Spill Kits

All Australian states and territories have clear laws and standards related to safety and environmental obligations for businesses of all types. This means that you are required to have all the equipment you need to respond to spills safely and effectively. If you fail to clean up a spill, you can be charged with an offence, be fined, and possibly be given jail time.

The type of spill kit you require depends on the types of liquid you have at your worksite. If you deal with fluids like oils, fuels, solvents of hydraulic fluids, you will need an oil & fuel spill kit. If you deal with water-based or non-hazardous chemicals like coolants, herbicides, degreasers, paints or beverages, a general-purpose spill kit will do the trick. If you work with hazardous chemicals like acids, caustics or corrosive liquids, you will need a chemical spill kit. You can see our full range of spill kits here.

Our spill kits contain everything you need to respond to a spill safely and effectively, including sorbent pads, loose absorbents, booms, contaminated waste bags and PPE (personal protective equipment) like eye/face/respiratory protection, gloves, boots and more. The exact kit contents will depend on the type of spill kit you choose.

You should keep your spill kit in an easily accessible place, in the location where spills are most likely. You can keep your kit inside or outside - if you choose outside, you need to make sure that the kit is watertight and protected from UV radiation.

You should inspect your spill kit on a regular basis, to make sure that all required items are present, in working order, and within their expiry date. If you want to ensure that your spill kits are as safe, effective and up-to-date as possible, we can visit your workplace and restock your spill kits as required. You can find out more about this service on our scheduled equipment maintenance page.

Yes. In order to respond to a spill effectively, your staff need to be trained to use a spill kit. At Spill Station, we offer an accredited Spill Kit Training Course that covers the theoretical and practical skills your employees need to recognise and control small on-site emergencies. You can find out more here.

The size of the spill kit that you need will depend on the volume of your largest likely spill. So, the first step is to determine the largest amount of liquid that could be spilt from your hazardous liquid containers. If your liquids are stored in drums, the largest likely spill could be the entire contents of the drum, so you will need a spill kit that can clean up however many litres your container holds. However, it is not always practical or possible to be able to aboard the whole contents of a spill - which is why spill kits can be used along with non-absorbent dikes and drain covers, which can help to channel or contain liquids so that they can be removed with vacuums or pumps. Once the majority of the liquid has been removed, spill kits can then be used to clean up any remaining liquid. To determine the spill equipment that you need on your site, we recommend that you chat with a member of our team. 

No, hazardous chemicals like acids, alkalis, caustics or corrosive liquids should be cleaned up with a chemical spill kit. A general-purpose spill kit can be used to clean up water-based liquids or non-hazardous chemicals, such as coolants, herbicides/pesticides, degreasers, paints and beverages. If you need to clean up hydrocarbon spills such as oils, fuels, solvents and hydraulic fluids, and oil & fuel spill kit will be required. 

Yes, however, the type of (PPE personal protective equipment) in the kit will depend on the sort of liquids that your workplace handles. Different types of spill kits come with different PPE - some common PPE that you can expect to see include eye and face protection, gloves, respiratory protection and lab coats or overalls. 

Your staff need the training to ensure that they know how to respond to spills quickly, safely and efficiently. In general, the clean up of a spill will involve (but not necessarily be limited to) the following steps:

1. Evaluate what liquid has been spilt
2. Put on PPE to ensure your safety
3. Contain the spilt liquid
4. Stop the source
5. Begin the cleanup
6. Contact necessary authorities
7. Dispose of sodden materials (used absorbent material should be taken to a licensed waste depot for appropriate disposal)
8. Clean off towels and reusable materials
9. Restock materials
10. Review procedures and plans in place to prevent any future spills

The legal responsibility will depend on all sorts of circumstances relevant to the spill. In general, those that can be held legally responsible include the person in possession of the spilt substance, the owners of the constrained that the liquids spilt from, the owner of the land where the spill occurred, and/or the occupier of the land at the time of a spill incident. This will all depend on the specific situation - but in any case, it is essential that your work site stores liquids and cleans up spills in a compliant way that meets Australian rules and regulations. If you can show that you did your due diligence when storing liquids and cleaning up the spill, this is the best defence you will have against legal troubles. 

If you have any questions about spill kits, don’t hesitate to get in touch. At Spill Station, we have the best general-purpose, Hazchem, oil, lab/medical and chemical spill kits Australia has to offer - and we would love to help you keep your workplace safe and meet all compliance.