Portable Circular Saw Safety Tips

Portable circular saws (PCS) are used in homes, garages, workshops and factories to perform a wide variety of tasks. Their high-powered blade can cut through wood like a hot knife going through butter. However, it's important for operators to follow some basic safety precautions to help reduce the chance of injury. When used incorrectly, PCS's leave the operator vulnerable to severe cuts and lacerations. Even with a blade guard intact (all PCS's should feature them), there's still the possibility of injury when the device is used incorrectly.

Wear Eye Protection

I can't stress enough the importance of wearing eye protection when using a PCS. According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 2,000 workers each day suffer from an eye injury that required medical treatment. Of those 2,000 injured workers, nearly 660 of them visit the emergency room for their injury.

Wearing a pair of industrial-grade goggles could protect you from permanent damage to your eyes. It's not uncommon for small shards of wood, metal or other debris to shoot out from underneath the PCS. The sheer velocity of this debris may cause it to pierce into the operator's eye, causing serious damage.

Control The Cut

It's important to maintain full control of both the PCS and the material you are cutting. Certain thin and flimsy materials can move around a great deal once the PCS begins to cut through it. Allowing the material to move is a serious hazard to your safety. To keep the material in place, use plastic clamps along the edges for additional support.

Note: keep both hands on the PCS at all times.

Kickback

There's a real possibility of kickback when operating a PCS. This occurs when the blade is stuck in the material, at which point the tension builds up and eventually thrusts it back out. Unfortunately, there's no way to completely avoid kickback, but you can reduce the chance of it happening by maintaining a sharp blade. If the blade begins to grow dull, either sharpen it or replace it with a new blade.

Electrical

Of course, there's also a possibility of shock when using an electrical PCS. Perform a visual inspection of the cords to ensure it isn't cut, tangled or otherwise damaged.

Also, check the prongs for signs of damage. If one or more of the prongs are bent, avoid using the PCS until it's been serviced a professional electrician. Most PCS's use a grounded three-prong outlet, and if just a single one of the prongs are damaged, it may leave the operator vulnerable to shock.