hazARDOUS offcie MATERIALS - PCBS

Hazardous office materials - PCBs

Polychlorinated biphenyls are mixtures of up to 209 individual chlorinated compounds (known as congeners). There are no known natural sources of PCBs. PCBs are either oily liquids or solids that are colourless to light yellow.

Some PCBs can exist as a vapour in air. PCBs have no smell or taste.

PCBs have been used as coolants and lubricants in transformers, capacitors, and other electrical equipment because they don't burn easily and are good insulators. The manufacture of PCBs was stopped in America in 1977 because of evidence they build up in the environment and can cause harmful health effects.

Products that may contain PCBs include: old fluorescent lighting fixtures, electrical devices containing PCB capacitors, old microscope and hydraulic oils.

Old light fittings can generally be checked against a register for date of manufacture to see if they contain PCB’s and if they do they must be handled and disposed of in the correct manner.

The advice given above on these 3 topics is in no way to be treated as a method of safely handling or identifying any of these products, every site must be specifically checked to ensure correct procedures are followed, further more Apex Executive Interiors have only identified 3 potential hazards, there are many more…

(edited version courtesy of www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts17.html)