A scba respirator is a type of personal protective equipment used by workers in environments where exposure to toxic gases, smoke, or low oxygen levels could be fatal. SCBAs are especially useful in industrial settings like petrochemical processing, oil drilling, and mining or during disaster response tasks like firefighting or search and rescue operations.

SCBAs are also useful for workers entering confined spaces that are considered IDLH (immediately dangerous to life or health). This type of use calls for the use of entry-and-escape SCBAs. These types of SCBAs provide the worker with a continuous supply of air, but they are often heavy and bulky, making movement in confined spaces difficult.

SCBA Respirators: What They Are and When to Use Them

These SCBAs may be positive or negative pressure, depending on the design. Most air-purifying SCBAs are negative, while supplied-air SCBAs and SCBAs for use in rescue situations are typically positive pressure systems. Both are equipped with a facepiece that fits snugly over the user’s head or mouth and provides a seal against inhalation of contaminants, such as toxic fumes. They are connected to an air source, such as an air cylinder, through a supply hose that provides breathable air to the wearer upon demand.

Employees must be fit tested for the proper use of a tight-fitting facepiece SCBA before initial use, whenever a different mask or air-purifying respirator is used, and at least once every year. Additionally, employees must be retested when they report or the employer, PLHCP, supervisor, or program administrator makes visual observations of any physical condition that would affect the fit of the SCBA facepiece (including facial scarring, dental changes, cosmetic surgery, and obvious changes in body weight). Employers must clean all facepieces and their components after each use, and store them to protect them from contamination, damage, extreme temperatures, moisture, and deformation of the elastomeric parts.