Safety Glasses are available from Lab Supplies – payable from your supervisor’s grant for the first pair but you must pay for replacement of losses. Safety Glasses must be worn in all designated areas and whenever you are handling chemicals, glass vacuum or pressure apparatus and equipment with moving parts.

Contact Lenses: There is an ongoing debate as to whether it is safe to wear contact lenses in a Chemistry Laboratory. The most important advice remains: wear Safety Glasses.

Wearing a lab-coat can give considerable protection against splashed chemicals and flash burns. Lab-coats must be worn in areas where wet chemistry is carried out. This is the case in all synthetic chemistry laboratories. Remove lab coats, gloves or other personal protective clothing before leaving the lab. This clothing may have been contaminated and you could spread the contamination.

Disposable gloves give short-term protection against some chemicals but some solvents may attack them. Many grades of gloves can be obtained which offer more, or less protection.

See the http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/safety/gloves.htm for full details of available gloves and guidance for their use. Even if you have been wearing gloves, wash your hands frequently when working.

Never wear rubber or plastic gloves when working with a naked flame. Never wear gloves outside the lab. Gloves should not be worn for handling computer terminals, any equipment or door knobs.