Rank: Forum user 
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Hello,
I have a task which has to be performed inside a freezer which is kept at around -18 degC and is likely to take around a day to complete.
Can anyone direct me to a good source of information on the effects of working in such a low temperature?
Since the work will also be physically demanding I have some concerns over the hazards involved in people breaking a sweat. I know that I will need to supply insulated clothing and provide regular breaks out of the freezer.
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Rank: Forum user
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Rank: Super forum user
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Rob - are you sure its only -18? that is the temperature that most domestic freezers operate at. If it is an industrial walk in, it is likely to be considerably colder than that, more likely to be -25 to -30.
Can the work not be done with the cold room turned off? I guess that will depend on the contents.
There are numerous links on the web relating to cold store working and most of the controls are around the protective clothing and frequency of access to breaks and hot drinks. You will need to consider the access/egress arrangements as I imagine that the room will still be operating whilst the work is going on. You do not want "lock in"
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Rank: Super forum user
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As an aside about cold stores some forum users might be interested in the following: Many years ago while inspecting a food factory in Northern Scotland for HSE the manager told me that he went into the factory's large cold store room in his suit to check something before locking up for the evening. When he tried to leave the room he found that he was trapped inside because the inner push-handle of the store door was broken/inoperative. Shouting for help was pointless because the insulation of the facility provided great sound insulation as well as heat insulation, and most or all employees had finished work and left the premises. Therefore, he promptly began to move boxes of produce in order to keep generating body heat in a bid to stay alive. Fortunately his family wondered why he hadn't arrived home as expected and therefore contacted one or more others from the firm who began a search for him. After that the manager said he was very particular about frequent checks of the store door mechanisms to ensure that no further trappings would occur.
Also, I think I later learnt that it is good practice for such stores to incorporate one or more push panels in their walls for use as means of escape in the event of door opening mechanisms failing for some reason.
Another thought: How about hiring eskimos/Innuits to do the work? No, forget the idea as it might be difficult to find and engage any at short notice. Also, if it were possible to find any, they might complain that the working conditions inside the store were too warm for them! :-)
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Rank: Super forum user
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Just to add to my response above, when I subsequently visited other premises with cold stores I tended to mention the experience of the manager who got locked in. In addition, I would suggest to whoever was showing me round that I shut them in their cold store so that they could test and prove that its door opening mechanism would operate from the inside. Some agreed to this and promptly demonstrated that their confidence in their door mechanisms was correct. However, in one case the manager didn't emerge promptly as expected so I had to open the door from the outside to release him. Not surprisingly he then suggested that in future it would be a good idea for anyone going into the cold store to try out the inside opening mechanism before closing the door behind them!
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