Top 10 Safety Rules Every Woodworker Should Know

Woodworking can be a safe and enjoyable hobby or vocation, IF you follow some very basic and simple rules. All of the rules are common-sense ideas, but failure to follow these rules will greatly increase the chance of injury when working with your tools. The wood shop is not the place to be in a hurry or have an "it won't happen to me" attitude. Commit these ten rules to habit, and your woodworking experiences will be safer and much more enjoyable.

1. Always Wear Safety Equipment

Safety Glasses: Safety Glasses are the most important piece of safety equipment. There are many styles of safety glasses, but all share the same features, namely impact resistant lenses and side screens to protect against dust and debris created by power tools.

Hearing Protection: When working with loud power tools and machinery such as routers, surface planers and joiners, it is wise to wear hearing protection. There are two common types: expandable ear plugs and ear muffs. Ear Muffs tend to provide slightly better protection, but can be very wieldy and cumbersome. Consistent use of hearing protection will help protect you from long-term hearing loss.

Respirators and Face Masks: Sanders, routers and other power tools can generate a lot of dust. When using these tools, it is a good idea to wear a dust mask, to keep these fine particles from entering your lungs. When spraying varnish or paint, a respirator is a better choice, to protect you from any harmful effects of using these chemicals.

Face Shield: When using a lathe, you'll likely generate a lot of flying chips. In addition to using your safety glasses, a clear full-face shield is a good idea. The shield is comfortable, can be flipped up when not needed, and will keep most of the flying chips away from your face.

Proper clothing: When working with power tools, you should always wear proper clothing. As such, you should never wear loose fitting clothing. Comfortable, long-sleeved shirts and long pants combined with good steel-toed work shoes will each provide a layer of protection. However, loose articles of clothing can easily become entangled in a power tool, which can be very dangerous. A shop apron is also adviseable at times, particularly when using a lathe.

2. Wear Appropriate Clothing

When in the workshop, it is important that the woodworker be dressed appropriately. Now, to put your mind at ease, we're not talking about making a fashion statement here. (Personally, I don't think flannel shirts qualify as fashion anyway, but that's just one man's opinion.) What we're talking about is wearing safe clothing.

What Constitutes "Safe" Clothing?: The theme to keep in mind when dressing to go to work in the shop is that your clothes should provide proper coverage, to protect your skin from flying wood chips and debris, and yet be tight-fitting enough so as to avoid getting caught in power tools. Many a gruesome injury can be attributed to a careless worker getting their shirt sleeve caught by a power tool or machine. Make it a habit to be certain that no part of your clothing is loose enough to get caught up in a power tool.

Dress for the Environment: While appropriate coverage is very important, as clothing can act as a buffer to keep flying wood chips off of the skin, the clothing must also be appropriate for the environment. For instance, if you're working outside in Texas or South Florida in mid-August, I wouldn't advise a full, long-sleeved flannel shirt. If you do, you may keep some sawdust off of your skin, but you're going to be stuck to that shirt from all of the perspiration.

Balance is the Key: The tricky part is to find the balance between keeping your skin covered and dressing for the appropriate environment. You may find that you're perfectly content in a comfortable, well-fitting t-shirt and blue jeans. While your arms are exposed, you'll be much cooler, and you may find the sawdust on your arms is no bother. The point is to work in the relatively tight-fitting attire that you're most comfortable in. If you're not comfortable, you'll have trouble enjoying woodworking.

Wood Turning Requires Special Attire: Wood Turning may be the exception to the "wear what's comfortable" axiom. Because so much wood debris becomes airborne from turning, you'll likely want to wear long sleeved shirts and long pants. Additionally, a woodworker's apron and full-face shield are strongly recommended, as you'll be able to deflect most of the debris by donning these two additional items.

3. Avoid Drugs and Alcohol

Intoxicating substances and woodworking are a dangerous mix. Stay out of the wood shop if you are even remotely under the influence of any intoxicants.

While it may seem harmless for the weekend woodworker to crack open a beer (or six) while working on a project, avoid the temptation until you're finished with the woodworking. You're going to be much less likely to encounter a problem if you're clean and sober when working with your power tools.

4. Disconnect Power Before Blade Changes

Whenever you need to change a blade or bit on a power tool, always disconnect the electricity to the power tool before even beginning the blade change. (Don't just check to see that the switch is off, as a switch could get bumped or malfunction.) Many a woodworker has lost fingers (or worse) by forgetting this simple but very important rule. I've seen woodworkers even go as far as to affix the wrenches to the power cables so there is NO chance they'll forget to disconnect the power.

5. Try Using One Extension Cord

Here's a tip I've used regularly in the past. For all 110-volt power tools in the shop, I use one heavy-duty extension cord. Not one per tool, but one TOTAL. This way, I'm forced to switch the cord from tool to tool before the tool can be used. In this manner, you are always remembering to plug and unplug the power when moving from one tool to another, and you'll be more cognizant of the need to disconnect the power when making bit or blade changes.

6. Use Sharp Blades & Bits

This one seems like a no-brainer, but a dull cutting tool is a dangerous tool. If a saw blade is not as sharp as it ideally should be, the tool and the woodworker will have to work harder to complete the desired task. In such cases, the tool will be more likely to kick-back or bind. Besides, a sharper cutting tool will produce a cleaner cut, so there are more than just safety advantages here. Keep the blade sharp and clean of pitch, and you'll be safer and have better results.

7. Always Check for Nails, Screws and Other Metal

Another no-brainer tip which doesn't bear mentioning, so that's why I'm going to mention it: Always check the stock you're preparing to cut for any metal (nails, screws, staples, etc.) before beginning a cut. Nails and rapidly spinning saw blades are not a good mix. Not only can this damage the cutting head and the stock, but at the very minimum, can cause the stock to kick back, which is a common cause of injury. Inspect the stock (or better yet, use a metal detector) before cutting.

8. Always Work Against the Cutter

Woodworking Power Tools are designed so that the direction that the wood moves through the tool (or the direction that the tool moves across the wood) is in the opposite direction of the movement of the cutting head. In other words, a router bit or saw blade should cut against the motion and not with it. The cutter should cut into the stock, not with the stock.

9. Never Reach Over a Blade to Remove Cut-Offs

When working on a Table Saw, Miter Saw, etc., never put your hands anywhere near the moving blade, especially when attempting to remove waste or cut-offs. Wait until the blade has stopped moving and THEN reach for the cut-off. Better yet, once the saw blade has stopped, use a piece of scrap or a push stick to move the waste away from the blade. Remember that switches can be inadvertently bumped or malfunction, so just because the blade has stopped, don't relax and put your hands too close.

10. Avoid Distractions

Distractions are a part of everyday life, and working in the wood shop is no different. When you are summoned or distracted while in the middle of performing an action with a power tool, remember to always finish the cut to a safe conclusion before dealing with the distraction. Taking your attention away from the woodworking tool is a recipe for disaster.