Any biomedical\facilities laboratory employees out there?!
I need to fulfill a College of America Pathologists (CAP) requirement for inspection and not sure how to do the two items mentioned below in the regulation. I would like instructions on how to check if an instrument is grounded and how to check for current leakage. I have a clamp meter with lead attachments I was told to use, just need some clear instructions and parameters. The exceptions below don't really apply to us as most of the equipment is not the two-pronged double insulated ones, plugged to a GFCI, and we have no 240v equipment. I did reach out to CAP for clarification and they had no instructions. We are a small lab and want to do this ourselves. Thanks for any advice.
CAP requirement GEN.75900 Electrical Grounding
There are records that all laboratory instruments and appliances are adequately grounded and checked for current leakage before initial use, after repair or modification, and when a problem is suspected.
NOTE: Exceptions to these requirements are as follows: 1. Devices protected by an approved system of double insulation or its equivalent. Such devices must be distinctively marked 2. Devices connected to wall receptacles or circuit breakers with ground-fault circuit interrupter (GCFI) protection built-in need not be checked for current leakage. GCFI interrupters must be utilized in areas where water may pose an added risk. 3. Equipment operating at 240 v must be checked for ground integrity only Verification of electrical safety is required whenever the electrical/electronic systems of a powered device has been removed or altered. Hospital laboratories may follow ground checks and current leakage checks as performed in patient locations.
In addition, the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that power cords of portable electrical equipment be visually inspected for external defects whenever relocated. Grounding configurations may not be bypassed by, for example, an adapter that interrupts the continuity of the grounding. If manufacturer's recommendations for grounding are available, they must be followed.
REFERENCES 1) Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Electrical. Use of equipment. US Government Printing Office, 1999(Jul 1): [29CFR1910.334]