Laboratory Safety

Laboratory Neatness	Clean and neat work areas avoid risk of damage to clothing and books and injury from spilled chemicals. Neatness also reduces fire hazard.
Laboratory Conduct	Fooling around in the laboratory can be hazardous. Keep the lab in its proper place and fun and games in their place.
Working with Glassware	Remove frozen glass stoppers with proper equipment. Broken or chipped glassware should be discarded. Properly support glassware with ring-stands and clamps when heating and use cork rings with round-bottom flasks.
Working with Glass Tubing	Do not touch heated glass until it has time to cool. Hot glass looks just like cool glass. To remove stoppers from glass tubing or thermometers, grasp tubing close to stopper and push gently with twisting. Use water or glycerin for lubrication
Laboratory Dress	Pull hair back and wear eye protection when required. Sleeves that are too tight prevent freedom of movement, whereas sleeves that are too loose may cause you to overturn apparatus or glassware. Aprons protect clothing from corrosive or staining chemicals. Gloves protect hands from corrosive chemicals. Handle hot objects with insulated gloves. Do not wear open-toe shoes that allow spilled chemicals or broken glass to come in contact with your feet.
Working with Test Tubes	Gently heat solids or liquids in a test tube near the liquid or solid surface. Be prepared to remove the tube from heat quickly to prevent eruption. Never point a test tube or reaction vessel at another person. For safety and neatness, place test tubes in a rack.
Chemicals in the Eye	Rapid treatment is vital. Run large volumes of water over eyeball until medical help is available. Wash with large volumes of water for at least 15 minutes. Alkaline materials in the eye are extremely hazardous. Know the location of the emergency eyewash station.
Safety Shower	Use this for chemical spills or a fire victim. Operate by pulling down on ring and keep the area near the shower clear at all times. Remove clothing from area affected by spills.
Fire on Clothing	Do not run or fan flames. Smother fire by wrapping victim in fire blanket or lab coat and use the shower or a carbon dioxide fire extinguisher.
Extinguishing a Fire	Using a fire extinguisher: 1. Know its location 2. Remove from mounting 3. Pull pin 4. Squeeze lever 5. Discharge at base of flame 6. Report use and recharge 7. Use dry sand to extinguish burning metals
Unauthorized Experiments	Always work under instructor’s or lab technician’s supervision in the laboratory.
Eye Protection	Normal eyeglasses are usually not adequate. Do not wear contact lenses in the lab. Eye protection is especially important when working with corrosive materials and vacuum and high pressure apparatus.
Acid/Alkali Spills	For acid spills, use solid sodium bicarbonate followed by water. For alkali spills, wash with water followed by dilute acetic acid.