CHAP 2

• It is essential to maintain safe working conditions to prevent accidents and injury to any person or damage to any object in a work area.
• New staff and visitors must be informed of the appropriate safety procedures.
• Any transgression of the procedures must be reported.
• As a computer user or a technician, you should be aware of all possible dangers.
• A safe workspace is clean, organized, and well lit.
• Follow proper procedures for handling computer equipment.
• Failure to follow the prescribed safety procedures could result in fines, criminal convictions, damage to equipment, claims for damage from the owner of the property and data or injury.
• The proper disposal or recycling of hazardous computer components is a global issue.
• Make sure to follow regulations that govern how to dispose of specific items.
• When an organization violates these regulations, there can be legal consequences.
• Follow the basic safety guidelines to prevent cuts, burns, electrical shock, and damage to eyesight.
• As a best practice, make sure that a fire extinguisher and first aid kit are available in case of fire or injury.
• Remove your watch or any other jewelry and secure loose clothing before starting work.
• Turn off the power and unplug equipment before opening the case and performing service.
• Cover any sharp edges inside the computer case with tape.
• Never open a power supply or a monitor.
• Do not touch areas in printers that are hot or use high voltage.
• Know where the fire extinguisher is located and how to use it.
• Know where the first aid kit is located.
• Keep food and drinks out of your workspace.
• Keep your workspace clean and free of clutter.
• Lift heavy objects with your legs to avoid back injury.
• Static electricity is the buildup of an electric charge resting on a surface, which can be destructive to the electronics in a computer system.
• Electrostatic discharge (ESD), harsh climates, and poor-quality sources of electricity can cause damage to computer equipment.
• At least 3000 volts of static electricity must be built up before you can feel the ESD, but less than 30 volts of static electricity could damage a computer component.
• Static electricity can build up on a person walking across a carpeted floor.
• If the environment temperature is too high, equipment can overheat.
• If the humidity level is too low, the chance of ESD increases.
• If the humidity level is too high, equipment can suffer from moisture damage.
• A tool kit should contain all the tools necessary to complete hardware repairs.
• Mercury, commonly used in the manufacturing of batteries, is extremely toxic and harmful to humans.
• When disposing of batteries, monitors, and toner cartridges, comply with local environmental regulations.
• When handling motherboards, cards, or drives, don’t touch the chips on the device, hold expansion cards by the edges, and don’t touch any soldered components on a card, and don’t touch the edge connectors unless it’s absolutely necessary.
• Batteries from portable computer systems may contain lead, cadmium, lithium, alkaline manganese, and mercury, which do not decay and will remain in the environment for many years.
• In a classroom environment, after you have reassembled everything, have your instructor check your work before you put the cover back on and power up.
• The MSDS sheet contains chemical reactivity and incompatibilities information that includes spill, leak, and disposal procedures.
• To determine whether a material used in computer repairs or preventive maintenance is classified as hazardous, consult the manufacturer MSDS.
• Monitors and power supplies contain such very high voltages that you should not wear antistatic wrist straps when repairing them.
• In this part of the chapter, you learn how to take apart a desktop computer and put it back together, a skill needed in this and other chapters as you learn to add or replace computer parts inside the case and perhaps even build a system from scratch.
• The MSDS sheet also includes protective measures for the safe handling and storage of materials.