Fulthrotl
~Autocorrect is My Worst Enema.~
- Occupation
- E
I don't get it. What's so dangerous about working off an aluminum ladder?
We aren't supposed to be working on live circuits any way, right?
Where's the issue?
IMO, the Little Giant Ladders are very sturdy and extremely convenient. If you do a lot of hot work then you probably want the fiberglass version, but if you work everything de-energized I don't see a problem with the aluminum.
OSHA forbids it. most electrician's union working agreements forbid it.
my gramma, bless her heart, forbade it, i think, but only when she was alive.
the guys at the wholesale house forbid it. most of you guys aren't too big
on it either.......
so, because i run with scissors, i have one i use. i would never allow an
employee to use it, 'cause cal-OSHA and my dear departed gramma would
have a fit, but if it's my choice, my tush, and my ladder......
i've had my current one since june, 1992. i've never had an electrical
safety issue with it. it has very durable feet on the bottom that are non
conductive. how non conductive? about 2 hours ago, i went out, took a
piece of #12 mild steel sheeting, and laid it on the garage floor. then, i
opened the ladder, and put it on the sheeting.
then i meggered between the aluminum ladder frame, and the steel sheet.
at 1000 volts, the resistance was > 2.2 Gigaohms, the limit of my fluke
megger. this on a 17 year old ladder that has seen a lot of service. those
feet haven't worn out yet.....
most stuff i have heard about involving electricity and aluminum ladders
involves extension ladders, and service entrances... someone is carrying
one upright around a house, and walks it into a service entrance drop,
or in one case with a former line patrol mechanic for DWP, he was trimming
a tree in his back yard, and dropped an aluminum ladder across a 5kv leg
while holding it. how he reached a 5kv lead on a pole can with an extension
ladder was not made clear.
now, let us say that i have a huge deep gooey mudhole in the backyard,
and i bury this aluminum ladder a foot deep in the mud climbing up onto the
roof.... at that point, it isn't a ladder anymore, it is a ground rod.
and touching a ground rod while doing hot work sounds like a poor career
path.....