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Safety Reference
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SUGGESTED SEQUENCE OF STEPS TO MORE SAFELY ORGANIZE YOUR CHEMICAL STORES AREA
1
3
Families
Acids (Inorganic 9)
Metals, etc. (Inorganic 1)
Halides, Sulfates, Phosphates, Acetates, etc. (Inorganic 2)
Nitrates, etc. (Inorganic 3)
Hydroxides, Oxides, etc. (Inorganic 4)
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Decide what products you will need for the next year (at best, two years). Ruthlessly rid yourselves of the remain- der of the accumulated materials.
Take an inventory of all the chemicals in your department 2 or building. You will never know the extent of your prob-
lem until you know exactly what you have. Record the
inventory. You may want to consider the purchase of the
FLINN CHEMICAL INVENTORY SYSTEM to facilitate this task.
Reorganize the remaining products into their compatible chemical families (see our Suggested Chemical Storage Pattern on page 660). The actual sequence of compatible families on your shelves is not critical. What is important is to keep the compatible families separate and to keep the organic and inorganic families as far apart as possible. The Suggested Shelf Storage Pattern shown on pages 660–663 is only one suggested sequence you can use. If shelf space is a problem, you are permitted to place more than one compatible family on a shelf. Make sure you either have a physical divider or leave a 3" space between each family.
Hundreds of teachers who have reorganized their shelves, using these patterns, tell us products are easier to find versus the alphabetical system previously used. When you reorganize, you may need some estimate of the percentage of shelf space each family might occupy. If yours is a “typical” laboratory, the following profile may be a helpful guide:
Percentage of Shelf Space Occupied
Store away from all other items. Store in a dedicated acid cabinet. Store nitric acid away from all other materials.
Less than 5%
Could be 35–40% of available space. This is usually the largest family.
Approximately 8–10% Approximately 10%
Families
Sulfides, etc. (Inorganic 5)
Chlorates, Perchlorates, etc. (Inorganic 6)
Arsenates, etc. (Inorganic 7)
Borates, Chromates, etc. (Inorganic 8)
Sulfur, Phosphorus, etc. (Inorganic 10)
Percentage of Shelf Space Occupied
Less than 1% 5 +%
Less than 1% Less than 1%
Approximately 3%
Inorganic Families
And Organic Families
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There may be some very large space consumers in 2-kilogram (5-lb.) containers; i.e., calcium chloride, calcium hydroxide, etc. Certainly you may wish to extend family storage in a separate location for such large volumes of large packages.
Organic acids (Organic 1) will probably occupy about 5+% of your organic shelf space except for acetic acid which should be stored with the inorganic acids (hydrochloric, etc.) in a dedicated acid cabinet. Keep acetic acid away from nitric acid. If your school is “typical,” the remainder of your organic materials may occupy about 15–20% of your total shelf space. You should store all flammable organics in a dedicated flammables cabinet.
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And Other Materials
Congratulations! You have now reorganized your chemical stores facility to:
• store compatible products together
• separate acids into dedicated storage
• separate flammables into dedicated storage
• lock up all poisons
• record all inventory
• rid yourselves of excess materials
YOU NOW HAVE A SAFER FACILITY