Rejecting compressed-gas cylinders after external inspection

NOTICE: This is an OSHA Archive Document, and may no longer represent OSHA Policy. It is presented here as historical content, for research and review purposes only.

May 24, 1976
Mr. Arlen C. Bell
Fred S. James & Co.
of New York, Inc.
[Recipient address omitted]
Dear Mr. Bell:
This is in response to your letter requesting clarification of the requirements under the OSHA Standard 1910.166(c)(3)(i)(a) as opposed to the requirement of 1910.166(d)(1).
In reading 1910.166(d)(1), we note that in the third sentence it says, "Defect limits for the external examination are prescribed in paragraph (c)". Upon examination we discover that paragraph (c) consists of three parts (1)(2)(3) and in (3) it is subdivided into paragraphing identified with the Roman numerals i, ii, iii, etc. and these in turn are broken down into subparts a, b, c, etc. We further note that the paragraphing quoted in your letter should be identified as 1910.166(c)(3)(i)(a). However, this ignores all of the other subparagraphs of paragraph 3 dealing with the physical conditions of the cylinder. Such items as the remaining wall thickness in the area having isolated pitting or a cylinder shall be rejected when the line corrosion on the cylinder is 3 inches in length or over, or a cylinder shall be rejected when the remaining wall thickness in an area of general corrosion is less than one half of the minimal allowable wall thickness. These are the physical conditions revealed by the external examination and dealt with under Paragraph (d)(1) third sentence. Since the Standard does not differentiate between the older and newer types of cylinders, the physical condition evident by an examination of the external parts of the cylinder would be the controlling factor. Another factor is the 5% weight loss of a low pressure cylinder which would be a controlling factor for determining rejection or acceptance of a cylinder.
We have mailed under separate cover several OSHA brochures including a copy of the Federal Register containing the current OSHA Standards dealing with this subject. Please note under 1910.166 the specific requirement for cylinders. Please feel free to contact us if there are further questions about OSHA.
Sincerely,
Alfred Barden
Regional Administrator
Occupational Safety and Health