Labor & Industries (L&I), Washington State

Safety Standards for Window Cleaning Chapter 296-878, WAC

Effective Date: 01/01/03

Equipment WAC 296-878-150

For printing

You must:

Select and use appropriate equipment WAC 296-878-15005 Select appropriate rope for suspended equipment WAC 296-878-15015 Select appropriate carabiners. WAC 296-878-15020 Use fall protection equipment WAC 296-878-15025

WAC 296-878-15005

Select and use appropriate equipment.

You must

(1) Make sure that all equipment provided to workers for window-cleaning operations is engineered, designed, and intended for use in commercial applications.

Note: Equipment that is designed or labeled for recreational use or rescue use only is prohibited for use in window-cleaning operations.

You must

(2) Make sure that the window-cleaning equipment isn’t altered unless it’s specifically approved in writing by the original manufacturer or a registered professional engineer.

(3) Provide manufacturer's instructions to employees for all window-cleaning equipment they will use.

Reference: Use Table 1 for other window-cleaning equipment requirements.

Table 1
Other window-cleaning equipment

If you use: Then follow all requirements in: 1) Portable ladders WAC 296-800-290, Portable Ladders 2) Supported scaffolds Chapter 296-874 WAC, Scaffolds 3) Suspension ropes and lifelines Powered and manual hoists Suspended scaffold equipment Chapter 296-874 WAC, Scaffolds 4) Single and multipoint adjustable suspension scaffolds Chapter 296-874 WAC, Scaffolds 5) Powered platforms Chapter 296-24 WAC, PART J-3, Powered Platforms

 

WAC 296-878-15015

Select appropriate rope for suspended equipment.

You must

• Make sure all rope used for suspended equipment has a minimum breaking strength of 5 thousand pounds.

WAC 296-878-15020

Select appropriate carabiners.

You must

• Use carabiners for connecting hardware or attaching boatswains' chairs, descent devices, and lifelines to anchors.
• Use carabiners with a minimum tensile load of 5 thousand pounds.
• Make sure carabiners are either manual or auto-locking.

Note: You may secure a rope to an anchor with a knot if normal daily use of the rope will not decrease its initial breaking strength below 5 thousand pounds.

WAC 296-878-15025

Use fall protection equipment.

You must

(1) Make sure the fall arrest system meets the requirements of WAC 296-24-88050 mandatory Appendix C, Part I, Personal Fall Arrest Systems.

• Use and inspect fall arrest equipment in accordance with the requirements of WAC 296-24-88050, mandatory Appendix C, Part I, Personal Fall Arrest Systems.
• Make sure all workers suspended from a boatswain's chair or rope descent system use an independent fall arrest system where the fall arrest anchorage is separate from the suspension system anchorage.
• Make sure workers operating powered platforms wear and use a fall arrest system.
• Make sure workers assemble and wear their personal fall arrest equipment before they approach the point of suspension.
• Make sure workers are connected at all times to the fall arrest system while they are suspended.

(2) Make sure the boatswain's chair or rope descent system is connected at all times to the suspension line.