Safest Method of Entry

[SteveBullman]

i see nothing wrong with going up a ladder with spikes on......if im taking down a tree with a huge trunk with a bowl 15ft up with smaller limbs coming off it makes absolutely no sense to lengthen my lanyard to fit the trunk, spike up and then have to get myself over the bowl when i can just ladder up and im off to work.

people need to get over their anti ladder stance....they have their place in arboriculture as much as anything else.

 

[diltree]

ladders are for old men......wait a second, my dads 70 years old, I've never seen him use a ladder to get up in the tree, Sorry dad . I think carrying a ladder around to every job, when you have a rope, spikes and climbing gear is a bit excessive.....so I'm backing Jeff b on this one....."makes no sense". Still what ever works for you, is whats best, if you need a ladder all the power too you.

 

[SteveBullman]

im talking production here dil, that ladder could quite feasibly save 5 minutes of my time. i dont have to put it up the tree nor take it down, thats the groundies job and whoever im subbing to on the day supplies the ladder unless im otherwise requested to bring my own. why would i not take advantage of that?
and it has nothing at all to do with "needing a ladder"

 

[JEff B]

i see nothing wrong with going up a ladder with spikes on......if im taking down a tree with a huge trunk with a bowl 15ft up with smaller limbs coming off it makes absolutely no sense to lengthen my lanyard to fit the trunk, spike up and then have to get myself over the bowl when i can just ladder up and im off to work.

people need to get over their anti ladder stance....they have their place in arboriculture as much as anything else.

double lanyard, get to the "bowl" toss your second lanyard around the "smaller limbs" and off you go..... much faster then setting up a ladder and climbing it with spikes on

 

[Tree Slayer]

no ladder

ladders are for old men......wait a second, my dads 70 years old, I've never seen him use a ladder to get up in the tree, Sorry dad . I think carrying a ladder around to every job, when you have a rope, spikes and climbing gear is a bit excessive.....so I'm backing Jeff b on this one....."makes no sense". Still what ever works for you, is whats best, if you need a ladder all the power too you.

So how do you clean off the homeowners roof when your done? we always have a ladder in both chip trucks

 

[RedlineIt]

Voting spurs, though to be pedantic, it should read spurs and lanyard, because I've seen climbers take not just the first 6 - 8 feet of a fat buttress without lanyard but significant height to avoid working the lanyard over old stubs (or the time to cut them off) and that's not safe at all.

My reason for voting spurs: Any time I've had any surprise or hiccup with rope access it would have been entirely avoided had I spurred that tree.

Also, any time I've got a difficult, time-consuming throw-ball situation, I could have been safely up there fifteen minutes ago on my hooks.

This is why, if I were grounding for you, my spurs and saddle, rope and lanyard are ready to go, a safe distance away, but ready to go.

Finally, Why Ladders Suck: Yes, we need them. Yes, they're useful. If I can complete a pole-pruning job with just a couple more feet of height, a tripod ladder is most useful. Roof access too, acknowledged. (Though I'd much rather rope down onto the roof from my TIP, that is not always possible.)

Ladders suck because OHSA, ANSI, WCB, all insist that 10 feet (3m) off the ground the ladder must be tied in or the worker above that height on that ladder must be tied in. So what does that gain you?

We are all OSHA, ANSI, WCB compliant here, aren't we? We've got rope loops on attached pulleys to extend that ladder beyond ten feet, right?

Right?



RedlineIt

 

[a_lopa]

Shot out of a cannon,black hawk helo?riding a sidewinder?i give up.

:deadhorse:

 

[The Climber]

Wow, That Little yellow Walmart dude has been busy beating the ????E outa that horse all through this thread.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

Ladders suck because OHSA, ANSI, WCB, all insist that 10 feet (3m) off the ground the ladder must be tied in or the worker above that height on that ladder must be tied in.


ANSI states that the climber shall be secured when working off a ladder...doesn't address ascent. My definition of 'working' is touching the tree in any way. If a twig needs to be pushed aside in order to ascend the ladder that's working, the climber shall be secured.

 

[Highclimber OR]

Ladders are totally dangerous. I have had some very strange things happen on a ladder, and let's not forget what the homeowner with the broken leg and arm were using to trim their tree. use the method that you like and are comfortable with. And always get tied or secured in asap and that includes the ladder to the tree.

 

[treeseer]

Ladders suck because OHSA, ANSI, WCB, all insist that 10 feet (3m) off the ground the ladder must be tied in or the worker above that height on that ladder must be tied in.

Tom I do not see this in my Z. Number, please?

ANSI states that the climber shall be secured when working off a ladder...doesn't address ascent. My definition of 'working' is touching the tree in any way. If a twig needs to be pushed aside in order to ascend the ladder that's working, the climber shall be secured.

Any activity that involves leaning or exerting some considerable force can make ladder ascension less safe, I agree. Brushing away twigs does not impact safety, and seeking to mandate tie-in while doing it is way excessive imho. Your definition of "working' includes activities that are not "working", and are no doubt shared by at least .0001% of working arborists.

Your point is useful, though, in pointing out that brushing the tree with a long polesaw is a good idea for many reasons, clearing access for the ladder being one. I hate to pick at you on this one, TD, but i just spent 8 days of very productive work with a sub (kotwica), and a 32' ladder. If we had not used the ladder, we would have been much more sore and much more poor. :help:

 

[minderaser66]

you forgot the safest of all - aerial lift

i feel more comfortable and safer in my saddle. too many things on the lift truck can break and send you to your death. they do make things alot easier though...

 

[treevet]

One thing you learned as you become a more seasoned climber is how to conserve or ration energy. A 32 foot ladder is easily bungeed on the top of a 11 foot or better chip box. Shoot a beanbag up into a higher limb if nec and your secured on the way up. If I got 6 or 7 big trees to enter in a day I got alot of work on the lats and hands after getting off the ladder. Saying not using a ladder is stupid started a big riff earlier (but it made for some good reading) Let s just say it is not smart doing all that yanking off the bat. Remember the joke about the Male sheep telling his son looking down into the vally at the female sheep, the son wants to run down and b ng one of them and the dad says let s walk down and b ng all of them.

 

[adam]

stairs

I voted for trampoline (puts whole new meaning to the "jumpcut", you just jump and cut), however stairs are also very convenient

 

[trimwizard]

I've not used ascenders or trampolines so couldn't comment on them.
After assessing the tree I will decide how to aproach my ascent.
Removals usually w/spikes & lanyard, Trims either ladder then climb or hump up (usually hump), if it can't be just climbed w/lanyard.
Have occasionally taken aerial basket up & transferred into tree at height but really don't enjoy the transition into tree.
I feel more comfortable being tied into a tree I have inspected than trusting a machine (especially one someone else is operating). worked red iron for awhile and had a drunk crane operator nearly kill me by slamming the beam I was on with a load of purlins.

 

[adam]

One thing you learned as you become a more seasoned climber is how to conserve or ration energy. A 32 foot ladder is easily bungeed on the top of a 11 foot or better chip box. Shoot a beanbag up into a higher limb if nec and your secured on the way up. If I got 6 or 7 big trees to enter in a day I got alot of work on the lats and hands after getting off the ladder. Saying not using a ladder is stupid started a big riff earlier (but it made for some good reading) Let s just say it is not smart doing all that yanking off the bat. Remember the joke about the Male sheep telling his son looking down into the vally at the female sheep, the son wants to run down and b ng one of them and the dad says let s walk down and b ng all of them.

I couldn't agree with you more on "conserving energy" by use of a ladder. Within a season average full time climber can avoid footlocking Kilimanjaro, climbing first 25-30' up a ladder. In the other hand ladders are quite dangerous, I witnessed two accidents involving ladders, and both were nasty. Ladder; "love-hate" relation in my case.

 

[ropensaddle]

safest of all

you forgot the safest of all - aerial lift

That would depend on the lift in question has it been serviced
age any recalls aerial lifts do fail drive cables break, leveling
sometimes fails, bolts loosen, pins crack,bearings wear etc.
Back in the early eighties my boss asked why I would rather
climb than work out of trim lift I told him god made a tree man
made his bucket and I trust god. Lifts are a excellent tool
and I have been in several for years but not all lifts are the
same and the one I didn't like was having drive cable failure,
even on new lifts and this was nothing that resembled new.
I now use a high ranger and its a good design as long as inspected
and maintained !

 

[spongygumz]

Safety

Of course THE safest way is to lrt somebody else do it.

 

[DonnyO]

Of course THE safest way is to let somebody else do it.

And let them have all the fun????

 

[adam]

Of course THE safest way is to let somebody else do it.

tempting (especially in a case of something small size, dead as a door nail, split and ugly, when you need all guts with no glory attached).