Reading cleaning product labels and safety data sheets

Almost every cleaning accident starts with a line of text that nobody read: a dilution instruction, a "wear gloves" warning, a symbol on the back of a bottle. The text is there for a reason, and in workplaces its format is set by law. This page explains how the label and the safety data sheet (SDS) divide the work, what the signal words and pictograms mean, how the 16 sections of an SDS are arranged, what a workplace has to provide, and how a household differs. It is educational only. The label on your product and, at work, your employer's hazard communication program and training have the final word. For the wider picture of products and methods, see how cleaning works.

Why there are two documents

OSHA's Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200) is built on two tools. The label is short and sits on the container. The safety data sheet is longer and travels with the chemical. OSHA's label brief puts it plainly: labels are limited by design in how much they can say, and SDSs, which must accompany hazardous chemicals, are the more complete resource (OSHA, Hazard Communication Standard: Labels and Pictograms). Treat the label as the quick check before use and the SDS as the reference for detail.

The product identifier must appear both on the label and in Section 1 of the SDS, so you can match one to the other.

What is on a hazardous chemical label

OSHA lists the elements that a label from the manufacturer or importer must carry: the name, address and telephone number of the responsible party, the product identifier, a signal word, hazard statements, precautionary statements and pictograms.

Signal words

There are only two: "Danger" and "Warning". "Danger" is used for the more severe hazards within a hazard class and "Warning" for the less severe ones. A label carries only one signal word, even when a chemical has several hazards, and if one hazard calls for "Danger" and another for "Warning", only "Danger" appears.

Hazard statements and precautionary statements

Hazard statements describe the nature of the hazard, for example "Causes severe skin burns and eye damage". They are standardised, so the same hazard produces the same wording whatever the product or maker. Precautionary statements are the recommended measures to limit harm from exposure or from improper storage or handling. OSHA says there are four types: prevention, response (including first aid), storage and disposal.

Pictograms

A pictogram is a black symbol on a white background inside a red square frame set on a point. OSHA says the GHS system uses nine pictograms and that OSHA enforces eight of them, the environment pictogram being optional. Several appear on common cleaning products: the exclamation mark for irritants, the corrosion symbol for skin burns and eye damage, the flame for flammables, the flame over a circle for oxidizers and the health hazard symbol for hazards such as carcinogenicity.

The 16 sections of a safety data sheet

OSHA confirms that the Hazard Communication Standard requires an SDS in a consistent, 16-section format. Sections 1 through 8 hold general information that is useful quickly, such as identification, hazards, composition, safe handling and emergency measures. Sections 9 through 11 and 16 hold technical and scientific detail. Sections 12 through 15 are required to keep the format consistent with the UN Globally Harmonized System, but OSHA does not enforce their content because other agencies handle those matters (OSHA, Hazard Communication Standard: Safety Data Sheets).

For someone who cleans, a few sections do most of the work. Section 2 repeats the signal word, hazard statements, pictograms and precautionary statements. Section 4 gives first-aid instructions by route of exposure: inhalation, skin contact, eye contact and ingestion. Section 7 includes storage advice and incompatibilities. Section 8 covers exposure limits, engineering controls such as ventilation, and personal protective equipment, including the type of glove material. Section 10 lists conditions to avoid and classes of incompatible materials, which is the first place to check before combining anything, as discussed in mixing cleaning chemicals safely. Section 16 gives the date the sheet was prepared or last revised, which tells you whether you are reading a current one.

What a workplace must provide

OSHA's standard places the duties on manufacturers, importers and employers. Under paragraph (g)(8), the employer must keep copies of the SDS for each hazardous chemical in the workplace and ensure they are readily accessible to employees in their work areas during each work shift. Electronic access is permitted as long as it creates no barriers to immediate access. OSHA's SDS brief adds that a binder or a computer can both do the job, with a back-up for emergencies such as a power outage (OSHA, 1910.1200 Hazard Communication; OSHA SDS brief).

Employers must also ensure each container of hazardous chemicals in the workplace is labeled, tagged or marked, either with the manufacturer's label information or with a product identifier plus words, pictures or symbols that give at least general hazard information, supported by other information immediately available to employees. The standard exempts portable containers filled from a labeled container for the immediate use of the person who filled them.

Training is part of the same standard. Employers must give employees effective information and training on the hazardous chemicals in their work area at the time of their initial assignment and whenever a new chemical hazard is introduced. It covers the hazards, the protective measures and how to read labels and SDSs.

How households differ

OSHA's standard is a workplace rule, so its duties apply to manufacturers, importers and employers rather than to a person cleaning their own home. At home the label is the main source of guidance, and it is worth reading properly. For disinfectants, EPA regulates and approves the label language and calls the Directions for Use section one of the most important parts. It covers where the product can be used, how to apply or dilute it, and how long it takes to work, and the EPA registration number on the label identifies the product (EPA, Selected EPA-Registered Disinfectants). This guide does not cover other consumer-product labelling rules, so for those the label itself remains the reference.

What dilution and PPE lines mean

A dilution line states how much product to mix with how much water. CDC's home guidance says that when directions call for dilution, room-temperature water is used unless the label says otherwise, and diluted solutions should be labeled. Treat the ratio as part of the instruction. A protective equipment line, such as gloves or goggles, names the protection to use for skin and eyes against splashes, and CDC says to wear what the label recommends. In a workplace, SDS Section 8 gives the same information in more detail, including glove material.

A ventilation line is also an instruction. CDC's example is a fan, or opened windows and doors, when using products indoors. A contact-time line is covered in disinfecting versus sanitizing versus cleaning, and routine hygiene steps at home appear in daily, weekly and deep-clean schedules for a home.

The short version

The label is the fast warning and the SDS is the full reference, linked by a product identifier. Learn the two signal words, the main pictograms and the section numbers that matter most, such as 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. At work, make sure the sheets are within reach and the training has happened. At home, the label's directions are the guide.