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Most homeowners are entirely unaware of the risks and some of the problems in relation to the erection of scaffolding to their property. This article takes a look at the use of scaffold hire to aid home improvements whilst pointing out some of the most obvious risks. Health & Safety For Scaffolding Should Not Be Ignored The most important aspect of any scaffolding installation has to be safety. The vast majority of scaffolding companies are well versed on health & safety laws but that doesn't mean they always stick to the best procedures. Ensuring the scaffolding is well tied in to the property is a starting point with well placed angled supports installed as necessary. Making sure that the scaffold pole shoes are placed correctly with the weight spread on short boards is another important point during the installation. Once the scaffolding framework itself is secure to the building the next step is to ensure that the actual scaffold boards are spaced correctly with all scaffold boards ends supported. It goes without saying that the actual scaffold bolts that secure the poles together should of course be tight. There have been occasions when I have come across loose ones. Depending on where the scaffolding is in use and what the purpose is, it may be necessary to have safety netting to stop debris giving someone below a bit of a headaches or in fact series injury. On one particular job recently I noted that special fans had to be positioned above the entrance to a hotel to ensure that dust did not go down on the residents whilst work was in progress. Scaffolding Security It should be noted that burglars love scaffolding as it allows them to treat every window - no matter how high - as if it was on the ground floor. Any decent size scaffold hire job would command a scaffolding security alarm to be installed. It may cost a little extra but just think about the consequences if you don't use one and your job is targeted. Where does the responsibility lie? Is it the scaffolding company? Is it the builder? Is it the homeowner? I'm sure you get the point but these are issues to discuss with your builder or scaffold hire company before an installation rather than at a crime scene. On smaller jobs or mid terrace properties it is common practice that the tradesmen using the scaffolding removes the access ladder at the end of each working day. Any ropes from pulleys should also be taken up to one of the floor levels out of harms way. Conclusion Scaffold hire, working platform, access hire and towers come in all shapes and sizes and are an excellent resource to enable work to be carried out safely and usually to a higher standard than traditional ladder hire. It is usually money well spent and providing all the health & safety issues are complied with it is as safe as working on the ground.
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