A+ Study Guide: Domain 7.0: Safety And Environmental Issues

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Accidents can be avoided by identifying hazards in advance. One of the best ways to do this is to always read MSDS information when available. Hazardous

materials come with Material Safety Data Sheets CompTIA Certification that provide a variety of information for

handling the material. This can include: physical data, toxicity, health effects, first aid, reactivity, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and

spill/leak procedures. It is important to read this information before using hazardous products. It is also a good idea to keep these documents and make them

easily accessible in case of an accident.

Electrostatic Discharge:
Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) can be harmful to electronic components and cause them to fail. Low humidity, walking across carpet, and appliance motors are

some of the common generators of ESD. Metal oxide semiconductor devices are particularly sensitive to ESD and special care should be taken around them. Below

are some of the prevention methods employed to prevent damage:
*Use grounding ...
... straps when working on the inside of a computer. Grounding straps are connected to a technicians wrist and you can ground the wrist strap to

the earth pin on a wall socket.
*Remove all metallic jewelery.
*Use anti-static mats.
*Before working on the inside of a computer, touching the chassis of the computer while plugged into a grounded outlet can prevent ESD.
*Anti-static sprays can be applied to floors, computers and work surfaces.
*A humidifier can be used to keep the humidity above 50%.

Electricity:
A computer needs a "clean" electricity source in order to work properly. By "clean" we mean a source that is not plagued with spikes or dips in current.

Spikes are of particular concern because they can not only destroy your computer, they can kill you in some situations.

Electrical spikes (measured in nanoseconds) or surges (measured in milliseconds) can cause damage to system components or even data loss. Surge suppressors

(often called "surge protectors") can prevent minor variances in power and provide a stable stream of electricity to the unit, however, they may not always

work against larger surges. For this reason, computer equipment should be unplugged from the wall during electrical storms to prevent equipment damage and

injury. Also keep in mind that not all power strips are surge suppressors even though they look the same.

Uninterruptable Power Supplies (UPS) provide power to the devices connected to it for a period of time in the event of power loss or sag for long enough to

gracefully shutdown the computer and avoid data loss. Unnecessary peripherals such as scanners and printers should not be connected to a UPS as they can

overload it.

Monitors and power supplies (including printers) should not be opened unless you are qualified to work on them. Deadly voltage (up to 30,000 volts) can be

stored inside their capacitors for periods long after you turn them off. Leave monitor repair to the professionals or simply replace a bad monitor/power

supply. It is not worth your life to try to fix one of these.

In the event that you suffer an electrical fire, you must only use a class C or class ABC fire extinguisher. You should keep one of these handy around

computer equipment.

Toner and ink jet cartridges don't contain any harmful chemicals, but they are not biodegradable and are piling up in landfills. Most printer manufacturers

have some sort of cartridge recycling program and some of them will even save you money on your new cartridges. Check with your 220-602 Exam for more information. NOTE: Make sure that when you open a laser printer you avoid the fuser until it has had time to cool down

as it can result in severe burns.

Reporting:
All accidents involving injury or damage should be immediately reported to a supervisor or manager. Furthermore, the CompTIA Exam should be well-documented. This is important, not only for establishing safety history and trends, but may be an important piece of

documentation from a legal standpoint (i.e. workman's compensation).