Hang this poster near the laboratory power outlets, where equipment is plugged in.
What is on the poster
Tufts University EHS attributes two in three laboratory fires (67 percent) to electricity.
Do
- Plug lab equipment into a properly grounded, installed receptacle.
- Follow the maker's ratings for every device.
- Turn equipment off at its switch, not by pulling the plug.
- Take every frayed or damaged cord out of service, including any repaired with tape.
- Replace a three-wire plug with a missing or damaged grounding prong.
- Have a competent electrician approve any lab-made device; a student-built device is approved before it is switched on.
- Test every GFCI monthly with its own test button.
Never
- Overload equipment, or use multi-outlet adapters.
- Use an extension cord as permanent wiring.
- Plug one power strip into another.
- Drape a cord over a light fixture or heat-producing equipment.
- Keep flammable liquids or solids in an ordinary refrigerator: its compressor sparks.
- Leave flammables near motors or anything that can spark or short.
Static sparks ignite flammable liquids and gases. Keep flammable and combustible materials away from anything that can spark.
The poster draws a plug in a grounded wall receptacle, marked correct, beside one power strip plugged into another, crossed out.
Built to the Science Safety Teaching Standard
This poster carries the SSTS mark. Like every Science Safety course, it is built to the Science Safety Teaching Standard (SSTS): every rule on it is taken from the body that governs it, at its current edition, and the source is printed on the poster, so you can check it yourself.
Stay current
When you get this poster, it is saved to your Science Safety account. If we revise the poster, or the Fire Safety in the Science Lab module it comes from changes, we will email you, and the latest version will be waiting under Downloads in your account. Every revision carries its revision number and date at the bottom of the poster, so you can tell at a glance whether the copy on your wall is current.
Printing and hanging
- One-page PDF, US letter (8.5 by 11 inches).
- White background, so it prints clearly on any office or classroom printer without using much ink.
- Hang it near the lab power outlets.
- The QR code in the blue title band opens this page, so anyone can get their own copy.
- The QR code at the bottom opens the Fire Safety in the Science Lab module.
Learn more
The Fire Safety in the Science Lab module teaches the full topic this poster comes from.
Sources:
- Fire Safety in the Laboratory (2017) – Tufts University Environmental Health and Safety (reviewed October 2, 2026)
Poster SSP-0052, Rev. 1, October 2026.
