The use of a battery charging area should be limited to the charging of batteries. Several health and safety regulations apply. Using the area for other activities (such as forklift repair) increases the chance for a serious accident or health exposure unless additional risks are assessed and appropriate safeguards enacted.

In your case, your symptoms seem to indicate overexposure to sulfuric acid mists* generated from the battery charging operations. This would indicate that the ventilation (if any) is inadequate for the sulfuric acid mists exposure and quite possibly for the hydrogen build-up which could pose a potential explosion hazard. If the atmosphere in the work area is within the explosive limits for hydrogen (4% to 75% mixture with air), any activity creating a spark could be your last activity.

*Sulfuric acid mists are a known human carcinogen (cancer causing agent).

Ventilation must be adequate for the hazards involved. The ventilation must also be properly positioned to prevent the air quality hazard being drawn through the breathing zone. Improper placement of the ventilation could increase, rather than decrease, the health hazard to personnel.

I recommend you download a copy of the following documents for yourself and additional copies for your customer and your employer:


1) Google: INDG136 COSHH: A Brief Guide to Regulations

(or link at:) www (dot) hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg136.pdf

COSHH = Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (UK Regulations, 2002).


2) Google: SR18 - Charging Batteries for Electrically Powered Vehicles

(or link at:) www (dot) hse.gov.uk/pubns/guidance/sr18.pdf


3) Google: Strong Inorganic Acid Mists Containing Sulfuric Acid

(or link at:) (add prefix h (double t) p//ntp. (to:)

niehs.nih.gov/ntp/roc/eleventh/profiles/s164sulf.pdf