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No, a major catastrophe did not strike. But 180,000 people were hurt or killed on ladders in 2007 in the U.S. alone. That number is staggering considering how few people in the population use ladders. Many households do not even have ladders. There is much risk involved with working on a ladder, the main risk being a fall! We have put together some tips to help you stay safe while doing ladder work.

Ladder Safety Tips

Always make sure your ladder meets the proper weight specifications and is not damaged. Its probably not a good idea to use your Grandpa’s wooden ladder that his Grandpa gave him. As a matter of fact, its best not to use wood at all. Go out and get yourself a nice aluminum ladder that supports your body weight plus tools. You will find aluminum ladders much lighter and easy to maneuver than wooden ladders.

Stay away from power lines! Power lines kill! Let me say that again, power lines kill you dead. The last place you want to be is in between the ground and an electrical current. The results could be deadly. Many ladder related deaths are because the person using the ladder collided with or touched a power line. If work needs to be done around a power line, call the power company and they will gladly disconnect the power running through the line for you while you or your contractor does the job.

Never stand above the second rung. Once you climb to high on a ladder, you suddenly lose control. You are not able to adequately maintain your balance and your risk of falling almost triples. If there is work that needs to be done up high and your ladder does not reach. Take a break. Hire someone with a longer ladder or lift, or go rent one yourself. The extra cost will pay off in the long run, especially if you save yourself a trip to the hospital.

Minimize the amount of time you are on a ladder. One way to do this is to have gutter guards installed. Gutter guards prevent leaves and debris from clogging your gutters so they do not have to be cleaned. You can also just hire someone to do the work for you who has the right equipment.

The best way to prevent accidents is to just use common sense. If the ladder feels unsafe, it probably is. Its not worth taking the risk to finish a project if conditions become unsafe.

If you are interested in gutter guards, we can help! Check out our gutter guards to see what I meen.