Best safety shoes for electrician ???

[Zimmer]

Are there safety shoes (steel toecap) specially for electricians ?
i.e in the U.S there is an EH (electrical hazard) boot.
I ask because a while back I was wearing "standard" safety boots, in a perfectly dry panel room when my finger accidentally touched a live terminal, and I was surprised to get a quite painful shock.
Any recommendations:

Shoes preferable to boots.
Steel toecap essential

 

[Sparky Ninja]

You can get non steel safety footwear for electricians.

 

[Zimmer]

You can get non steel safety footwear for electricians.

Cheers
Where ?

and if the sole was of a suitable insulating material, then the steel cap, should not be an issue.

 

[grantr37]

Hello, WH Salisbury in the USA make steel toe and non steel toe safety boots rated up to 11kv for short duration accidental contact, they come in yellow, white, Orange or Black (in USA yellow is for power board linesmen, white is for power station workers, Orange for Railway workers and Black is just standard) they also make safety wellies for linesmen......they are about 90 pounds for a set and you will have to work out the right US size for a match to your UK shoe size, they deliver by UPS which will cost about another 50 pounds, but only takes 3 days so is worth it...

 

[john25]

You can get non steel safety footwear for electricians.

yep I got a pair of plastic toe cap Shoes that I got for an Airport job as (you can't wear steel toe caps due to the Metal Detectors)

 

[DurhamSparky]

i had a pair of NON conducting boots in navy!! then when funding dried up i had to be given the usual ****ty ones!!

 

[Zimmer]

Thanks for the replies, I should have explained myself a little better. What I really had in mind is a pair of normal safety shoes suitable for wearing everyday, which has the added benefit of shock protection. I am only talking about standard 220/240 V.
I see the Americans seem to have an "electrical hazard" rating, and was wondering if there is an Eu equivalent.
eg Electrical Hazard Boots Buy Now

 

[mogga]

so my addidabok kikabout trainers wouldnt work ??

Iv never been on a 11kv site but I dare say Powerstations ect have saftey regs of their own as it seems every site has

 

[mogga]

on a side note having checked out that link Dont the Americans have great Brand names??
McRea Industrial
john Deer ( for extractor fan fitters)
Old west Jama( Im going to get a pair of these so I can say that name when people ask "What are those boots?")

 

[john25]

Sheesh $429 for a pair of these safety boots Mens Wesco 16 Inch Voltfoe EH Composite Toe Lineman Boots # EHBR57161270: Work Boots - Steel Toe / Metatarsal / Safety Toe

 

[mogga]

holy crapola bat man they also make you looke like a right numpty but reading the spek they do have a Leather gusset lol

 

[millwall ken]

Are there safety shoes (steel toecap) specially for electricians ?
i.e in the U.S there is an EH (electrical hazard) boot.
I ask because a while back I was wearing "standard" safety boots, in a perfectly dry panel room when my finger accidentally touched a live terminal, and I was surprised to get a quite painful shock.
Any recommendations:

Shoes preferable to boots.
Steel toecap essential

Oh Zimmer, what are you saying? Are you saying that my new Prada flip-flops don't comply with H&S rules then?

 

[john25]

lol now turning up to Work in a pair of these will certainly make yer look like a right Numpty

Dan Post Mens Cowboy Boots 11 Inch Broad Square Toe # DP2805: Work Boots - Steel Toe / Metatarsal / Safety Toe

 

[Zimmer]

Sheesh $429 for a pair of these safety boots Mens Wesco 16 Inch Voltfoe EH Composite Toe Lineman Boots # EHBR57161270: Work Boots - Steel Toe / Metatarsal / Safety Toe

you would need to be charging for the time "lacing them up"

 

[grantr37]

these are not proper electrical boots, they are ones made for the people who climb up the electricity poles over there using spikes and harnesses, over here we stopped doing that back in the 80's as they made it illegal fro health and safety, these are badly labelled I think because I imagine any electrical contact and all that would be left would be those boots and a bit of smoke, maybe the change out of your pocket or something.........the proper safety shoes /boots look like they are made from welly boots and are completely sealed with only a small bit with laces on....
You only see people going up to do repairs on electricity poles here using a cherry picker, even in the middle of nowhere they use a land rover with the back adapted into a pick up type flatbet and a cherry picker welded onto it....and that has special safety isolation from Earth....


Your Arc Flash Protection Source there is a link on the page to download the catalogue, you will see the boots etc on there

 

[Zimmer]

these are not proper electrical boots,

Thanks but I am not looking for "proper" electrical boots. I have worked in the past in power stations at up to 220 kv and have all the gear including boots, tools etc.
I am now working in a commercial environment where max to earth voltage is 240V and was wondering if there was a "make" of standard safety shoe which would have a "better" type of insulated sole than others.
i.e I don't intend touching exposed conductors, but if there was a pair of safety shoes which would be better in case of an accidental brush with a conductor, then it would be better to have them, than say a pair of "hob nailed" boots.

 

[Amp David]

Anything thats made from a composite instead of steel i would of thought.

You can get composite toe safety trainers from most PPE retailers

 

[Guest55]

Safe isolation proceedures will serve you better than any brand of shoe.
;-)

 

[Inteificio]

Any shoes will work for low voltage.

Do a 1000v insulation test on your shoes. Mine are £15 steel capped, steel sole and leather; possibly the worst combination. Still passed an insulation test.

 

[bawall]

I have a pair of Trojan boots from ARCO which arecomposite material rather than steel and are non conductive got them for when Iwas working in LU & edf sub stations, had them over a year and still ingreat condition and really comfortable

 

[MarkieSparkie]

The most important parameter, when choosing electrician’s safety footwear, is the dielectric strength of the sole. Ensure the footwear is rated to one or more of the following standards:- BS EN50321:2000, BS EN 20345:2004 Amt:2007, ASTM F1117-93 or CZA Z195-02 these may variously certify sufficient dielectric strength for working up to 1000Vac or 1500Vdc, see details below.

1) Testing to BS EN 50321:2000 - This European Standard covers electrically insulating footwear for the protection of personnel working on or near electrical installations. Boots are tested to ensure that they can withstand 10,000V without puncturing and also to check that current flow does not exceed 5mA when a 5000V potential is applied. They are certified for use up to 1000V AC and 1500V DC (class 0). The red double triangle symbol identifies the boots. The class (0), batch number and date of manufacture are also stated.

2) Testing to BS EN 20345:2004 Amt:2007 – This European Standard covers various parameters of safety footwear, part of which includes the dielectric strength of the sole for the protection of personnel working on or near electrical installations. The sole must have a dielectric strength >1000MΩ at 18kV for 1minute in dry conditions and the leakage current must not exceed 0.25mA there after.

3) Testing to ASTM F1117-93 – This American Standard covers electrically insulating footwear for the protection of personnel working on or near electrical installations. The sole leakage current must not exceed 0.8mA at 15kV 60Hz and 2.47mA at 30kV 60Hz.

4) Testing to CZA Z195-02 – This Canadian Standard covers various parameters of safety footwear, part of which includes the dielectric strength of the sole for the protection of personnel working on or near electrical installations. The sole must have a dielectric strength that, at the point of manufacturing, has electrical insulating properties intended to withstand 18kV, 60Hz with zero leakage current to ground for 1minute in dry conditions and not exceeding 1mA there after. A white rectangle with orange Greek letter omega indicates soles that provide this level of resistance to electric shock.

Note:- It is most important where compliance to muti-part Standards [ 2) and 4) ] are quoted in the footwear specification that you check that this specifically applies to the sole dielectric strength, as this may not be guaranteed.

Cofra New Electrical Safety Boots with Composite Toe Caps & APT Midsole
Buy Workmaster Dielectric® Yellow Safety Knee Boot from Arco Limited

 

[Inteificio]

We are not talking about contact with 10,000V+

This is like getting eye protection rated bulletproof for using an grinder.

Who cares what my shoes do at 10,000v if you are only dealing with 400?

 

[Dave 85]

I use the NikeID website for my work footwear. For £120 you can custom design yer own trainers, choose all the colours, logos etc. Very comfy and you'll look the business on site.

 

[mickys86]

I use the NikeID website for my work footwear. For £120 you can custom design yer own trainers, choose all the colours, logos etc. Very comfy and you'll look the business on site.

I'm guessing they aren't steel toe cap. It's difficult to know if your joking or not.....

 

[mickys86]

Are there safety shoes (steel toecap) specially for electricians ?
i.e in the U.S there is an EH (electrical hazard) boot.
I ask because a while back I was wearing "standard" safety boots, in a perfectly dry panel room when my finger accidentally touched a live terminal, and I was surprised to get a quite painful shock.
Any recommendations:

Shoes preferable to boots.
Steel toecap essential

And to the person saying about who cares about 11kv......

How do you know the op only works in 400v? And I've not read the whole thread so excuse me if I'm wrong

 

[Dave 85]

I'm guessing they aren't steel toe cap. It's difficult to know if your joking or not.....

No they are not and no I'm not joking, although I tend to wear them on the town for six months or so before they are demoted to work trainers. Never understood why people wear steel boots in houses, bloody uncomfortable and housewives tend not to appreciate them on the carpet.

 

[Inteificio]

And to the person saying about who cares about 11kv......

How do you know the op only works in 400v? And I've not read the whole thread so excuse me if I'm wrong

"

I am only talking about standard 220/240 V."



​

 

[trev]

Never understood why people wear steel boots in houses, bloody uncomfortable and housewives tend not to appreciate them on the carpet.

I wear mine when at work at all times because I've had the pleasure of an idiot apprentice dropping a full roll of 4mm T&E on my foot while I was wearing trainers

 

[Knobhead]

I don’t care what boots you’re wearing they aint going to save you from11KV!

The Spice Girls got near to it though.

View attachment 12894

Being serious, I’ve always had to wear foundry boots steel toe cap and a steel plate in the sole. Not comfy but they’ve saved my feet several time.

 

[Zimmer]

Any shoes will work for low voltage.

No they won't see my first post.

 

[Inteificio]

No they won't see my first post.

I doubt the conductive path was through your shoes, I doubt it very much.

Were your feet wet, your shoes soaked and standing on an earthed panel?

The body has enough capacitance to take a good jolt without the current going anywhere but in and out of you.


What makes you think the shoes were the cause?

 

[Zimmer]

I doubt the conductive path was through your shoes, I doubt it very much.

Were your feet wet, your shoes soaked and standing on an earthed panel?

The body has enough capacitance to take a good jolt without the current going anywhere but in and out of you.


What makes you think the shoes were the cause?

You might doubt it, but I was there.
The boots were dry, and the concrete floor was dry and the only conductive path was through my boots.(steel toecap and midsole as provided at work)
I had my other hand in my pocket when my finger touched a 230V to earth busbar and was very surprised myself.
It was much more than a tingle, hence my OP. I double checked after the event, my exact position, and there was no way, I could have made contact with earth, other than through the boots.