Ladder Safety at Home
Ladder safety at home is the ALI's theme for this week. Most everyone has at least one use for a ladder. A few years ago, Nationwide Insurance put together a great blog post with ladder safety tips for homeowners. We'll go through their tips today.
- Read the safety label. The label will give you important safety information, including the weight limit and important safety information. Reading the label can help prevent an accident.
- Chose a tall enough ladder. If the ladder is not tall enough for the job, you are setting yourself up for failure. If you are accessing a roof with too short of a ladder, you could end up in a serious accident as you try to get off the ladder. Make sure your ladder extends three feet past the access point.
- Never lean on the ladder. Always keep your body between the rails of the ladder to prevent your ladder from tipping.
- Use the ladder for its intended use. Ladders are designed for a specific purpose. If you start using them for unintended purposes, like bridge or scaffolding, or using parts of the ladder wrong, like standing on the top cap or leaning a stepladder (not a leaning ladder) against a wall, your ladder could fail, resulting in a ladder accident and possible injury for you.
- Use your ladder on a firm, level surface. If the ground is unlevel, use a ladder with levelers to prevent the ladder from tipping.
- Be alert when moving your ladder. Ladders can be a little bulky to move around, so always plan your route and be aware of your surroundings before you move your ladder so you don't bump into any wires, cars or other objects.
