6 Reasons Why Flammable Safety Cabinets Are Essential for Your Classroom

In many science classrooms at the high school, undergraduate and graduate levels, working with flammable chemicals is a fact of life. To prevent accidents involving flammable chemicals, it’s critical to follow safety regulations every single time they’re handled—and to store them correctly when they’re not in use. Our team at Air Sea Containers has over 25 years of experience as a leader in storing and shipping hazardous materials safely, and we recognize how important flammable storage cabinets are for creating safe spaces for learning and working. We offer a complete line of flammable storage cabinets that will help keep your flammables as safe and secure as possible. Why should you make the investment in these ultra-tough safety cabinets? Consider these six reasons:

1. Flammable safety cabinets are key to preventing accidents.

The best way to prevent accidents in a classroom laboratory is to keep chemicals organized, secure and safe in storage—and the best way to do that is by using flammable safety cabinets. From accidental spills to leaks and breakage, there’s no limit to the safety problems that can be caused by improperly stored chemicals, so get ahead of the game and keep them stored correctly.

2. Flammable safety cabinets help keep chemicals organized and in the correct place.

Organization is a key part of any safety strategy for storing flammable chemicals. Using a proper flammable safety cabinet:

• Helps keep incompatible chemicals from being stored together.
• Allows for the creation of a consistent storage system where everything has its proper place and all hazardous materials are labeled as such.
• Makes it more difficult to grab the wrong chemical by accident.

To keep your flammable chemicals organized, make sure to also invest in some UN hazmat labels. These durable peel-and-stick vinyl labels will help keep your employees informed of what’s inside the cabinets.

3. Flammable safety cabinets help prevent chemical leaks from damaging property or causing injury.

When chemicals leak while in storage, it can create big problems for everyone involved. Chemical leaks can damage facilities or cause severe accidents if they go unnoticed and unaddressed. Our flammable safety cabinets are designed to safely collect leaks in an included sump in the bottom of the cabinet that gathers drips for easy disposal. (Owners of these safety cabinets should make sure to check the sumps periodically to clean out anything that’s accumulated and verify the integrity of containers.)

SURE-GRIP® EX Wall Mount Flammable Safety Cabinet

4. In an emergency scenario, flammable safety cabinets can help prevent explosions.

One of the most critical safety reasons for storing flammable chemicals in safety cabinets is that many chemicals can cause explosions in scenarios (such as a fire) in which they’re exposed to high heat. Under these circumstances, a flammable safety cabinet can help contain the explosion and minimize its damage. Our cabinets accomplish this with a fusible link built into the latch system that melts upon reaching 165 degrees Fahrenheit, automatically shutting and sealing the door.

5. Flammable safety cabinets help prevent unauthorized access.

Whether it’s a curious child or someone trying to do harm, it’s critical that unauthorized individuals never have access to flammable chemicals. Air Sea Containers’ flammable storage cabinets all come with durable self-latching doors that help ensure you’ll never leave a door partially open by accident, and the U-Loc® handles come with a built-in cylinder and key locks. If you need extra security, the door handles are also built to accept additional padlock systems.

6. For many institutions, flammable safety cabinets are required by law.

Finally, if the many other safety benefits of flammable safety cabinets aren’t enough, know that these cabinets are required under many circumstances. Many different safety codes require the use of flammable safety cabinets, including OSHA regulations. Note that the OSHA code also limits the amount of flammable chemicals that can be stored in a single flammables cabinet, so make sure that you’ve got sufficient space in your cabinets for storage. Your educational institution and local government may also have additional codes governing the storage of flammable chemicals, so make sure to check with them as well.

SURE-GRIP EX® Corner Flammable Safety Cabinet

Flammable safety cabinets are a key addition to the best practices of storing flammables and combustibles in any classroom science lab, and Air Sea Containers offers the very best in flammable safety cabinets with durable construction and great features. If you’ve got questions about what cabinet models will suit your needs best or about the features of our cabinets, give us a call at (866) 596-9448 or contact us online!