# Electrical Glove Testing



## Safetyguy

If you have any questions on OSHA's requirements for testing your equipment please let me know. And YES it is a requirement!!!


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## 76nemo

I'll bite on that. I used to work where it was mandatory for them to be sent off and rotated.

Owning a couple of pair of my own gloves and different classes, I don't have them tested. If they surpass their life in my eyes, I'll just buy new.

Let me itterate. Gloves are rated for bare usage with no outer protection. I take just as good of care as my outer skins as I do my barrier.

I keep my gloves at room temp., babied in their own bag, and refuse to subject my special gloves to any chemicals. The gloves I use to keep me away from life and death are so pampered you'd have a good chuckle about it. I have "beater" gloves, but I'll bet their skins and conditions are just as good as your frontline gloves. Are my gloves any better than yours??? I doubt it.

I don't see the point in having gloves sent off when I might feel the need. If I feel my gloves are comprimised in ANY way, I'll replace them.



They're not any five hundred bucks.


JMHO..........


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## brian john

I buy new as well sending them out for testing is a PIA in my overall work plan.


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## Jlarson

We buy new too.


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## vos

How often do you need to have them tested. Are gloves some thing to invest in now or should i wait a few years? 
( not to highjack the thread)


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## don_resqcapt19

You have to have them tested within one year of the manufacturer test date if you don't use them and within 6 months of first use and every 6 months there after.


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## Wirenuting

It took years for me to get them here to allow us to have gloves again. They had told us we would be disciplined if caught with them. I kept showing mine and demanding they supply PPE. 
Now they rotate our gloves every 6 months and we get a new color so they can see what test cycle a person is on. 
Some bosses just don't have a clue, they just want to look good by saving money.


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## Zog

76nemo said:


> Owning a couple of pair of my own gloves and different classes, I don't have them tested. If they surpass their life in my eyes, I'll just buy new.


 We see over a 50% failure rate for glove testing, so how do you know they are good without testing?



76nemo said:


> Let me itterate. Gloves are rated for bare usage with no outer protection. I take just as good of care as my outer skins as I do my barrier.


 OSHA 1910.137 (b)(2)(vii) Protector gloves shall be worn over insulating gloves, except as follows:
 (b)(2)(vii)(A) Protector gloves need not be used with Class 0 gloves, under limited-use
 conditions, where small equipment and parts manipulation necessitate unusually
 high finger dexterity.


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## Safetyguy

*Testing*

Here is what ASTM says and OSHA has adopted and referneces the ASTM standard.

ASTM F496
*Electrical Tests*​​​​​​7.1 Electrically retest gloves or sleeves issued for service.
Base the interval between date of issue and retests on work
practices and test experience. It shall not exceed 6 months for
gloves and twelve months for sleeves. Gloves or sleeves that
have been electrically tested but not issued for service shall not
be placed into service unless they have been electrically tested​
within the previous twelve months.

Most Manufacturers do not put any dates (except encoding) on their gloves, so if you have an OSHA inspector inspect your facility how do you know when they where last tested?


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## Safetyguy

It really depends on how many pair you have if it is cost effective or not. If you just have your own than it is more cost effective to buy new. If you have 5 or more pair it is better to test them. Just food for thought.


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## Safetyguy

50% is pretty high we generally have about 15% failure rate through all of our customers.


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## Zog

Safetyguy said:


> 50% is pretty high we generally have about 15% failure rate through all of our customers.


I meant from a user point of view, not as a test lab, we wear our gloves everyday for power system testing, they get abused.


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## MDShunk

Even in between tests, I tend to roll mine up from the cuff from time to time, to at at least make sure they hold air. I've found a leaker twice in the last 6 or 8 years. 

I take mine into the local power company's barn and they send them off with their gloves to be tested. No charge to me. I think they have their own guy that does it at one of their shops. Pretty nice customer service.


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## farlsincharge

In what situations and at what voltage levels are you guys wearing gloves?


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## Zog

farlsincharge said:


> In what situations and at what voltage levels are you guys wearing gloves?


>50V when working within the RAB per NFPA 70E (Z462 in your case)


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## 76nemo

Zog said:


> We see over a 50% failure rate for glove testing, so how do you know they are good without testing?
> 
> 
> 
> OSHA 1910.137 (b)(2)(vii) Protector gloves shall be worn over insulating gloves, except as follows:
> (b)(2)(vii)(A) Protector gloves need not be used with Class 0 gloves, under limited-use
> conditions, where small equipment and parts manipulation necessitate unusually
> high finger dexterity.


 
I was hoping you would chime in on this.

How do I know they're good/100%? How can I say for certainty?

I can't Zog, not without having them tested. If I told you why I was comfortable with my own gloves, you'd call me fool, and I'd back you for it. It's how I handle my gloves, how I store my gloves, how my gloves are off limits to anyone. I take pride and very good care of all my equipment, but gloves, footwear, and other PPE is different in it's own way.

It's my azz, and if I get burned for not having them tested, it's my own fault. I consider my gloves, (if well taken care of), good for 6 months, maybe a year depending on their use. If they are to a point where they have been jeapardized in any manner they will be destroyed and tossed on the spot.

New gloves aren't that expensive when you figure the barrier they support you with.


Now, your comeback to my comment about the rating of gloves being used solely/bare,.......you know what I meant. The insulation/gloves aren't tested skins on. They're meant to be utilized with skins, yes, but the barrier alone is tested for what it's rated at, as you well know.


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## brian john

My issue is we are a service company, our guys are all over the place, we have enough trouble getting them to bring their test equipment for calibration, much less the gloves


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## 76nemo

brian john said:


> My issue is we a re a service company, our guys are all over the place, we have enough trouble getting them to bring their test equipment for calibration, much less the gloves


Besides gloves and FH clothing, do you supply footwear and mats to all of your employees as well Brian?


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## Zog

76nemo said:


> I was hoping you would chime in on this.
> 
> How do I know they're good/100%? How can I say for certainty?
> 
> I can't Zog, not without having them tested. If I told you why I was comfortable with my own gloves, you'd call me fool, and I'd back you for it. It's how I handle my gloves, how I store my gloves, how my gloves are off limits to anyone. I take pride and very good care of all my equipment, but gloves, footwear, and other PPE is different in it's own way.


Ha, I baited you there. The thing about testing, while I endorse it, is that you can damage your gloves the very first day after they come back from the lab. 

The most important thing is to know how to do a proper inspection of your gloves. I used to demonstate this in my classes and 99% of electricians thought the inspection meants do an air test, which is part of it but will rarely find the most common failures of gloves. Snags and Ozone damage (From electric fields, tempature extremes, and most commonly petroleum based products). Most people do not know how to look for these or what ozone damage looks like. I have a bunch of sample gloves I used to pass around showing all of the different types of failures, guys used to bring thier gloves back after lunch break that day and there were damaged gloves in every class. I will post some photos of them tommrow if I can find them. 

You need to gently pull the rubber (Or better yet, purchase a glove inflator and keep it in your truck, they have manual ones for about $100), working your way all around the glove, paying paticular attention to fingers and the cuff. Why the cuff? Because that is the most damaged part (The only part the leather protectors do not protect) and dirt and grease on the leathers can cause voltage to track across the leather and pass through a hole, or even a deep snag in the cuff. The distance of the cuff of the leather and the cuff of the rubber glove is a requirement based on voltage class. 



76nemo said:


> New gloves aren't that expensive when you figure the barrier they support you with.


 About 10 times the cost of testing them. 



76nemo said:


> Now, your comeback to my comment about the rating of gloves being used solely/bare,.......you know what I meant. The insulation/gloves aren't tested skins on. They're meant to be utilized with skins, yes, but the barrier alone is tested for what it's rated at, as you well know.


:jester:


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## Legion

Safetyguy said:


> 50% is pretty high we generally have about 15% failure rate through all of our customers.


A 15% failure rate seems rather low, from what I last saw of our internal testing results. However we use our gloves on a regular basis and not necessarily ideal weather conditions. 



MDShunk said:


> Even in between tests, I tend to roll mine up from the cuff from time to time, to at at least make sure they hold air. I've found a leaker twice in the last 6 or 8 years.


OSHA 1910.137 states _“Insulating equipment shall be
inspected before each day’s use and immediately following
any incident that can reasonably be suspected of having
caused damage. Insulating gloves shall be given an air
test, along with the inspection.”_



MDShunk said:


> I take mine into the local power company's barn and they send them off with their gloves to be tested. No charge to me. I think they have their own guy that does it at one of their shops. Pretty nice customer service.


That really is a nice service to offer! 



Zog said:


> You need to gently pull the rubber (Or better yet, purchase a glove inflator and keep it in your truck, they have manual ones for about $100)


I had the Salisbury glove inflators ordered for our shop, they've worked rather well. Speaking of... I need to shoot you an email tomorrow. :thumbsup:


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## brian john

76nemo said:


> Besides gloves and FH clothing, do you supply footwear and mats to all of your employees as well Brian?


Actually while we supply all safety equipment required, my men are not suppose to work anything energized, POLICY, there are some exceptions like everything else in life.


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## Dead eye

76nemo said:


> New gloves aren't that expensive when you figure the barrier they support you with.
> 
> 
> What brand and where do you purchase your gloves?


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## 76nemo

Dead eye said:


> 76nemo said:
> 
> 
> 
> New gloves aren't that expensive when you figure the barrier they support you with.
> 
> 
> What brand and where do you purchase your gloves?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Where I buy my gloves and where you buy your gloves are two different things. I won't make any recommendations for personal reason. You need to find what's right for you. If you do an online purchase, I strongly suggest you get on the phone with someone who knows what they're talking about, not someone stuffing a donut in their face trying to make a sale.
> 
> PPE can quite possibly keep you from life and death, therefore I'll let you do the searching and homework and leave the decision to you. Some may have suggestions and opinions but even my ex has an opinion and I'll tell you what she can do with that:thumbup:
> 
> On a very serious note, ask yourself what you're really looking for and how certain companies handle PPE sale and service. It's not like going to the store to buy a CD.
Click to expand...


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## sparky105

our tool guy tests every 3 months rotating our gloves out of service after two test cycles.
The HVAC guys 50 % bring them back still in their vacuum sealed bag I get mine done every month.
He told me there was over 100 pair in service I should ask him what the failure rate is.
Even the pipefitters are issued gloves and fr uniforms :blink:


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## 76nemo

sparky105 said:


> our tool guy tests every 3 months rotating our gloves out of service after two test cycles.
> The HVAC guys 50 % bring them back still in their vacuum sealed bag I get mine done every month.
> He told me there was over 100 pair in service I should ask him what the failure rate is.
> Even the pipefitters are issued gloves and fr uniforms :blink:


 
You have to go by a strict diet when it comes to care of PPE. If my gloves were to be sent out, I want the exact same gloves that I sent out previously, tested or not. I don't want some tooling guy saying, "Here, these are tried and true."

We're not talking about buying a new PQA. I'm against testing while it can be easily afforded. I just want new.

It's my GD life, I'll work it how I choose to............


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## Safetyguy

Here is another valuable tool for the daily inspection. http://xpresscartcentral.com/petl/closeup.asp?cid=47&pid=764&offset=0 It assist in the rolling of the glove to help hold the air in.


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## Mike_586

Zog said:


> >50V when working within the RAB per NFPA 70E (Z462 in your case)


Either one or the other. Strangely enough, even though Z462 has been out for a while now, I still often see engineering plans for government work specifying that we follow the requirements of 70E.


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