Farm Facilities

• Do you conduct regular safety checks of your farm, fields, animal facilities, grain and storage areas, workshops, equipment and equipment storage areas, and fuel and chemical storage areas? Take not of all situations that could lead to an accident or injury. Repair, post caution or instruction signs, or use personal protective equipment where these measures are called for.
• How is the general housekeeping? Have all tripping and falling material hazards been removed from work areas? Are tools and other equipment put away after use? Is there an accumulation of rubbish or debris that could feed a fire or block an exit?
• Do you regularly check all electrical equipment on the property for loose connections or frayed, exposed wiring?
• Make sure all electrical circuits are equipped with breakers or fuses of the proper size.
• Are walking surfaces, stairs, ladders and handrails in good condition and free of mud, ice and other materials that could cause a slip?
• Are buildings well-lit and are light bulbs protected with wire enclosures to prevent breakage in all areas where combustible materials are stored?
• Are buildings with low ceilings and rafters marked with warning signs and reflective strips?
• Are agricultural chemicals stored separate from seed, feed or other supplies where contaminated material could be a hazard?
• All chemicals and medicines should be stored in their original containers with legible labels in a locked room or cabinet out of the reach of children, animals or visitors.
• Have warning signs been placed at the entrances of all dangerous areas to warn of the hazards involved e.g. "Inflammable material", "Poisonous material", "No Smoking beyond this point."?
• Is the chemical storage area dry, well-lit and well-ventilated?
• Have hazardous places such as silos, cesspools, grain bins and manure storage areas been protected to keep children, livestock and visitors out?
• Have stones and other objects been removed from fields? These could cause damage to machinery or hurled out of a spreader or combine, causing injury.
• Have ditches, rocks and stumps been clearly marked or fenced to prevent tractor upset?
• At points of access to public roads are sight lines clear so that you can see and be seen by approaching traffic?
• Do you have a fenced area where children can play, away from farm equipment?
• Do you keep a first aid box in your tractor and in areas where accidents are most likely to occur?
• Have emergency numbers been posted at all telephones?
• Have children been taught how to call emergency services for help?
• Are barn, storage and living areas equipped with fire extinguishers and smoke detectors?
• Check with your local fire department for advice on the proper size, type and location for fire protection equipment.

Farm Machinery

• Do you follow the service and maintenance schedule recommended by the manufacturer for each machine?
• Regular maintenance reduces downtime and accidents.
• Are all components and systems that affect the safety of farm machinery checked before and during use? Pay special attention to:
  • Steering
  • Brakes
  • Hydraulics
  • Fuel and Exhaust Systems
  • Warning lights
  • Tires
  • Controls
  • Shields and Guards
• Do you always make a visual check around the tractor and trailing equipment to make sure no child, animal or worker is under the rig or out of sight?
• Are steps kept free of mud, ice and other debris that could cause a slip?
• Do you always enforce a "No Riders" rule (except when training a new worker)?
• Do you wear a safety belt at all times when operating a tractor equipped with a roll-over protection structure (ROPS)?
• Are all the shields and guards in place and in good condition?
• Failure to replace shielding after it is removed for maintenance is a common source for amputation among farm workers.
• Do you always lower equipment, turn off the engine, disengage the PTO and wait until all power-driven parts have stopped before unclogging, adjusting or repairing equipment?
• To prevent tractor roll-overs, do you set the wheels as wide as practical and keep the front end loader bucket as low as possible when travelling?
• Is trailing equipment hitched to the drawbar or the three-point-hitch drawbar attachment and set at the recommended drawbar height?
• Never pull from any other point on the tractor, as this could cause a tractor upset.
• Towed equipment must not weigh more than the tractor.
• Are brake pedals locked together before taking the tractor on public roads?
• Are keys removed from motorized equipment to prevent children and others from starting them up?
• Is fuel shut off?

Farm Machinery is a Dangerous Toy

• Know where your children are at all times.
• Never allow passengers on any piece of farm machinery.
• Shields and guards on machinery should always be in place.
• Equipment that might fall such as front-end loaders should be left in the down position.
• Always remove keys from self-propelled machines.