On US jobsites, protruding reinforcing steel is a recognised impalement hazard. OSHA's construction standard 29 CFR 1926.701(b) requires that 'all protruding reinforcing steel, onto and into which employees could fall, shall be guarded to eliminate the hazard of impalement.'
OSHA does not set a minimum cap diameter, but the cap must be large and strong enough to dissipate the force of a reasonably foreseeable fall. A 1997 memo noted that small mushroom-style plastic caps are often ineffective against true impalement — they suit cuts and abrasions at grade, but where workers are at height above exposed rebar, fall protection is the first line of defence.
For buyers this means specifying rebar caps by impact rating and application: simple mushroom caps for at-grade protection, and steel-reinforced or troughed caps where genuine impalement protection is required.
Leeter manufactures OSHA-style mushroom rebar safety caps and reinforced impalement caps across a range of bar sizes. Tell us the bar diameters and use case and we will match the right cap and packing.
