Hand Sanitizer Storage and Fire Safety

Schools are beginning to reopen and you may be looking into keeping sufficient quantities of hand sanitizer for staff and students to keep their hands clean. To minimize the possibility of COVID transmission, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizer (ABHS) should be readily available to those in your facilities. At the same time, you need to be mindful of fire safety in storing and dispensing these substances.

ABHS is considered a flammable liquid that evaporates at room temperatures and has a flashpoint of only 63 degrees Fahrenheit when formed into an ignitable vapor. The National Fire Protection Association Life Safety Code 101 provides national standards for safe storage of ABHS and the placement and operation of dispensers.

"The Life Safety Code guides safe hand sanitizer storage and dispensing."

We cannot lay out the full details in this short article, but the Life Safety Code spells out critical requirements, including:

• Limitations on the volume of ABHS that may be kept in a building
• How and where ABHS may be stored and facility features such as flammable liquid storage cabinets, sprinkler systems and spillage containment
• Reduction of sources of ignition in the vicinity of ABHS
• Locating dispensers and how much a single dispenser may contain
• Minimum width of corridors where dispensers are placed
• Dispensers cannot release the product without activation and must minimize accidental or malicious activation

It may be necessary to work with your local fire officials to ensure you are in compliance for ABHS fire safety. Most schools will be able to comply with simple steps in the quantities they will commonly need. But storage of more than 5 gallons of ABHS will require adherence to more complex standards.

On Thursday, May 13, Keenan will be conducting a webinar entitled Chemical Safety Amid COVID-19. This informative presentation will cover current safety issues about the storage, handling and management of hazardous chemicals that have become more common in facilities since the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic, including ABHS. There is no cost to attend the webinar and you may register by clicking the link above. If you are unable to attend at that time, a recording will be available on the web site shortly following the live webinar.