Wash. Admin. Code § 296-842-13005
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:
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.
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:
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. Visitwww.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:
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:
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).
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.
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 |
Wash. Admin. Code § 296-842-13005
Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060 and chapter 49.17 RCW. 12-24-071, § 296-842-13005, filed 12/4/12, effective 1/4/13. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.050 and 29 C.F.R. Subpart Z. 09-19-119, § 296-842-13005, filed 9/22/09, effective 12/1/09. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060. 07-05-072, § 296-842-13005, filed 2/20/07, effective 4/1/07; 03-20-114, § 296-842-13005, filed 10/1/03, effective 1/1/04.