Do you need to arrange site toilet hire for your construction site? All building sites will require a portable site toilet, to ensure that everyone working has access to the appropriate facilities during the workday. It might not be the first thing you think of when arranging for your builders, tradespeople and construction equipment, but without construction portable toilets, your building project could be in trouble!
There are some safety measures and other factors to consider when choosing and using your portable site toilet hire. All construction site toilets need to be properly installed, cleaned, maintained, and removed at the end of the hire period. We take a look at the key areas to think about when looking at options for building site toilet hire.
Employer Obligations for Construction Site Portable Toilets
When you have to go, you have to go! But we all want somewhere nice and clean to use when we need to use a toilet.
Employers must provide adequate facilities for employees working on construction sites and others using their sites. As employees working in construction, everyone on site needs to have access to clean, hygienic and conveniently located toilets at all times. Portable toilets on construction sites need to be safely and hygienically cleaned, serviced and transported to prevent infection and disease.
Toilet facilities need to be provided to everyone using the site. This may include employees and contractors working on the building project, as well as other persons, and visitors to site. The National Construction Code of Australia sets out the ratio of toilets to the number of workers. There should be one toilet per twenty males, and one toilet per fifteen females. There can also be one urinal per twenty-five males.
Generally, separate toilets should be provided in workplaces where there are both male and female workers. However, one unisex toilet may be provided in workplaces with both male and female workers if the total number of people who normally work at the workplace is 10 or less and there are two or less workers of one gender.
Design of Construction Site Portable Toilets
The toilets that are provided for use on a construction site must meet some minimum requirements. The Safe Work Australia rules say that toilets should be:
- fitted with a hinged seat and lid
- provided with adequate lighting and ventilation
- clearly signposted
- fitted with a hinged door capable of locking from the inside on each cubicle
- designed to allow emergency access
- positioned to ensure privacy for users
- supplied with adequate toilet paper, hand washing facilities, and rubbish bins.
Installing Construction Site Portable Toilets
When installing portable toilets on construction sites, it’s important to remember that these types of toilets are not permanent fixtures and are not anchored to the ground in the way that a normal bathroom facility would be. Therefore, portable toilets should always be placed on flat and stable ground.
Additionally, when choosing a space for the portable toilet, it’s a good idea to think about placing it somewhere that won’t be in the way. Heavy traffic areas are not the best option, and out of the way spots (normally in a corner of the site) are ideal. Make sure that the site toilet is accessible by a clear path, and that everyone on site knows where it is located.
Cleaning and Servicing Construction Site Portable Toilets
Construction site toilets need to be kept clean so that they are comfortable for everyone to use. The person responsible for the site toilet should monitor it regularly to check if a clean or service is required.
On site servicing is available from the hire company, such as Ahoy Hire. This service includes pumping and rinsing the sewage storage tanks, adding treatment chemicals, refilling the holding tank with water, cleaning and disinfecting the internal space, checking the condition of the toilet and pump, and replenishing items like soap, hand sanitiser, and toilet paper.
Portable toilets that are not cleaned and pumped regularly can cause an issue. As well as being a hygiene hazard for everyone on site, they can emit unpleasant odours that can make them very uninviting to users. Choosing a portable toilet that offers good ventilation, such as those offered by Ahoy Hire, minimises this problem.
Moving and Transporting Construction Site Portable Toilets
Portable toilets need to be transported by professionals. Because the toilet bowls do not have a watertight seal, liquid can escape the bowls, causing mess and a potential health risk. Ahoy Hire provide support to move and transport portable site toilets where needed. Our friendly team can assist to move a toilet around a site if it has been placed in an inconvenient location.
At the end of the hire period, Ahoy Hire professionally pumps the portable toilets to ensure they are ready and safe for travel.
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