Working in the garden or in the home workshop makes the house and its surroundings more beautiful. A self-made bookcase, an aesthetically mowed lawn, trimmed trees, beautiful flower beds – these works, although pleasant, carry the risk of accidents and minor injuries.

We often do not realize that it is as a result of carelessness and lack of adequate protection that we expose ourselves to injuries and injuries. What’s more, it is usually enough to stock up on basic workwear to ensure protection during home work.

Protective clothing and workwear – te two concepts, although often used interchangeably, nevertheless describe two different types of clothing.

Protective clothing is personal protective equipment that protects against any hazards that may adversely affect health or life. We are talking about mechanical, thermal, chemical or atmospheric hazards. This group includes, m.in: safety glasses, gloves, visors or reinforced work shoes.

For plant care, digging flower beds or other work in the garden, workwear will work great. First of all, it is to protect clothes and skin against dirt, which is often difficult to remove, but not only. It is an important protection against minor injuries, such as cuts and scratches. It is especially worth protecting the hands, forearms, face and lower legs.

In turn, workwear is designed to protect private clothing from dirt or destruction. The most popular in this category are garden overalls or wellies.

For home work, it is worth equipping yourself with both types of clothing. Depending on the type of work performed (at home, in the garage, in the garden), both work clothes that protect against dirt and those that protect the body from injuries will be useful.

The gardener’s outfit should be loose and not restrict movements during work. It is worth choosing workwear from durable materials, resistant to moisture and dirt, while easy to keep clean.

• Work pants or dungarees – tailored to the figure and height, with handy pockets in various sizes (on the sides and on the chest). It is worth equipping yourself with at least two pairs: one „lighter” for work in the warm summer months, the other with thicker insulated material for spring and autumn cooler days.
• Work gloves – essential for almost every work in the garden. They not only protect hands from dirt, but also protect against corns, abrasions, minor injuries and even wounds associated with contact with plants (e.g. burns with nettles) or insects (ants, mosquitoes). Rubberized protective gloves (or PVC-coated gloves) are more durable and helpful in work that exposes hands to serious damage or irritation.
• Footwear for working in the garden or wellies – should be waterproof, but at the same time airy and resistant to mechanical damage. They protect against dirt, abrasions and chafing. It is worth choosing those with a retreaded sole that protect against slips and falls. As in the case of gardeners, it is worth having several pairs adapted to weather conditions.

In any situation, it is worth taking care of your comfort and safety, even during minor work in the house and garden. It is worth choosing workwear that provides comfort during the activities performed. Practice shows that it is worth having several sets of clothes and shoes tailored to the weather outside.

With many jobs, especially at home and in the garage, protection against dirt alone is not enough. In addition to clothes that protect the skin, it is also worth taking care of protecting the eyes, mouth and hearing.

Safety glasses are necessary for all activities during which chipping may appear that threatens the eyes. It is worth choosing models made of thick plastic, relatively wide, with side covers, tightly protecting against small objects and dust.

Safety glasses can additionally act as a barrier to harmful UV radiation, and in the sunscreen version they also allow you to work in full sun. For heavier work, an alternative can be visors that protect the entire face, while allowing you to breathe freely.

Safety glasses will be useful m.in during: mowing the lawn, using plant protection products,

renovation work in the apartment, painting, planing boards, polishing parquet, cutting wood, metal or tiles.

Work gloves area basic piece of equipment for every gardener and home DIY. Grease, soil or paint are difficult to wash off the skin, so when any type of work in the house and garden, where these dirt appear, it is worth wearing work gloves. What’s more, the gloves protect hands from minor injuries and from contact with harmful substances. It is worth choosing flexible gloves in the right size, which allow for comfortable and stable gripping and maintenance of equipment and tools.

The simplest protective gloves are material gloves, useful in small garden works. They are often covered with rubber from the inside, which is to strengthen them and hinder the absorption of water and soil. We can also choose from leather gloves, rubber gloves and those made of synthetic materials, additionally coated with PVC. These are designed for heavier work, where protection against sharp edges and irritation caused by chemicals is particularly important.

In addition to the usual gloves, in stores we can also find specialized ones, e.g. electrical insulation (they prevent electrostatic charges from jumping) or covered with a non-slip layer for work at heights.

Hearing protection is especially important when mowing and other work with noisy equipment. Also, devices used during cutting and processing of wood, tiles or metal usually emit loud sounds. Exposure to this type of close source of noise for too long can cause temporary hearing loss. To prevent this from happening, it is worth equipping yourself with protective earmuffs or earplugs.

Protective helmet, rarelyused during home work, but it is worth buying it if you plan construction and construction works at home, cutting trees or work at heights (e.g. painting the façade). A protective helmet will be useful wherever there is a risk of head damage or exposure to protruding or falling objects.

Practice shows that protective helmets are useful during physical work requiring frequent bending down or continuous work in a slightly inclined position, e.g. in attics or in low cellars. It is also worth wearing a helmet when cutting boards, tiles or metal, when larger chips can cause serious damage to the head.

Painting, grinding, polishing – these are just examples of activities that expose the respiratory system to irritation. In the home and garden, masks that protect against dust or inhalation of harmful chemicals are primarily useful. Protective masks are particularly useful during construction work (e.g. grinding of smoothing, painting, planing wood) and in the garden (e.g. when using plant protection products in spraying).

Boots or waterproof shoes are mandatory during classes in the home garden. However, if you plan construction work or any other work that exposes you to the risk of injury or crushing the foot, it is worth getting special work shoes.

What protective shoes are useful when working in the house and garden:

• Boots – short and long, made of durable material: waterproof, resistant to mechanical damage, cracking and water ingress. For the winter, it is worth choosing an option with warming.
• Work sandals – for light work during hot days.
• Work shoes with reinforced sole – wear-resistant, ideal for home activities such as painting or mowing the lawn.
• Safety footwear with reinforced toes – protects the toes against mechanical damage, e.g. due to the fall of objects.

Even with rarely performed work, it is good to take care of your full safety. Therefore, in the list of home health and safety equipment it is worth having all of the above-mentioned elements of protective clothing.

Workwear and protective clothing are an important part of ensuring your safety when working at home and in the garden. It protects not only against dirt, but also against injuries and skin irritations. It additionally protects against damage to the eyes and hearing, allowing you to get full pleasure from taking care of your own home and garden.

Source: https://www.portalbhp.pl/dobre-praktyki-bhp/odziez-robocza-okulary-ochronne-i-rekawice-bhp-podczas-prac-ogrodowych-i-domowych-10193.html

Projekt otrzymał dofinansowanie z Norwegii poprzez Fundusze Norweskie 2014-2021, w ramach programu „Dialog społeczny – godna praca”.