First aid kit refills: how often to check and restock
A first aid kit is only compliant while it still holds the minimum contents, so the real rule is restock to the list. OSHA sets a schedule in two places: on construction sites the employer checks the kit before it goes out on each job and at least weekly on the job; in logging the contents are kept in serviceable condition at all times. General industry has no fixed interval, only that supplies be adequate and readily available, which a half-empty box is not. The common practice that satisfies all three is a monthly inspection against the contents card, a check after every use, and a full refill pack when the kit is more than a few items short. Supplies do expire: ointments, antiseptics, eyewash, burn gel, medications and sterile dressings carry dates, and the date is replaced, not ignored.
First Aid Only 91359 25-person ANSI A refill kitBrings a 25-person Class A kit back to the listWhy is restocking a compliance issue and not just housekeeping? OSHA accepts an ANSI Z308.1 kit as adequate because of what is in it. Once the gloves, the eye wash and the trauma pads are gone, what is left is a box with bandages, and it no longer meets the class on the label. The injury that empties a kit is also the one that shows the gap: a crew uses the trauma pads on Tuesday, and the next cut on Thursday finds none. The check interval exists so that the gap is found by the person doing the inspection, not by the next injured worker.
How often does the kit have to be checked?
Three OSHA rules and one industry standard, each with its own answer.
What do you check at an inspection?
- Count against the contents card. Every ANSI kit lists its minimum items and quantities. Anything short goes on the refill list.
- Pull opened and damaged packages. A torn wrapper is no longer sterile and, on a construction kit, no longer a sealed package.
- Read the dates. Antiseptics, ointments, burn gel, eye wash, medications, hand sanitizer and sterile dressings carry expiration dates. Pull anything past its date.
- Check the hardware. Scissors, tweezers, CPR barrier, cold pack, tourniquet and splint are there and in working order. A tourniquet that has been applied is replaced.
- Check the case. Gasket, latches, mounting, and no moisture inside. Clean the inside of the case.
- Restock and sign. Add the missing items or a full refill pack, then date and initial the card.
Do first aid supplies expire?
Yes, most of them. Anything that is a drug or a sterile device carries a date: antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment, burn cream and burn gel dressings, eye and skin wash, hand sanitizer, pain relievers and other medications, sterile gauze pads, trauma pads and roller bandages. FDA’s position on expired medicines is that the date is a critical part of deciding whether the product is safe and will work as intended; past it there is no guarantee of either, because the chemical composition or the strength can change. For a sterile dressing the issue is the package, not the contents: the seal is guaranteed only to the date.
FDA, Don’t Be Tempted to Use Expired Medicines; expiration dating as printed by each manufacturer on the item.Items with no drug and no sterile claim do not expire in the same way but still wear out: adhesive bandages lose their stick, tape dries out, cold packs leak, latex and nitrile gloves become brittle, and foil blankets tear at the folds. Replace them when they fail the inspection, not by the calendar. Eyewash is the one to watch: a sealed sterile bottle carries a date of a few years; once opened it is discarded, and a bottle in a hot truck cab ages faster than the label assumes.
Shelf life and storage conditions as published by each manufacturer; ANSI/ISEA Z308.1-2021 does not set expiration periods.Refill pack or individual items?
- A refill pack for the kit’s class and size brings the whole kit back to the list in one step. Use one when more than a few items are missing, or when several items have expired at once, which happens because they were bought together.
- Individual refills for the items a crew uses most: adhesive bandages, gloves, antiseptic wipes, eye wash, and on construction, trauma pads and tape.
- Match the pack to the kit. A Class A 25-person refill fills a Class A 25-person kit; it does not bring a Class B kit up to Class B. The product page lists the pack contents.
- Unitized kits (numbered boxes in a tray) take unit refills in the same box size; bulk kits take loose items. Check which one the kit is before ordering.
- Keep a spare of the items that expire together so the inspection does not become an order and a wait.
ANSI Class A and Class B refill packs
24 items · prices liveRefills are listed by the ANSI class the manufacturer publishes for the pack. A refill restores the kit of the same class and size; the product page lists the contents. Free shipping on orders over $199.
Individual items (bandages, antiseptics, eye wash, gloves, burn care) and OSHA-labeled refills are on the first aid finder.
Questions people ask
How often should a first aid kit be inspected?
Construction: before each job and at least weekly on the job (1926.50(d)(2)). Logging: contents serviceable at all times (1910.266(d)(2)). General industry: no set interval; monthly and after every use is the common practice that keeps the kit adequate under 1910.151.
Do first aid kits expire?
The kit does not, but many items in it do: antiseptics, ointments, burn gel, eye wash, sanitizer, medications and sterile dressings all carry dates. Replace those items; the case and the hardware stay.
Can I use expired first aid supplies?
FDA’s guidance for medicines is that past the date there is no guarantee the product is safe or effective. A sterile dressing past its date has no guaranteed seal. Pull them and restock.
Does OSHA require a first aid kit inspection log?
No rule requires a log. A dated initial on the contents card is the simplest way to show the weekly or monthly check happened.
What goes first in a workplace first aid kit?
Adhesive bandages, gloves, antiseptic wipes and eye wash in most workplaces; trauma pads and tape on construction. Keep spares of those.
Does a refill pack make an old kit ANSI 2021 compliant?
Only if the pack is built to the 2021 list for that class and size. The 2021 edition added a foil blanket and more hand sanitizer to both classes and a tourniquet to Class B; a 2015-list refill does not add those.
How long does sterile eyewash last?
A sealed bottle carries the manufacturer’s date, commonly 2 to 3 years. Once opened it is discarded. Heat shortens the life, so check bottles kept in vehicles more often.
Standards and ratings on this page are as published in the documents named and by the manufacturers named. The employer’s hazard assessment and written program decide what applies at a given workplace. Verify a rating on the product and its spec sheet before use.