1926.951—Tools and protective equipment.

(a) Protective equipment. (1) Rubber protective equipment shall be in accordance with the provisions of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), ANSI J6 series, as follows:

Item	Standard
Rubber insulating gloves	J6.6-1971.
Rubber matting for use around electric apparatus	J6.7-1935 (R1971).
Rubber insulating blankets	J6.4-1971.
Rubber insulating hoods	J6.2-1950 (R1971).
Rubber insulating line hose	J6.1-1950 (R1971).
Rubber insulating sleeves	J6.5-1971.

(ii) Rubber protective equipment shall be visually inspected prior to use.

(iii) In addition, an “air” test shall be performed for rubber gloves prior to use.

(iv) Protective equipment of material other than rubber shall provide equal or better electrical and mechanical protection.

(2) Protective hats shall be in accordance with the provisions of ANSI Z89.2-1971 Industrial Protective Helmets for Electrical Workers, Class B, and shall be worn at the jobsite by employees who are exposed to the hazards of falling objects, electric shock, or burns.

(b) Personal climbing equipment. (1) Body belts with straps or lanyards shall be worn to protect employees working at elevated locations on poles, towers, or other structures except where such use creates a greater hazard to the safety of the employees, in which case other safeguards shall be employed.

(2) Body belts and safety straps shall meet the requirements of § 1926.959. In addition to being used as an employee safeguarding item, body belts with approved tool loops may be used for the purpose of holding tools. Body belts shall be free from additional metal hooks and tool loops other than those permitted in § 1926.959.

(3) Body belts and straps shall be inspected before use each day to determine that they are in safe working condition.

(4) (i) Lifelines and lanyards shall comply with the provisions of § 1926.502.

(ii) Safety lines are not intended to be subjected to shock loading and are used for emergency rescue such as lowering a man to the ground. Such safety lines shall be a minimum of one-half-inch diameter and three or four strand first-grade manila or its equivalent in strength (2,650 lb.) and durability.

(5) Defective ropes shall be replaced.

(c) Ladders. (1) Portable metal or conductive ladders shall not be used near energized lines or equipment except as may be necessary in specialized work such as in high voltage substations where nonconductive ladders might present a greater hazard than conductive ladders. Conductive or metal ladders shall be prominently marked as conductive and all necessary precautions shall be taken when used in specialized work.

(2) Hook or other type ladders used in structures shall be positively secured to prevent the ladder from being accidentally displaced.

(d) Live-line tools. (1) Only live-line tool poles having a manufacturer's certification to withstand the following minimum tests shall be used:

(i) 100,000 volts per foot of length for 5 minutes when the tool is made of fiberglass; or

(ii) 75,000 volts per foot of length for 3 minutes when the tool is made of wood; or

(iii) Other tests equivalent to paragraph (d) (i) or (ii) of this section as appropriate.

(2) All live-line tools shall be visually inspected before use each day. Tools to be used shall be wiped clean and if any hazardous defects are indicated such tools shall be removed from service.

(e) Measuring tapes or measuring ropes. Measuring tapes or measuring ropes which are metal or contain conductive strands shall not be used when working on or near energized parts.

(f) Handtools. (1) Switches for all powered hand tools shall comply with § 1926.300(d).

(2) All portable electric handtools shall:

(i) Be equipped with three-wire cord having the ground wire permanently connected to the tool frame and means for grounding the other end; or

(ii) Be of the double insulated type and permanently labeled as “Double Insulated”; or

(iii) Be connected to the power supply by means of an isolating transformer, or other isolated power supply.

(3) All hydraulic tools which are used on or around energized lines or equipment shall use nonconducting hoses having adequate strength for the normal operating pressures. It should be noted that the provisions of § 1926.302(d)(2) shall also apply.

(4) All pneumatic tools which are used on or around energized lines or equipment shall:

(i) Have nonconducting hoses having adequate strength for the normal operating pressures, and

(ii) Have an accumulator on the compressor to collect moisture.

Code of Federal Regulations

[44 FR 8577, Feb. 9, 1979; 44 FR 20940, Apr. 6, 1979, as amended at 59 FR 40730, Aug. 9, 1994]

CFR

1926.951—Tools and protective equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations