I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk

basilisk wrote:
I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk

Glad you're ok and thanks for the warning.

Sounds like a good time to go over a little ladder safety.
The proper tilt angle of an extension ladder is a 1:4 ratio...
or the feet are one foot out for every 4 feet of height.

I learned that a good way to judge this angle is as follows...
-Stand straight up with ladder's feet at your toes.
-Stick your arms straight out in front of you at a right angle to your
body.
-You should be able to hold the ladder with your hands.
*If you have to bend your elbows, the ladder is too steep and you
could fall backwards.
*If the ladder is out of reach of your hands, it's not steep enough
and its feet could slip out.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

basilisk wrote:

I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk

Glad to hear it wasn't more serious. As we all get older, it's amazing
how much less immortal we feel.

--
If you're going to be dumb, you better be tough

Sounds like a good time to go over a little ladder safety.
The proper tilt angle of an extension ladder is a 1:4 ratio...
or the feet are one foot out for every 4 feet of height.

Another good rule is "Always maintain 3 points of contact with the
ladder". A foot and two hands (while climbing or descending), two
feet and a hand, or two feet and a knee or hip (while working).

-Zz

On Tue, 27 Jan 2009 06:56:22 -0800, Zz Yzx
wrote:

Sounds like a good time to go over a little ladder safety.
The proper tilt angle of an extension ladder is a 1:4 ratio...
or the feet are one foot out for every 4 feet of height.

Another good rule is "Always maintain 3 points of contact with the
ladder". A foot and two hands (while climbing or descending), two
feet and a hand, or two feet and a knee or hip (while working).

-Zz


Ladder safety starts when you buy the ladder. Ask a friend for help
in spending 10 minutes or so examining the ladder to buy. Look for
damage, cracks, missing rivets (amazing how many I have found). My
purchase took quite some time, took 4 ladders to find one without
defects. "Inspection stamps" should not make you feel better.

Extension ladder: Feet on ground with toes touching ladder base and
arms out 90 degrees with palms on rung, should be about the right
angle. Having a 3-story with attic, got to have good ladders.

"Mark & Juanita" wrote in message
m...
basilisk wrote:

I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk

Glad to hear it wasn't more serious. As we all get older, it's amazing
how much less immortal we feel.

So true. This was a short tumble (last legal step on a six foot step
ladder),
but people are killed and permanently disabled from such short falls.
I'm fortunate that it was my pride that took the biggest lick.

One should never think that "I'll get away with it this time" because you
might not.

basilisk

On Jan 26, 9:25*pm, basilisk wrote:
I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk

I used to think I was invulnerable, but now I find I'm just immortal.
Tom

Phisherman wrote:

Ladder safety starts when you buy the ladder. Ask a friend for help
in spending 10 minutes or so examining the ladder to buy. Look for
damage, cracks, missing rivets (amazing how many I have found). My
purchase took quite some time, took 4 ladders to find one without
defects. "Inspection stamps" should not make you feel better.

Many moons ago I bought a wooden 2' step stool. The metal folding
spreader bars on either side were installed upside down so gravity and
any movement of the ladder would let the spreaders start creeping
towards a soon-to-be-ass-on-the-ground position. Looking back on it,
I can't believe how long I held onto that stupid ladder and how stupid
that made me.

R

basilisk wrote:
"Mark & Juanita" wrote in message
m...
basilisk wrote:

I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk
Glad to hear it wasn't more serious. As we all get older, it's amazing
how much less immortal we feel.

So true. This was a short tumble (last legal step on a six foot step
ladder),
but people are killed and permanently disabled from such short falls.
I'm fortunate that it was my pride that took the biggest lick.

One should never think that "I'll get away with it this time" because you
might not.

basilisk

My grandpa (my Dad's Dad) died in the mid 1960s (when I was about 4
years old) from head trauma suffered from falling off an ordinary six
foot step ladder while working on his first floor gutters. I was my
Dad's firstborn and apparently the apple of my Grandpa's eye, but I was
so young I don't remember him... I often wonder how my life would be
different if he hadn't left so soon.

--
Free bad advice available here.
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/

I was painting from a 40 foot ladder , They sway quit abit as you climb
them. It looks worse from the top then from the bottom. Some fellow on the
jobsite said his father died falling from a 40 foot one. Duh! the things I
do for money.

Rusty

"Phisherman" wrote in message
Extension ladder: Feet on ground with toes touching ladder base and
arms out 90 degrees with palms on rung, should be about the right
angle. Having a 3-story with attic, got to have good ladders.

If you don't need a big ladder, don't take the extension ladder apart and
use it as two ladders. The top section does not have proper feet and can
slip. One of my supervisors did that last year and ruined our perfect
safety record.

My sympathies but its not just ladders..... I was finishing off
my garage workshop with OSB on the interior walls
and was in the process of installing a small piece
near the top of the stairs to the attic. Had to
go down the stairs to make a cut, turned to go down
and went down two stairs instead of one lost my balance and down I
went (about 5 steps) to the floor. Landed on my
left foot, twisted and crack went my ankle!!!
Fortunately was a simple fracture, no skin broken,
but still needed surgery and one small plate and seven
screws later, I was screwed :-) for 3 months waiting for
healing and cast removals. That was last August and
the ankle is mostly healed now.

Just was not paying attention to what I was doing. I now have a section
of the hard cast screwed to the wall in my workshop to remind me to
pay attention to what I am doing.

Marty

basilisk wrote:
I fell off a ladder yesterday, too much stuff in the way, ladder too near
vertical, in too big a hurry.

I was putting up siding and got over balanced, fortunately I escaped with
one scraped up leg and a sore shoulder(the bad one of course).

I'm too old to be making these kind of mistakes.

Think, plan, take your time, there is only one of you.

basilisk