hello thar, i'm a newb :)

crzygymrat · Probably a bot. Joined: 16 May 2008 Posts: 1

Hi, my name is Emilee. I joined because I have some questions....
I work in a gym that has a spa and pool. Part of my job includes doing manual chemical pool checks. I work with liquid chlorine and Muriatic Acid...there are no safety regulations when doing these checks...the management basically tells us to use caution and hold a towel over our nose and mouth if the fumes bother us.

Before I close the gym, I have to check the acid and chlorine barrels and make sure they are more than 1/4 full and feeding into the pool and spa...if they aren't then I need to open a new barrel and switch the tubes from the old one to the new one. I was fine with this until one evening some of the acid dripped onto the concrete floor...the concrete immediately turned yellow and began to sizzle. A TOWEL OVER MY FACE IS NOT GOING TO DO ANY GOOD!!!

I've asked my co-workers and the management about state regulations or requirements for working with these chemicals, but I've yet to get a straight answer. I'm 18 years old and I know I'm naive, but this just seems like common sense!!

I'm just wondering if anyone knows the specifics about Muriatic Acid, I've inhaled fumes on several occasions and gone home feeling awful. My old supervisor had to stop doing pool checks altogether because she was pregnant! I'm trying to be well informed before I go to those above my managers with my concerns.