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Porta Potties for Construction Sites

Apr 06, 2020

What You Need to Know About Renting Portable Toilets for the Job Site

Excavation

If you oversee a construction crew, chances are that you understand the benefits of having porta potties readily available to your employees. In addition to boosting employee morale and the convenience that porta potties bring to your site, you may be legally obligated to do so. 


OSHA regulations require employers to provide all construction workers with immediate and sanitary availability to toilet facilities. You must provide an appropriate number of restrooms to prevent long lines and extended delays. The short version is that your employees must always have access to a clean, well-lit, well-ventilated, and secure toilet facility. You must also provide soap and water and/or antibacterial hand cleanser, as well as some form of sanitary way to dry hands. 


How Many Porta Potties Do You Need?


Per OSHA standards, employers with 20 or fewer employees must provide one toilet for their workers. If you have more than 20 employees, you must provide one toilet and one urinal per 40 workers. However, meeting the bare minimum of these requirements might result in long waits, meaning that you are still not meeting OSHA requirements. We recommend one porta potty per ten employees or so. Tally up your number of workers, then round that number up to ten. It’s always smart to get more toilets than you think you’ll need. 


Where to Place Your Porta Potties


Your first consideration when choosing where to place your porta potties should be the safety of your workers. Try to keep them about 15 feet away from curbs, walkways, driveways, or main roads. Choose a clean and level surface (that will stay level) and, if you’re doing road construction, use concrete barriers to keep your employees safe from oncoming traffic. Make sure that your porta potty is still able to be easily accessed by the sanitation trucks for cleaning and servicing. 


Who Keeps the Porta Potties Clean?


There are specific laws surrounding sanitation and whether certain workers can come into contact with human waste – which is considered a hazardous material. Rest assured: the actual cleaning of the porta potties will not fall to you or to any of your employees. That role falls to professional sanitation workers, who drive special trucks and operate specific equipment designed to remove and dispose of the waste in a safe and effective manner. 

Learn More


If you have any more questions about using porta potties at your construction site, feel free to contact Mountain Top Portable Toilets and Septic Service today!

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We are living in unprecedented times. The COVID-19 pandemic has swept across the globe, leaving change in its wake. Because the virus is so contagious, social distancing practices are still the most reliable way to prevent the spread. With no real end in sight yet, the rest of this year is going to look different than planned: collective events such as festivals and concerts are being cancelled or postponed, businesses are sending their employees to work from home, and others are temporarily shutting their doors. Here in New York State, essential services are still operating and adhering to CDC guidelines in order to keep employees and customers safe. COVID-19 Adds New Challenges to Old Practices While many of us are quarantined or working from home, essential workers such as construction workers, septic workers, technicians, and road maintenance crews are still hard at work. Job sites tend to use porta potties as a convenient way to adhere to legal restroom requirements; however, COVID-19 has added new challenges to old practices. While crews are implementing social distancing practices as necessary, it is not always possible to remain six feet away from coworkers. The CDC recommends washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after using the restroom and before touching your face; however, porta potties don't always have that option. These challenges require project managers and workers to find creative fixes. Adapting Porta Potty Use to COVID-19 If you still have concerns about using portable toilets in the age of COVID-19, continue to adhere to best practices when you use one in the future. While adequate hand washing stations are not always on hand, making hand sanitizer available for anyone who must use a porta potty is imperative to slowing the spread of the virus. The CDC advises that alcohol-based sanitizers containing at least 60% alcohol are the next best thing to soap and water. Practice appropriate social distancing when waiting to use a porta potty; stand at least six feet away while someone else is using the facilities and be sure you clean your hands thoroughly after concluding your use. As always, avoid touching your face unless your hands are clean. If you are hosting a necessary event or managing a job site that requires porta potties, consider implementing new rules regarding their use - or bringing in more units or even restroom trailers to make it easier for workers to continue to keep their distance from one another. Regular professional cleaning will keep units safe for use, though it's important to note that the virus spreads most quickly from human to human rather than from touching surfaces. Above All Else, Remain Calm  Above all, it's vital to remain calm during this time. As we do our parts to flatten the curve, the rate of infection slows and we can slowly get the virus under control. Adhering to social distancing practices at all times, even when using porta potties, will continue to slow the spread of the virus. At Mountain Top Portable Toilets and Septic Service, we adhere to all CDC guidelines as we continue to provide essential services to the greater Albany, NY area. Reach out to us today to learn more about how we are adapting our services to the times.
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