Johnson Matthey TRACERCO T401, User Manual, Page: 23 / 26

11 Health and Safety
Tracerco considers that it has taken all reasonable precautions to ensure that when used as
prescribed, the monitor will not endanger the health and safety of the operator. It is important, however, that
the following basic guidance should be taken into account by the operator when carrying out any form
of radiation contamination monitor ing.
11.1 Training
Operators should receive appropriate practical training in the use of radiation contamination monitors.
11.2 Battery life
Battery life should be checked before use, particularly where work is to be carried out continuously over an
extended timeframe.
11.3 Probe
The Geiger based probe contains a delicate thin window. Although some protection has been
provided against accidental damage in the form of a wire mesh, care must be exercised when
monitoring surfaces which may have protruding sharp objects. W hen the probe is not in use, it is
recommended that the yoke assembly is securely replaced in the body of the monitor. The detector
probe should not be placed directly onto surfaces since this may lead to contamination of the
face and increase the risk of perforating the GM window.
Tracerco supply robust transport/ storage cases which can provide space for a probe extension
and spare battery. Details are available from www.tracerco.com/monitors.
11.4 Radiation reading
The monitor has been designed and tested (EN60325:2004) to ensure that if the
probe is exposed to radiation levels well in excess of the full scale values (ie., up to 10
6
counts / second),
the readings will recover and normal operation resumed once the source of radiation has been
removed. The numeric display will show a OUEr when full scale has been exceeded. The bargraph display
will sustain full scale deflection.
The operator should never attempt to estimate a reading when over-range has occurred.
11.5 Alpha radiation
Alpha radiation is heavily at tenuated (weak beta radiation to a degree) when damp or wet surfaces
are being monitored. This characteristic should be fully taken into account when monitoring outside