At Safety Direct America, we have been experts in pendulum floor slip resistance testing for well over two decades. We calibrate pendulum slip resistance testers for companies and government agencies around the world, and we made most of the updates to the latest version of the American test method for use of the pendulum dynamic […]
Tag Archives: DCOF test
Polished Floors Are Slippery When Wet – No Matter What Your American-Made Slip Resistance Test Device Says!
Reliable floor slip resistance test devices include the pendulum floor slip resistance tester and the SlipAlert Tribometer (now known as the iAlert), which both measure the dynamic coefficient of friction (DCOF) of floors. In the United States of America, we have in the past (and present) allowed tile manufacturers and people who make their living […]
Fool Me Once: The Floor Slip Resistance Testing Misinformation Campaign Fooling the USA
We’ve all heard the old adage, “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” The Tile Council of North America (TCNA), who reportedly is “in partnership” with at least one of America’s largest tile manufacturers, spent almost two decades promoting the misinformation that the ASTM C1028 static coefficient of friction (SCOF) […]
2022 Revised ANSI A326.3 Has Five Situation-Specific DCOF Minimums — And Crucial Caveats
In February of 2022, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) issued a revised version of their “Test Method for Measuring Dynamic Coefficient of Friction of Hard Surface Flooring Materials.” The test method is called ANSI A326.3, and it sets a very low bar for DCOF in various flooring areas. Slip and fall accidents will likely […]
Suggested Specifications for Lifetime Slip Resistance of Flooring
When we’re buying new automobile tires we’d like to know not only that the tires are good at the time of purchase, but that they will have a reasonably long lifetime for us. Michelin, for instance, offers models with mileage warranties (within a time limit) from 36,000 to 80,000 miles. When buying slip-resistant flooring, customers […]
What Should the Slip Resistance of a Bathtub Be?
Bathtubs, in hotels or homes, are in areas where slip accidents can be very serious or fatal because there are hard objects in close proximity that can be easily struck by the head after a slip — the side of the tub, the faucet, toilets and sinks. Bare feet are soft and essentially treadless, and […]
Many Polished Concrete Floors are Slippery when Wet
Can polished concrete floors be slippery when wet? Several web sites say yes, but others (mostly polished concrete vendors) say no, it only looks that way. A study of polished concrete published by the American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC) in Concrete International shows wet dynamic coefficients of friction (DCOF) as measured by ANSI A137.1 […]