred.

Had Fred not been in such a hurry, he probably would have noticed the fuel leak before waving his torch under the back of the car. But today poor Fred is six feet under and his wife is enjoying Fred's life insurance proceeds with her latest boy friend in Acapulco.

Although we made up this story to illustrate the consequences of what can happen when safety is neglected for convenience or to save time, we have all heard of similar stories that have happened for real. Perhaps such an accident has happened to another service facility or station in your town, perhaps to someone you once knew or perhaps in your own station.

For the most part, safety hazards are fairly obvious. With a little common sense, most hazards can be avoided. But what about the hazards that are not so obvious? Are you alert to such hazards and do you know how to protect yourself and others against them? Or has working daily in the midst of such hazards dulled your sensitivity to the need for adequate safety precautions?

Let's take a stroll through a typical service bay and see what kind of hazards are lurking about just waiting to claim an unsuspecting victim.

FIRE HAZARDS
Nobody has to tell you how flammable gasoline is nor how explosive even a small quantity of gasoline vapor can be when mixed in the right proportions with air. Yet how many times have you seen a mechanic (perhaps yourself?) with a cigarette dangling from his lip while he is changing a fuel filter or taking the top off a carburetor?

In spite of the fact that most mechanics are smart enough to treat gasoline with respect and would never smoke while working on fuel system components or while helping out on the drive to fill a customer's car, they sometimes forget and do it anyway. The same goes for never using gasoline as a cleaning solvent. Everyone knows better yet everyone is done it at one time or another.

Using a torch under a car is particularly dangerous because it invites disaster if there is a fuel leak. Torching off rusted nuts, heating frozen parts to facilitate their removal, cutting off a muffler or welding a trailer hitch should always be done with care.

Gas spills in a service bay should always be treated with the utmost caution because of all the possible sources of ignition that could touch it off: a cigarette carelessly tossed on the floor, the pilot light on a nearby furnace or water heater, the sparks produced by a grinding wheel, electrical sparks from the arcing of an electrical motor or switch (a nearby air compressor for example) or perhaps the sparks produced by jumper cables or a battery charger.

Fuel spills should be cleaned up immediately by hosing down the affected area with plenty of water. At the same time, precautions should be taken to make sure no sparks or open flames are generated until the fuel spill has been cleaned up. If necessary, evacuate the area until the mess can be cleaned up. The bay should also be ventilated to make sure no vapors remain.

One way to avoid fuel spills is to observe the following procedures when working around gasoline. If draining a fuel tank, for example, never use a glass, breakable or open container to hold the fuel. Use a properly marked sealed steel fuel can or one of the various portable fuel tanks designed specifically for this purpose.

When changing the fuel filter on an electronic fuel injection system, the high pressure inside the fuel line should first be relieved by applying vacuum to the fuel pressure regulator or by jumping an injector to bleed off pressure.

When changing a tank-mounted electric fuel pump, make sure the battery has been disconnected to avoid the any possibility of an accidental spark, then drain the tank before removing it to replace the pump.

It is not a good idea to open a fuel line on a hot engine. But since you can't always wait until the engine cools, using a rag to soak up the fuel that leaks out can help reduce the fire hazard.

Every service bay should have a fire extinguisher readily available just in case. Fire codes require it in most areas. Everybody should know where the extinguisher is and how to use it. Be warned, however, that any fire extinguisher will not do. It must be the type rated to handle flammable liquids and grease (Type "B"). "A" rated extinquishers are only good for combustibles such as trash, wood or paper while "C" rated extinguishers are for electrical fires. If it has all three ratings, you have all the possibilities covered.

EXPLOSIVE HAZARDS
Battery explosions are one of the leading causes of serious eye injury, so as a hazard it ranks right up there with gasoline. Batteries give off explosive hydrogen gas. Remember the Hindenberg? The slightest spark can touch it off. So use care whenever charging or jump starting a battery.

To minimize the risk of explosion, always follow the safety directions provided with the battery charger when charging a battery. First, always wear eye protection (safety glasses, not shades!). Never try to charge a frozen battery or one with low electrolyte. If the built-in charge indicator shows yellow, put the battery in the scrap pile not on the charger. When jump starting one battery with another, never make the final jumper cable connection to the battery itself but instead to a good ground away from the battery.

SHOCK HAZARDS

Obvious shock hazards include touching any part of the secondary ignition system (spark plug wires, coils or distributor cap) while an engine is running, but also coming into contact with any part of the high voltage (300 to 500 volts!) electrical system on a hybrid electric vehicle (Toyota Prius, Toyota Highlander Hybrid, Lexus RX 400H, Honda Insight, or Honda Civic Hybrid). On hybrid vehicles, the high voltage wires are color coded ORANGE, so not touch the high voltage wiring unless the battery has been disconnected or you are wearing insulated gloves.

Other shock hazards include shorts from electrical equipment in the shop (which is why you need to use grounded plugs and should never defect the ground protection by using a two-prong adapter), or shocks that may occur while using electrical equipment and standing on a wet floor.

EYE HAZARDS

Imagine changing a set of spark plugs while blindfolded. That's almost what it is like when you are changing the back plugs on a transverse mounted V6 in a front-wheel drive car. At least you can see the plugs once they are out. But imagine doing every job without the benefit of sight. A few blind people have overcome their handicap to become successful automotive repairmen but for most of us our eyes are an essential part of our anatomy. Even so, few technicians seem to take the subject seriously.

Goggles become scratched and dirty, obstruct vision and are generally considered a nuisance. "Joe Cool doesn't wear safety goggles so why should I?" But Joe Cool doesn't earn his living fixing cars in a service bay. So unless reading a torque wrench in Braille sounds appealing, wear safety glasses to protect your eyes.

Eye protection should always be used when servicing or recharging air conditioning systems (refrigerants can cause instant frostbite), when charging or jump starting batteries, when performing almost any kind of undercar service, when cutting or grinding, when hammering, when chiseling, when drilling or when welding (to also shield the eyes against the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation with a welder's mask or goggles).

INHALATION HAZARDS

One of the areas of concern that has drawn considerable attention in recent years from various state and federal governmental agencies is the question of air quality in the work environment. This includes everything from exposure to obviously toxic gases to the long-term health risks associated with breathing various airborne pollutants and dust particles.

At the top of the list in the toxic gas category is carbon monoxide (CO). You cannot see it nor can you smell it. But you can be overcome within minutes if you breathe enough of it. Carbon monoxide has an affinity 210 times greater than oxygen for joining with the red blood cells in your lungs so it does not take much to cause serious consequences. When the blood concentration reaches 2 to 5 percent, which can occur within minutes, vision begins to blur. The person becomes drowsy and soon passes out from lack of oxygen. Sometimes there is no warning. One minute you are on your feet and the next you are flat on your back. From there it is grim reapersville unless the person can be immediately revived. Exposures to lesser concentrations of carbon monoxide can cause headaches, dizziness, chest pains and breathing difficulty.

The typical service bay contains a lot of air. Running a car for a few minutes without hooking up the exhaust pipe to an outside vent may not seem like much of a risk, but carbon monoxide accumulates quickly and it is easy to lose track of time while trying to diagnose a problem or make adjustments. The rapid accumulation of toxic gas not only endangers the mechanic under the hood but also fellow workers in adjacent bays. The concentration of the gas may not reach the point where people are passing out on the floor, but it will affect reaction times and your ability to think clearly. This in turn could lead to errors in judgment or carelessness which may cause someone to make a stupid mistake, like Fred did when he lit up his torch under a leaky fuel tank.

Oxides of nitrogen (NOX) are another group of toxic gases that spew out the tailpipe. NOX, like CO, is toxic in extremely small doses. It will not kill but it can have a very detrimental affect on your health with prolonged exposure. At levels of only 5 to 10 parts per million (ppm) it begins to irritate the eyes, nose and throat. At 10 to 40 ppm it can trigger emphysema attacks in some people. In higher concentrations it can cause bronchitis and other lung disorders.

Then there is sulfur dioxide, the rotten egg odor associated with sulfur-rich fuels and catalytic converters. It is not deadly but it can give you a queasy feeling or a headache if you breathe enough of it.

Unburned hydrocarbons (HC), diesel soot, even gasoline vapors can also be toxic to some people. There is also medical evidence that suggests all three are carcinogens (cancer causing agents).

Exposure to all of the above pollutants can be minimized by simply using an exhaust ventilation system, and chastising anyone who is either too busy or careless to hook the system up when running an engine in a service bay.

Another airborne hazard is asbestos dust. Nobody knows for sure how much of the stuff you have to inhale before it poses a serious health risk or even what kinds of asbestos fibers are the worst. The general assumption is that any exposure is potentially harmful and all types of asbestos fibers are dangerous. Though asbestos brake linings have not been used for a number of years by vehicle manufacturers, some aftermarket brake linings and clutch facings still contain asbestos. Since you have no way of knowing what kind of brake linings may be on a vehicle, treat all brake dust as potentially hazardous.

Asbestos dust comes from brake and clutch linings. An air hose should never be used to blow out a brake drum because doing so will put millions of asbestos fibers into the air. Nor should an ordinary shop vacuum be used to clean brake parts or clutch components for the same reason. The tiny asbestos dust particles will go right through the filter element and be blown back into the air. The best way to clean such parts is to use a wet solvent or a vacuum specifically designed for such asbestos.

Asbestos dust can also become airborne by grinding older asbestos gaskets, by using a wire wheel to remove asbestos gaskets from parts, or by blowing off a work bench covered with brake, clutch or gasket debris with an air hose.

Welding fumes are another toxic inhalant that should be avoided. The person doing the welding should position himself so the fumes do not rise directly in his face. Long-term exposure to welding fumes has been linked to lung cancer. In a small service bay or a confined work area, adequate ventilation should be provided to reduce exposure.

If you do any painting in one of your bays, it is extremely important to protect not only the painter but also the other people in adjacent bays against both spray and fumes. The bay should be sealed off and provided with adequate ventilation. Many of todays paints contain extremely nasty solvents and drying agents. Isocyanates are one such ingredient that are found in urethane paint. An ordinary dust mask will not protect against these chemicals. What12s needed is a respirator with an outside clean air supply.

BODILY HAZARDS

Now we come to the everyday hazards most mechanics have had the unfortunate luck to experience first hand: burns, cuts, scrapes and shocks. Burns can be caused by contact with hot exhaust manifolds, catalytic converters or other engine parts, corrosive chemicals such as battery acid or certain cleaning compounds, or by contact with hot coolant boiling out of an overheated radiator.

Everybody knows you should never open a hot radiator. Let it sit and cool awhile before opening the cap. Yet some people just can12t wait. They open the cap and suffer the consequences. Pouring cold water over the radiator can help cool it down, and laying a rag over the cap can help deflect some of the force of any liquid that may boil out of the top.

Cuts and scrapes are often an unavoidable in the service bay. It often seems as if components are position to inflict the greatest possible damage on one12s knuckles and hands. Such hazards are impossible to avoid but you can protect yourself against subsequent complications by getting a tetanus booster shot on a regular basis.

Fans, belts, pulleys, driveshafts and other rotating parts always pose a potential danger. Rings, watches, jewelry and loose clothing do not belong in the service bay. It is also a good idea to stand to one side of the fan when making timing adjustments, never over it or in line with the spinning blades.

Electrical shocks from the ignition system are usually not life-threatening, unless you have a heart condition or a pace maker. The secondary side of the ignition system makes upwards of 40,000 volts in most late model cars which is enough to give a rather nasty jolt. Do not lean against the fender when working around a "hot" ignition system and use an insulated plug wire puller when the engine is running.

A more serious threat of electrical shock is the service bay's 110 volt wiring. Wet floors are a common condition especially during winter weather, and a frayed cord on a trouble light, extension cord or electric drill can provide the necessary path to ground that can produce a life-threatening shock. The use of ground fault interrupter outlets can help prevent this kind of hazard by instantly cutting power in case of a short.

One of the dumbest things anyone can do is to cut off the ground prong on an electrical plug to make it fit a two-prong extension cord or electrical outlet. The ground plug is there to protect against accidental shorts and removing it removes the protection.

NOISE HAZARDS

Next we come to noise hazards. This includes all the loud things that occur in a typical service bay such as the ratta-tat-tat of an impact wrench, the ear-piercing buzz of a power grinder, the banging of a tire changer and so on. These certainly are not life-threatening hazards but the combination of excessive decibels and time invariably lead to impaired hearing. If noise cannot be reduced, ear protection should be worn.

LIFTING HAZARDS

Back problems are one of the leading occupational hazards associated with being an automotive service technician. Leaning over a fender all day and lifting heavy things like tires and cylinder heads can strain and damage even the strongest of backs. Using your legs rather than your back when lifting heavy objects (or asking for help) can reduce lower back strain. Supporting your weight on your elbows or on a padded fender cover can also help relieve back tension when working under the hood. Wearing a back support can also help prevent back strain and pain.

Wearing the right kind of shoes can also make a difference. The hard concrete floor of a typical service bay is not an ideal surface upon which to stand or walk. Wearing a work shoe with a soft cushioned gasoline-resistant non-slip sole rather than a hard leather sole can help alleviate both back and leg strain.

Lifting hazards also includes raising the vehicles on which you work. Front-wheel drive cars tend to be nose-heavy so when lifting such a vehicle on a frame contact post type lift, it12s very important that the vehicle be properly balanced.

A floor jack or pneumatic jack should never be used to support a vehicle unless the jack is equipped with safety locks that would prevent it from collapsing. A pair of jack stands should be used to provide support.

TIRE HAZARDS

Some technicians don't consider a tire to be a safety hazard, but tire-related mishaps have claimed a number of lives.

The most serious danger here is multi-piece truck rims used on many older large trucks. Truck tires contain far higher pressures than passenger car tires so the strain on the rim is considerably greater. If the rim is not assembled properly or contains a flaw, it can explode with devastating consequences.

The way to minimize such risks when inflating truck tires is to use an inflation cage, yet even when one is installed some mechanics don't use it because they think it is an inconvenience. Perhaps such persons are looking for a plot next to Fred.

Most of the hazards we have mentioned in this article are fairly obvious and fairly easy to avoid. But as we all know, all too often we pay too little attention safety and too much attention to the clock. Let's hope we've all learned a lesson from poor Fred.