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Cooling Stations on Farms

A cooling station gives workers a known place to recover from heat. It works best when it is close to the job, stocked ahead of time and used without hesitation.

What is a cooling station?

A cooling station is a designated spot where workers can rest, drink water and let their bodies recover. It may be a shaded canopy at the end of a field, a vehicle with working air conditioning, a shaded corner of a building or a room with fans or other cooling.

The idea is simple: heat recovery should not depend on someone improvising. When people know exactly where to go, they use it earlier and more often.

Even small farms benefit. A single shaded spot with a bench and a cooler of water, agreed on ahead of time, is far better than hoping people will find relief on their own.

• Shaded canopy, vehicle or building
• Placed near the current work area

Where should you put one?

Place stations near the work, not at the farmyard a long walk away. If the crew moves through a field, move the station with them. A break that costs ten minutes of walking is a break people skip.

Choose a spot with real shade and some airflow, on level ground, away from fuel, chemicals and moving equipment. Make sure it can be reached by a vehicle in case someone needs emergency help and 911 is called.

Write down who stocks the station and who checks it. Tasks without an owner tend to be forgotten right when the heat arrives.

What should be stocked there?

Water is the essential item, along with cups or bottles, a seat for each person who might be resting and a way to cool off, such as damp cloths where appropriate. Keep a copy of the farm's address and emergency plan posted.

Check supplies at the start of each day. Ask a medical professional or your extension office what else fits your workplace; do not assume extra items are safe for everyone.

Review the station after each hot spell. Ask what worked, what ran out and what slowed people down, then adjust before the next heat wave arrives.

• Clean drinking water
• Seating for the whole crew
• Shade that actually covers people
• Posted address and emergency instructions
• A working phone or radio

Who can use it, and when?

Anyone, at any time, without asking permission. Make that rule clear to hired workers, family and seasonal staff, and repeat it on hot days. Do not treat use as a sign of weakness.

In addition to freely chosen rests, build in scheduled use during heat advisories. Official guidance from NIOSH and OSHA covers work-rest schedules, so check there for specifics.

How does a station fit with protective equipment tasks?

Tasks that require protective clothing, such as handling some pesticides, trap heat. Workers in that gear may need to leave the task and remove equipment before cooling, and the station should be near enough to make that practical.

Follow the label and manufacturer instructions, and ask EPA, your state agriculture department or extension for guidance. Never skip required protection to cool off, and never reuse contaminated clothing in the rest area.

• Rest area kept clean of chemicals
• Separate space for removing protective gear

What are common problems?

Stations fail when they are too far away, too crowded, under-stocked or ignored by supervisors. Others fail because shade structures blow over in wind or seats are too hot to sit on.

Walk the site, ask workers what is missing and fix it. Secure structures in wind, and take them down when thunderstorms approach, following National Weather Service alerts.

• Structures anchored against wind
• Supplies checked at the start of each day

What does a worker in distress need?

A cooling station is not a hospital. If someone is confused, faints, has a seizure or seems to be getting worse, call 911 at once and follow the dispatcher's instructions.

Take a first aid and CPR course together from the American Red Cross or another recognized provider so more than one person on the farm knows what to do.

• Address posted at the station
• Someone assigned to call 911 if needed

Last reviewed: November 12, 2026. Written by the Farm Safety Editorial Team. See our editorial policy.