What personal protective equipment is essential to use when working with a chisel?

When working with a chisel, eye protection and gloves are essential pieces of personal protective equipment. Eye protection is crucial because chiseling can produce small flying debris or chips, which can easily injure the eyes. This risk is particularly elevated when applying force to the chisel, as sharp fragments can scatter in unpredictable directions. Wearing safety glasses or goggles helps to shield the eyes from these hazards.

Gloves provide protection for the hands, which are at risk of cuts or abrasions while handling tools and materials. They offer an additional layer of safety, especially when maneuvering or applying pressure to the tool, reducing the likelihood of injury from sharp edges or slips.

While other protective equipment like dust masks and hearing protection may be beneficial in certain situations, they are not as critical as eye protection and gloves when using a chisel. Dust masks are helpful if there’s significant dust generation, but it’s not an inherent risk associated with chiseling. Hearing protection is typically more relevant for tools that generate high noise levels, and steel-toed boots are important for foot protection but do not address the specific hazards associated directly with using a chisel. Therefore, the combination of eye protection and gloves is the best choice for safety in this scenario.