A GFCI solution you can live with -- Jay Draper

All electrical tools -- double insulated or not -- can present a shock hazard when used in wet areas, on wet floors, in any damp environment. Tools manufactured since 1989 aren't required to have a "Do not use in wet or rainy conditions" disclaimer, but they're no safer than tools with it. Working in wet and rainy conditions is a reality at many B.C. worksites, so using GFCIs is one way you can help prevent electric shock. A GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) is a safety device that measures the current flow going into and out of a tool. If there is any current leakage -- meaning the current is flowing through a person or object to ground -- it will cut power to the tool, or "trip-out." The problem is that GFCIs will trip whether the current leakage is due to a worn tool, a defective extension cord, or a very long series of extension cords. "Nuisance tripping" annoys workers by causing delays that slow down production -- a serious obstacle to getting workers to use them. But while Larry Spouler was Walter & SCI Construction's health and safety coordinator (he now works for BC Transit), he found a solution he and everyone working on the Annacis Island secondary sewage treatment construction site could live with. Spouler made his own GFCI system by using heavy-duty extension cord and installing a two-plug weatherproof GFCI box at the end of the cord nearest the worker. "The guys like it because it's hassle-free for them and it gives them two plugs to work with instead of just one," says Spouler. "I like it because I know that all extension cords are in excellent shape, and if they trip, it's not a nuisance trip, it's a safety hazard. Either the working conditions are inappropriate or there's a problem with the tool." Contact Forming Systems, one of the major subtrades on the site, has supported Spouler's GFCI initiative from the beginning. Contact's Troy Davies explains, "This system works because it's simple for the workers. If it's not easy, they won't use it and your efforts will be wasted." WCB occupational safety officers David Purser and Tosh Suzuki, who first suggested Walter & SCI explore GFCI solutions, are satisfied with Spouler's system too. "Putting the GFCI box at the feet of the workers is an excellent way to avoid a lot of nuisance-tripping problems," Suzuki explains, "yet it maintains the safety benefit they're there for in the first place." Note on new regulations: Under the WCB's new Occupational Health and Safety Regulation to come into effect April 15, 1998, GFCIs will be required for any hand tool used in wet, damp, or outside locations. Questions? Call 1 888 621-SAFE.