Dehydration.

[beastmaster]

I did a job out in Alta-Dena, about a 45 to an hour and a half drive from my house today. Three liquidamber's growing under the HV wires and a deador cedar that was almost in contact with the wires. I reduced the liquid ambers and removed several limbs from the deador. It was really hot where I was at with no air circulating at all. I didn't want to have to drive all the way back again to finish up so I was on full speed mode, only taking a 15 min. lunch.
Wanting to finish and the stress of working close to the wires, make me forget to drink fluids like I should of been. All day I drank one small water and a Gatorade.
Because of traffic I stopped at a park and took a hour nap. I woke with a bad headache and feeling really thirsty. So I drove to a store. I was feeling sick to my stomach. As I was standing in line I almost blacked out, fighting to keep consciousness. I thought that that was it and I was having a stroke. Made it back to my truck and just sat there waitting to die or something. Not feeling a lot better I did the drive home.
I started drinking a lot when I got home and fell a sleep in the air conditioning. It's been five hours since I've been home and only now feeling a little better.
I am always making sure the crew drinks water, I know better my self. But was caught slipping today. My temp. was 102 after I woke up from my nap.
I'm only sharing this as a reminder to stay hydrated. Some times we know better but some how get side tracked.

 

[imagineero]

Hydration is a really serious issue here in aus, and guys die from it. It just seems completely impossible to stay hydrated enough in the middle of a hot summer here. No matter how much water you drink you still feel thirsty, and bloated too. On a really hot summers day I'll easily drink 3 gallons of water and not pee once. To help fight it, we have a 5 gallon insulated water cooler mounted on the chipper. I put 12lbs of ice in it on the way to work ($4 at the gas station) and fill it up with water. We can drain and fill it 3 or 4 times before the ice melts, which is enough water for our 3 man crew. Having the water iced really helps a lot, and makes it easier to drink. It's hard to force yourself to drink warm or hot water on a hot day. In summer on hot days I climb with a 3 quart camelbak. I fill it with ice also, and constantly sip on it. I'll drain it in an hour no worries. I found it helps a lot, I'm not likely to get someone to put a water bottle on a line for me and even if I do it's too late by that point - I'm already dehydrated. Guzzling a whole bottle of water down every hour doesn't seem to help as much as constantly sipping on ice cold water. The cold water helps keep your body temp down too.

Shaun

 

[treesmith]

I'll second that, Shaun. The hardest part of working here was retraining into constant fluids even in winter. And definitely by the time you notice its too late

 

[imagineero]

 

[Bandit Man]

It's a dangerous thing for sure. And don't forget to put back not only the water, but all the things sweat takes out of you. I've learned this the hard way,with hours of full body cramps, after a few hours of 100+*. Now I carry salt supplement pills, bananas, potassium pills, and plenty of water and Gatorade.

 

[Jeffsaw]

A doctor gave me a "recipe" for cheap Gatorade. A teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of salt in a litre (32oz.) of water. It doesn't taste very good but it does work.

 

[KenJax Tree]

A doctor gave me a "recipe" for cheap Gatorade. A teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of salt in a litre (32oz.) of water. It doesn't taste very good but it does work.

Use Kool-Aid or fruit juice instead of water?

 

[KenJax Tree]

All our trucks have 5 gallon water jugs on them but we also bring a cooler with Gatorade or Powerade in it. If you wait until your feel thirsty its already too late.

 

[beastmaster]

I think as I get older my tolerance to heat is getting lower. I think I'll try climbing with a camelback. See how that works out. It seems to be more of a problem when I work by my self.

 

[SquirrelMan]

Eat fruit (especially oranges) and a salad at lunch. You get a lot of hydration from a healthy diet and as you can imagine, a turkey sandwich or pb&j will not hydrate you very well.

 

[Saw Dust Smoken]

staying hydrated

Good info on hydration. If ya still have cramps in evening or in your sleep. Pickle juice will rehydrate ya much faster than Gatorade. Google or bing had shared a study on these two drink options. Guess how their study facts turned out. No dehydration = no leg cramps \ headaches. Be safe out there!

 

[woodchuck357]

Use Kool-Aid or fruit juice instead of water?

NO, for the formula to work(it is absorbed from the stomach much like alcohol)the ratio is a TABLESPOON of sugar to a TEASPOON of salt in 16 oz of water. Fruit juice messes up the absorption. The formula was ultra secret when I was doing my bit for uncle, it also puts a stop to the runs, even in a ghillie suit the smell of crap gives your position away fast.

You still need to take extra potassium when you sweat a lot.

In the summer I'll often drink over 2 gallons when in a big take down and not need to take a leak for up to 8 hours straight in the tree.

 

[Seemlessstate]

We've been swamped with an over abundance of work, and have been pulling guys from out irrigation and lawn departments to help us with tree work.

2 of them have thrown up and gone home dehydrated. one got a nosebleed and almost blacked out. These guys arent really used to dragging brush all day, and its been making them drop like flies.

2 weeks ago I threw up a few hours after finishing work on a 105* day, had a huge headache and was dizzy.

its a little dorky, but now i wear a camel back when im in a tree for more than 30 minutes.

we carry 10 gallons of water/ice with us everyday, and a 5 man crew has been emptying it daily.

dehydration is scary, and is probably more dangerous than other more conspicuous dangers like saws or hangers...

 

[KenJax Tree]

This was on the news here today Beastmaster you're lucky.

Golfer who collapsed thanks lifesavers who gave CPR | News - Home

 

[sgreanbeans]

Def no joke. A few years ago, some friends of mine had a intern from the state college working on a crew for landscaping. She had a 5 gallon jug with water. When they checked it...............after she died, not one bit of it was gone. Just making sure ya have it is one thing, make damn sure they drink it. At OCS at MCB Quantico, I ran the training grounds,we would watch the Candidates drop like flies, core temps of 105-107, scary freaking stuff. Seen many of them get the Silver Bullet, which is horrible to administer (glad I was no doc) but even worse to receive. Picture a silver shiny cigar holder hooked to a hose and a IV bag, then rammed up your butt and the bag squeezed, INSTANT hydration! Seeing that happen so many times mad me very aware of my water level, never want that thing anywhere near me!

 

[bootboy]

While hiking the Grand Canyon, A friend of mine who is a nurse, gave her husband a Gatorade enema that probably saved his life. He was throwing up and couldn't keep anything down. Woof!

We just got through a week of straight triple digits. Out came the camel back. I found that having someone toss me a water bottle wasn't really effective for a couple reasons. Either I was too high up, or I simply did not think about it. Now it's easy because every time I look down, I see that blue hose coming over my shoulder and it reminds me to drink.

And don't forget your electrolytes!!! Once your body loses so much sodium and potassium, it becomes harder and harder for your body to absorb water. You want the greater concentration of electrolytes in your serum, but just a little. Water more easily move with the gradient. See: Osmosis. Keep the osmotic pressure working in your favor.

Cheers

 

[TheJollyLogger]

This is where the buddy system is important. It can sneak up on a guy, and can really affect your thought processes. Sometimes it's easier for someone else to catch it. Gotta watch each other's backs!

 

[imagineero]

+1 on that! I try to keep an eye on the guys and if I'm on the ground I'll go fill up everyones bottle and pass them round. It's easy to get caught up in git 'er done mode and forget about everything else. I pay my crew by the day, not by the hour... so in summer everyone wants to get in and get the work done early to avoid the heat. It's great having that vibe, everyone is pitching in and doing their best, but you can forget to drink water pretty quickly when the work is flowing.

Shaun

 

[Saw Dust Smoken]

staying hydrated

Drinking two gallons of electrolyte mix is so much better than plan old water. Certain drink will dehydrate you. Pop. Tea. Be safe out there.

 

[treesmith]

We've got a mineral water filter tower by Zazen, Korean I think, it has stones in the bottom and holds 10 litres it is supposed to contain more electrolytes than sports drink, I take two litres every day and it's normally empty by lunchtime