Washington Administrative Code › Title 296 - Labor and Industries, Department of › Chapter 296-842 - Respirators › Section 296-842-13005 - Select and provide appropriate respirators

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
Exemption:
This section does
NOT
apply to respirator use that is voluntary. See WAC
				296-842-11005 for
				voluntary use program requirements.
IMPORTANT:
See chapter 296-841 WAC,
				Airborne contaminants, for:
1. Hazard evaluation requirements.
			 Evaluation results are necessary for respirator selection.
2. References to substance-specific
			 rules that may also apply to you and have additional respirator
			 selection requirements. These references are found in the permissible
			 exposure limit (PEL) table.
A respirator must be provided to each employee when
				such equipment is necessary to protect the health of the employee.
				Select and provide, at no cost to employees, appropriate respirators
				for routine use, infrequent use, and reasonably foreseeable
				emergencies (such as escape, emergency, and spill response
				situations) by completing the following process:
Respirator Selection Process
Step 1:
If your only respirator use is
				for escape, skip to
Step 8
to select appropriate
				respirators.
Step 2:
If the respiratory hazard is a
				biological aerosol, such as TB (tuberculosis), anthrax, psittacosis
				(parrot fever), or hanta virus, select a respirator appropriate for
nonemergency
activities recognized to present a health
				risk to workers AND skip to
Step 8.
(a) If respirator use will occur
			 during
emergencies,
skip to
Step 8
and
			 document the analysis used to select the appropriate
			 respirator.
(b) Use
			 Centers for Disease Control (CDC) selection guidance for exposures to
			 specific biological agents when this guidance exists. Visit
http://www.cdc.gov
.
Step 3:
If the respiratory hazard is a
				pesticide, follow the respirator specification on the pesticide label
				AND skip to
Step 9.
Step 4:
Determine the expected exposure
				concentration for each respiratory hazard of concern. Use the results
				from the evaluation required by chapter 296-841 WAC, Airborne
				contaminants.
Step 5:
Determine if the respiratory
				hazard is classified as IDLH; if it is NOT IDLH skip to
Step
				7.
The respiratory hazard
IS
classified as
				IDLH if:
(a) The atmosphere
			 is oxygen deficient or oxygen enriched;
(b) You CANNOT measure or estimate
			 your expected exposure concentration; or
(c) Your measured or estimated
			 expected exposure concentration is greater or equal to the IDLH value
			 in the NIOSH
Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards
.
Note:
DOSH uses the IDLH values in the 1990 edition
						  of the NIOSH
Pocket Guide to Hazardous Chemicals
to
						  determine the existence of IDLH conditions. You may use more recent
						  editions of this guide. Visit
www.cdc.gov/niosh
for more
						  information.
Step 6:
Select an appropriate respirator
				from one of the following respirators for IDLH conditions and skip to
Step 8:
(a)
			 Full-facepiece, pressure demand, self-contained breathing apparatus
			 (SCBA) certified by NIOSH for a minimum service life of thirty
			 minutes; or
(b)
			 Full-facepiece, pressure demand air-line respirator equipped with an
			 auxiliary self-contained air supply.
Exception:
If the respiratory hazard is oxygen
						  deficiency AND you can show oxygen concentrations can be controlled
						  within the ranges listed in Table 4 under ALL foreseeable conditions,
						  you are allowed to select
ANY
type of SCBA or air-line
						  respirator:
Table 4 Concentration Ranges for Oxygen
				Deficiency
Altitude
(as ft. above sea
						  level)
Oxygen Concentration Range
(as
						  percent oxygen)
Below 3,001
16.0 - 19.5
3,001 - 4,000
16.4 - 19.5
4,001 - 5,000
17.1 - 19.5
5,001 - 6,000
17.8 - 19.5
6,001 - 7,000
18.5 - 19.5
7,001 - 8,000
19.3 - 19.5
Above 8,000 feet the exception does
						not apply. Oxygen-enriched breathing air must be supplied above
						14,000 feet.
Step 7:
Select respirator types with
				assigned protection factors (APFs) from Table 5 that are appropriate
				to protect employees from the expected exposure concentration.
Note:
1. Appendix B, using assigned protection
						  factors (APFs) for respirator selection, found in this chapter, uses
						  the hazard-ratio approach established by ANSI Z88.2-1992 to determine
						  which respirator types can provide a sufficient level of
						  protection.
2. If no permissible exposure limit (PEL) is
						  established for an airborne contaminant, use relevant available
						  information and informed professional judgment to determine an
						  acceptable exposure limit value to use for calculating hazard ratios.
						  For example, you may use exposure limit values established by the
						  American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists
						  (ACGIH).
Step 8:
Consider hazards that could
				require selection of specific respirator types. For example, select
				full-facepiece respirators to prevent eye irritation or abrasive
				blasting helmets to provide particle rebound protection.
Note:
Rules for specific substances have
						  additional selection specifications that apply to escape and other
						  types of respirators. Make sure you follow those additional
						  requirements before finalizing your selection.
Step 9:
Evaluate user and workplace
				factors that might compromise respirator performance, reliability or
				safety.
Examples:
(a) High humidity or temperature
			 extremes in the workplace.
(b) Necessary voice
			 communication.
(c) High
			 traffic areas and moving machinery.
(d) If respirator use is for escape
			 only, follow this step and then skip to
Step
			 11.
(e) If the
			 respiratory hazard is a pesticide, follow the requirements on the
			 pesticide label and skip to
Step 11.
(f) Time or distance for escape.
Step 10:
Follow Table 6 requirements to
				select an air-purifying respirator.
If Table 6 requirements cannot be met, you must
				select an appropriate air-line respirator or an
				SCBA.
Step 11:
Make sure respirators you
				select are certified by the National Institute for Occupational
				Safety and Health (NIOSH).
(a) Respirators provided
			 exclusively for escape from IDLH atmospheres must be NIOSH-certified
			 for escape from the atmosphere in which they will be used.
(b) To maintain certification, make
			 sure the respirator is used according to cautions and limitations
			 specified on the NIOSH approval label. This includes manufacturer
			 restrictions on cartridges and canisters.
For SCBAs, use only the respirator manufacturer's
				NIOSH-approved breathing gas containers, marked and maintained in
				accordance with the Quality Assurance 68 provisions of the NIOSH
				approval for the SCBA as issued in accordance with the NIOSH
				respirator certification standard at  42 C.F.R. Part 84.
Note:
While selecting respirators, you will need
						  to select a sufficient number of types, models or sizes to provide
						  for fit testing. You can also consider other respirator use issues,
						  such as accommodating facial hair with a loose fitting
						  respirator.
Use Table 5 to identify the assigned protection
				factor for different types of respirators.
(c) These assigned protection
			 factors are only effective when the employer implements a continuing,
			 effective respirator program as required by this chapter, including
			 training, fit testing, maintenance, and use requirements.
(d) You may select respirators
			 assigned for use in higher workplace concentrations of a hazardous
			 substance for use at lower concentrations of that substance, or when
			 required use is independent of concentration.
Table 5 Assigned Protection Factors (APF) for
				Respirator Types
If the respirator is a(n)
						  ...
Then the APF is ...
Air-purifying respirator with a:
* Quarter-mask ............
* Half-facepiece. This category includes
						  filtering facepiece and elastomeric facepiece
models ..................
* Full-facepiece ...........
Powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) with
						  a:
* Loose-fitting facepiece ...........
* Half-facepiece ...........
* Full-facepiece ...........
* Hood or helmet ..........
5
10
50
25
50
1000
25/1000 (see note)
Note:
PAPRs with helmets/hoods
						  may receive an APF of 1000 only when you have evidence that testing
						  of these respirators demonstrates performance at a level of
						  protection of 1,000 or greater. Such evidence must be provided by the
						  respirator manufacturer. This level of performance can best be
						  demonstrated by performing a workplace protection factor (WPF) or
						  simulated workplace protection factor (SWPF) study or equivalent
						  testing.
Air-line respirator with a:
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  demand mode ..
* Loose-fitting facepiece and designed to
						  operate in continuous flow mode ............
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  continuous-flow mode ...................
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode
						  ....................
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  demand mode . . ..
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  continuous-flow mode ...................
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode
						  ....................
* Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
						  continuous-flow mode ...................
10
25
50
50
50
1000
1000
25/1000 (see note)
Note:
Air-line respirators with
						  helmets/hoods designed to operate in continuous-flow mode may receive
						  an APF of 1000 when you have evidence that testing of these
						  respirators demonstrates performance at a level of protection of
						  1,000 or greater. Such evidence must be provided by the respirator
						  manufacturer. This level of performance can best be demonstrated by
						  performing a workplace protection factor (WPF) or simulated workplace
						  protection factor (SWPF) study or equivalent testing.
Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)
						  with a tight fitting:
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  demand mode ..
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  demand mode . . ..
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
						  pressure-demand or other positive pressure mode (e.g., open/closed
						  circuit) . ..
* Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
						  demand mode. ..
* Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
						  pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode (e.g., open/closed
						  circuit) . . ..
Combination respirators:
* When using a combination respirator, such
						  as an air-line respirator with an air-purifying filter, you must make
						  sure the APF is appropriate to the mode of operation in which the
						  respirator is used ..............
Escape respirators:
* APFs in this table do not apply to
						  respirators used solely for escape. To select escape respirators, go
						  to Step 8 of this section .....................
10
50
10,000
50
10,000
Use Table 6 to select air-purifying respirators for
				particle, vapor, or gas contaminants.
Table 6 Requirements for Selecting Any
				Air-purifying Respirator
If the contaminant is a
						  ...
Then ...
* Gas OR vapor
*Provide a respirator with canisters or
						  cartridges equipped with a NIOSH-certified, end-of-service-life
						  indicator (ESLI)
OR
*If a canister or cartridge with an ESLI is
						  NOT available, develop a cartridge change schedule to make sure the
						  canisters or cartridges are replaced before they are no longer
						  effective
OR
* Select an atmosphere-supplying
						  respirator
* Particle, such as a dust, spray, mist, fog,
						  fume, or aerosol
* Select respirators with filters certified
						  to be at least 95% efficient by NIOSH
- For example, N95s, R99s, P100s, or High
						  Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters