Avoid Overreaching
A significant portion of severe ladder-related injuries occurs from overreaching. But why does that happen? For most people, it’s a matter of inconvenience.Consider this: A worker is up at the top of a ladder and realises that they are set up just a few cms too far away from the targeted area. Although they should climb down to reset the ladder, it’s an inconvenience that could cost precious time. So, they reach out to get it done from where they stand. Although it seems like an innocent choice, it can have tragic consequences. Overextension on the ladder shifts the ladder’s centre of balance and causes it to tip, taking the worker and the ladder down.
A good rule of practice is to always keep your belt buckle between the rails of your ladder. If you see that the centre of your body is extending beyond the side rail, you’ve gone too far.
Making Adjustments
Over the years, we’ve seen some of the craziest and most unsafe ladder practices from people who aren’t close to their work.If you’re too far away from your work, you need to climb down to make an adjustment. However, many people who try to adjust their ladder while they’re at the top, so we thought it would be poignant to mention some “adjustment don’ts”.
- Ladder Walking - A quick search on YouTube shows ample results of people showing off how to “walk” their ladder as a means of speeding up their work. And although it may seem obvious to the Little Giant team that it’s dangerous, these videos are full of comments from professional tradespeople and DIYers applauding how “genius” it is. But….walking your ladder while you stand on it is dangerous and will also wear out your ladder’s joints, which can lead to other problems.
- Ladder Hopping - As absurd as it may sound, we’ve also seen people try to scoot their ladder around by hopping or jumping the rear legs while they’re at the top of the ladder. It should go without saying, but you shouldn’t do this. It’s an entirely avoidable accident.
Three Points of Contact
The purpose for pushing the importance of ladder contact is about your personal balance and stability on the ladder. It’s about not carrying more than you can handle and not standing so high on the ladder that you can’t work safely.Adhering to the rule of three points of contact is easy, especially since you can use a few variations of contact, including two feet and a hand, two feet and your knees, etc.
Follow Standing Warnings
Every ladder has warning labels on the rungs that indicate how far up you can safely stand and also serve as a reminder to not stand or sit on the top cap of your ladder. It seems tempting to stand on a ladder’s top cap, especially if it’s wide enough that it looks like it can support your feet or your seat. But standing or sitting that high up is a recipe for disaster.Also, we’ve seen a lot of people who straddle the top of their multi-position ladder, so their legs dangle off of each side. And although in that instance, they may in-fact be adhering to “three points of contact”, it still is a violation of the ladder’s warning labels.
