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December 2007 

Emergency Eye Wash and Shower Units


In an ideal workplace, employers would

always be aware of potential dangers to 

employees’ eyes, and employees would 

always wear Personal Protective Equipment 

(PPE). But some workplaces aren’t ideal, 

and accidents do happen. Therefore, in

workplaces where corrosive chemicals are 

handled, the Occupational Safety and 

Health Administration (OSHA) requires 

that facilities for drenching or flushing 

the eyes be provided in the work area for 

immediate emergency use. 

Emergency eye washing capacity is often 

providedinoneofthreeways. Thepreferred 

method is to provide stations equipped with

plumbing that supplies water to be used 

to flush the eyes and rinse the face. These 

stations should be flushed of potentially 

dangerous microbes at least monthly. At 

that time, they should also be inspected to 

ensure they function properly, providing 

an even spray. Once activated, they should 

remain on, hands-free, until turned off. To 

Figure 1: Battery Charging Station for a Forklift 

with Blocked Non-plumbed Eye Wash with Inspection 

Tag Attached 

promoteeffectiveuse,itisrecommendedthat 

the temperatureofthewaterbe comfortable, 

which may mean inclusion of a mechanism 

to automatically premix hot and cold water 

before it enters the eye wash or shower. 

Where it is not practical to provide plumbed 

equipment, a station with a reservoir 

holding an adequate supply of commercially 

prepared solution is sometimes used. The 

fluid in these eye wash stations needs to be

periodically changed, in accordance with its 

manufacturer’s specifications, to insure it is 

safe for use. Many of these solutions cannot 

be used in unheated buildings where they 

are exposed to freezing temperatures unless

reservoir heaters are provided. 

Non-plumbed eye wash and shower units 

should also remain on, hands-free, until 

turned off. Performance of gravity-fed 

eyewash stations should be periodically 

checked to ensure proper flow is provided, 

while conserving the finite amount of 

solution in its reservoir. The reservoir’s level 

should also be checked periodically and 

after each use to ensure it holds an adequate 

supply. 

Personal eye wash units, typically squeezebottles holding approximately a quart of 

eyewash solution, are sometimes made 

available. They are best suited for employees, 

like custodians and maintenance employees, 

whose mobility takes them away from the 

emergency facilities. However, they may not

be relied upon as the primary source of first 

aid treatment - employees must also have 

access to a device that can provide the longer 

flushing necessary to limit eye damage. It 

is important that mobile employees who

use these personal units know the locations 

www.compliance.gov


Figure 2: Obstructed Access to an Eye Wash 

of spare units that can continue to provide

flushing after their bottle is empty. All 

employees who work in the area need to

know where the spare bottles are located. 

To promote quick use, emergency shower

and eye wash stations should be located in 

well-lit areas, and should be indicated with 

readily observable signs. Employees should 

be trained in their locations, the importance 

of not obstructing the pathways to them, 

and how and when to use them. 

It is important that no objects be placed in 

the pathway where they would obstruct 

and delay an unassisted, potentially blinded 

person who needs to reach these emergency 

facilities. During performance of the 

biennial inspections for the 109th Congress, 

the OOC’s inspectors found 43 locations 

where access to emergency eyewash or 

shower stations was inadequate because of 

obstructions placed in the pathway. 
Someone needs to be designated as the 

periodic inspector of these emergency 

facilities. After inspection, an attached tag 

or nearby log book should be marked with 

the date and inspector’s initials. Supervisors 

should check these records periodically to 

ensure the emergency facilities are being 

inspected to ensure proper operation. A 

work order request should be immediately 

submitted when anyone identifies problems, 

and repairs should be quickly performed to 

promptly return equipment to serviceable 

condition. The American National 

Standards Institute (ANSI) has published 

and periodically updates voluntary national 

consensus standards regarding emergency 

eye washes and showers. 

Flushing and drenching the eyes after 

exposure to liquid chemicals are first aid 

measures to minimize the extent of injury 

- not to prevent it. It is important to ensure 

all the chemical has been washed from 

under the eyelids, which can be difficult to 

accomplish when the natural response to 

eye pain is to tightly close the eyes. Wearing 

of contact lenses can add to the danger 

because it may trap chemicals against the 

eye under the contact lens. Therefore they 

must be removed to accomplish effective 

flushing of the eye. Employees suffering

from eye injuries or any other serious 

chemical burns should be referred to a 

healthcare professional for evaluation and 

any additional required treatment. 

Numerous building maintenance and 

process activities—for example, changing, 

chargingandfillinglargebatteries—involve

use of hazardous chemicals. Regardless of 

the circumstances, employers must ensure 

that employees working with chemicals 

must be able to quickly and easily flush and

drench their eyes in the case of accidental 

exposure. 

fast stats 

•	4,811 chemical burn injuries to eyes were reported in 2002 (Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).

•	During the inspections of the 109th Congress, Office of Compliance inspectors found 43 locations deficient

in their provision of access to emergency eyewash and showers facilities.

•	Most battery charging areas need to be equipped with emergency eyewash facilities. They are needed in

all locations where corrosive chemicals are used.

•	Squirt bottles alone are not adequate first aid provisions. They are intended to be used while injured employees

are transferred to a station that can flush for an appropriate period of time. The appropriate time varies,

depending on the substance, and may be indicated on the product’s material safety data sheet (MSDS).

•	OSHA requires employers to assess whether hazards in workplaces necessitate the use of personal protective

equipment. Employees must use necessary protective equipment selected by the employer after they have

received their training for using said equipment (29 CFR 1910.132).

•	OSHA requires that suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing of the eyes and body be provided

within the work area for immediate emergency use when the eyes or body of any person may be exposed

to injurious corrosive materials (29 CFR 1910.151(c)).

•	ANSI Z358.1 provides detailed guidance on the installation, operation and maintenance of emergency

eyewash and shower equipment. That national consensus standard has not yet been adopted by OSHA.

Peter Ames Eveleth 

General Counsel 

Rachel Berg Scherer 

Editor 

If you spot a safety hazard in your legislative branch 

workplace, contact the Office of Compliance to report it: 

Room LA 200, John Adams Building 

110 Second Street, SE 

Washington, DC 20540 

t/ 202-724-9250; tdd/ 202-426-1912; f/ 202-426-1913 

Recorded Information Line/ 202-724-9260 

www.compliance.gov 

The Office of Compliance advances safety, health,

and workplace rights in the U.S. Congress and the 

Legislative Branch. Established as an independent

agency by the Congressional Accountability Act of 

1995, the Office educates employees and employing 

offices about their rights and responsibilities under the 

Act, provides an impartial dispute resolution process,

and investigates and remedies violations of the Act. 

This information does not constitute advice or an official ruling of the Office of Compliance or the Board of Directors and is intended for educational 

purposes only. For further information, please refer to the Congressional Accountability Act (2 U.S.C 1301 et seq.) and the regulations issued by the 

Board, or you may contact the Office of Compliance.