DCHAS-L Discussion List Archive
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:54:04 -0500
Reply-To: DCHAS-L Discussion List <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**LIST.UVM.EDU>
Sender: DCHAS-L Discussion List <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**LIST.UVM.EDU>
From: Joseph Passante <Joe**At_Symbol_Here**EHRS.UPENN.EDU>
Subject: Re: Hoods
In-Reply-To: <4B056E830200002900015FD1**At_Symbol_Here**mail2.salisbury.edu>
Hood alarms do need calibration and many fail after a few years. Have
you taken face velocities on the hoods?
Joseph R. Passante, CIH, CHO
Associate Director
Chemical Hygiene Officer
Environmental Health & Radiation Safety
University of Pennsylvania
215.746.6550
On Nov 19, 2009, at 4:12 PM, Edward Senkbeil wrote:
> The hoods (about 5 years old) in all our undergraduate chemistry
> labs are equipped with alarms which supposedly should go off with
> improper air flow. However many will continually alarm if the sash
> is pulled up by more than one third the way (below where sash has a
> normal catch about half way up).
>
> Is there any law / regulation which states that we must have the
> alarms working if they are part of the original equipment? All the
> hoods have flow gauges on them which are functioning, but we have
> been unable to get all the alarms to work properly. We are told it
> would be very expensive to get them all functioning. They become a
> problem in large student labs since they continually go off, and are
> distracting both faculty and students.
>
> We have considered disarming the alarm, but are concerned about any
> regulations we might be violating.
> Students are beginning to not pay attention to the flow gauges, but
> just automatically hit the mute button on the alarms. We believe
> the flow gauges are a more accurate reflection of any problems.
>
> Any comments or suggestions welcome.
>
> Ed Senkbeil, Ph.D.
> Chemistry Department
> Salisbury University
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