Forklifts are one of those things that seem to quietly exist in the background making the lives of warehouse workers and logistics professionals easier all around the world. While forklift operators are trained extensively on the safety and usage of their machines, carbon monoxide is rarely ever mentioned or even thought about. This is likely because most forklifts operate in large warehouses or industrial buildings with adequate volume and ventilation, such that emissions from forklifts would typically be an afterthought. While there are now many electric forklifts on the market, a substantial amount of them still run on either gasoline or propane.
The Dangers of Carbon Monoxide and Forklifts
Propane Burns Cleaner, But Not Clean
Since the emissions from a gasoline engine are much more apparent to our senses, the buildup of exhaust fumes in a given area tends to be much more obvious to people, prompting the need for adequate ventilation in the spaces they are used. Propane, however, burns significantly cleaner than gasoline, producing up to 60% less carbon monoxide than its gasoline counterpart. Put another way, 40% of the carbon monoxide produced from a gasoline engine is still emitted from the exhaust of a propane-burning engine.
But since propane burns so much cleaner, with far less obvious pollution and hydrocarbons, it’s very easy to overlook the fact that carbon monoxide is still being produced. Carbon monoxide doesn’t have a smell. Typically, if someone "smells" carbon monoxide, they’re actually smelling the other components of exhaust.
How Carbon Monoxide Affects the Body
Carbon monoxide is very devious in the way that it affects the body. Rather than causing pain or obvious issues, it attaches to the oxygen receptors of the cells in your body, slowly starving you of oxygen. This causes your judgment to become impaired, and at levels as low as 100 PPM will start to cause slight headaches. At 200 PPM, dizziness, nausea, and fatigue begin to set in. At levels of 400 PPM, exposure becomes life-threatening after four hours.
Why Stationary Detectors Aren't Enough
A detector sitting in a stationary location may not ever see these sustained levels for any given period of time due to ventilation currents in the room. As a forklift operator, the source of carbon monoxide is not stationary—it follows you everywhere you drive. The only way to truly measure your exposure as an operator is to have a device on your forklift or your body that continually measures the levels of CO in your immediate area.
Understanding Workplace Exposure Limits
Regulatory bodies like NIOSH have set the time-weighted average (TWA) exposure limit at 35 PPM for an 8-hour shift. That means if a worker has been exposed to an average reading of 35 PPM over an 8-hour period, it is considered a poisoning event, and the worker should seek medical attention.
Home CO monitors will not even alarm for such low levels, and by law will only begin to alarm if 70 PPM is detected for between 60 and 240 minutes. While those levels may be acceptable for acute (immediate), temporary exposures, they fail to consider workers who may be exposed to low levels of carbon monoxide every day over weeks, months, or even years.
Studies have shown that prolonged exposure to low levels of carbon monoxide can lead to complications and altered brain function, including difficulty concentrating, brain fog, memory loss, and mood swings. Long-term exposure has also been linked to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and neurological disorders. It can even affect the development of children and, as recent studies have shown, have measurable effects on babies in utero.
Protecting Workers Before Regulations Catch Up
Because of this, workers can spend a great deal of their time being exposed to low levels of carbon monoxide without realizing it. They may assume frequent headaches, nausea, or fatigue are simply caused by stress or other factors. The reality may be far more concerning—they could be slowly being poisoned by persistent low-level carbon monoxide that never reaches the alarm threshold of stationary detectors.
Regulations can take years to catch up with evolving research and our growing understanding of how carbon monoxide affects the human body. That's why many proactive organizations are taking additional steps to protect their workers by equipping forklift operators with personal CO monitors. Not only does this create a safer and healthier workplace, but it also provides peace of mind, knowing employees are protected from a toxic, odorless, and invisible hazard.
Stay safe and know your environment!