On 01/12/2010 17:51, Pete Zahut wrote:
Phil L wrote:
Pete Zahut wrote:
We have some work to do on the guttering of our house and also next
door's but these are terraced houses and it's at the front, ie, on
the street, and means that the method of access to the gutters has to
be movable along the length of both houses. If we hire some sort of
scaffolding or access tower it means time and effort spent in
erecting/taking down the thing and may make the job span two days,
plus we have to get a street permit from the council (£23).

So, I was thinking that maybe we could hire one of these van-mounted
cherry picker thingies that you see guys using for street lighting
maintenance. We should be able to park it in the place where I
normally park my car and no time spent erecting/stripping down means
that we could get the job done in the one day - much easier all
round. However, all the hire sites I've looked at so far seem to suggest
that you have to go on a training course before you can use one of
these things. The course (on successful completion) seems to give you
a card that lasts for 5 years. In other words, it seems that they are
training you for a career in using elevating platforms and looking
towards future employment, which is obviously no good for someone who
wants to hire it for a day while his mate goes and does some work on
the gutters. Have I got this right? Is there really no way Joe Public
can just hire one for a day?
TIA

1) why can't you use a ladder?

Bleedin' elf n safely innit!! Mind you, I wouldn't be the one up there
anyway.

Sling a climbing or caving rope over the roof and use that for safety
(with an appropriate harness...)? Ok, slinging ropes over a roof can
actually be quite tricky, but once done it's nice and secure (if
appropriately tied off).