Personal protective equipment (PPE)

Protective clothing is always useful to have on the farm. It comes in useful for a variety of jobs, eg if a farmer uses a chainsaw regularly he should have protective gear to wear as a first line of defence from hazards. A chainsaw helmet and earmuffs, chainsaw pants, chainsaw gloves and chainsaw boots are key. The material in this protective clothing is specially designed to reduce the chances of serious cuts from a chainsaw blade. The cost of a multipack kit on the Irish Forestry Products website is €276 including VAT (excluding shipping costs). This includes gloves, pants, boots and a safety helmet with a visor and earmuffs.

Remote power control by text

There is technology available in electrical adapters, which enables a person to turn on and shut off power remotely. This is particularly useful where a farmer wants to turn off an electric fence from the fields without having to travel back to the power source. For safety, this is an excellent resource and a great time saver. One product on the market is called Powertxt. Powertxt is a remote power control switch that is fully operated and controlled by text message commands (SMS) over the mobile network. By simply texting the device you can turn off the power of the electric fence and turn it back on again via text. By having a fencer tester to hand, you can double-check if the fence is back on again. The Powertxt costs £185 (€220) excluding VAT but price may vary depending on distribution channel. There are cheaper alternatives that use the internet on a smartphone but these depend on the availability of a good phone network. There are also new electric fencers on the market with a remote on and off control. But where an existing fencer is already in place a remotely powered plug is an alternative.

Headlamp

Farmers lambing outdoors or who have poorly lit yards and sheds have found headlamps to be useful on the farm. Most products on the market simply have a light with a head band so the light can be secured to the farmer’s head. Cheetah, the electric fencing company, sells a rechargeable headlight. It costs €60 including shipping costs. There’s a 3W LED light. According to Cheetah, this light gives ultra-high brightness using low power. This light is rechargeable and there is a car charger available too.

Sheep crook

A sheep crook is a great addition on a farm, especially around lambing time. It makes catching sheep much easier and safer in a pen. The one pictured is an aluminium rod with functionality for catching an adult sheep’s leg and a young lamb’s neck. It costs €31.49 for delivery in Ireland from Agridirect.

Slurry gas detector

A number of slurry gas (hydrogen sulphide) detectors are available on the Irish market, typically over the internet. Macroom-based John Cronin Fire and Safety (www.firesafetycork.ie) sells the ToxiRAE 3 hydrogen sulphide detector (slurry gas detector – pictured) for €160 including VAT. It alerts the farmer using an audio alarm, vibration and flashing lights.

Listen to our podcast from this week's farm safety walk on the farm of Martin Fennell in Kilrush, Co Clare:

Listen to "Farm Safety walk in Co Clare" on Spreaker.