# Forum Home Renovation General Odds & Sods  How to stay safe on my roof?

## wookiebreath

Hello, 
Recently moved into a two story house... it appears that the pool solar heating system has a leak and the gutters are full of leaves. 
I'm wondering what things I can do to make sure I stay safe on the roof? 
I had someone come in to fix the TV reception and that bloke just hopped straight up there with his dunlop volleys on..... me I think I'd prefer to be tied to something just to be on the safe side... but I'm not exactly sure how to go about it. 
Cheers
Wook. 
PS: it's a colorbond roof

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## Bleedin Thumb

Magnetic boots!  
I'm thinking along the lines of Wallace and Grommets "The Wrong Trousers - also eliminates the need for a ladder to get up there.

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## wookiebreath

> Magnetic boots!

  Hmmm nice idea... can I get those at Bunnings?

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## echnidna

Do a safe working at heights course at Tafe

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## Sturdee

> Hmmm nice idea... can I get those at Bunnings?

  No, but you can buy magnets, rare earth ones are best, and glue them onto your own boots.  
Peter.

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## wookiebreath

> No, but you can buy magnets, rare earth ones are best, and glue them onto your own boots.

  If I wear Steel caps then I can save money on glue... thanks for the suggestion  :Biggrin:     

> Do a safe working at heights course at Tafe

  That is an option I'm happy to explore a little more... is that something of a similar length to a St Johns Ambulance first aid course?? Or is it more involved than that?

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## wheelinround

get a mate round the other side of the house to throw a rope over to you scale the walls and he can hang on to the rope incase you fall 
if no mates just ask one of the forum members they'll be around in seconds to help you out. 
They are great Blokes.

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## Bleedin Thumb

> get a mate round the other side of the house to throw a rope over to you scale the walls and he can hang on to the rope incase you fall

  A word of warning using the above suggestion...  
Make sure that your mate is heavier than yourself! :Rolleyes:

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## wheelinround

> A word of warning using the above suggestion...  
> Make sure that your mate is heavier than yourself!

  Don't tell him that BT would make great Youtube video
besides he has to be able to grab the rope and hang on he'll need gloves

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## munruben

> Hello, 
> Recently moved into a two story house... it appears that the pool solar heating system has a leak and the gutters are full of leaves.
> I'm wondering what things I can do to make sure I stay safe on the roof?
> I had someone come in to fix the TV reception and that bloke just hopped straight up there with his dunlop volleys on..... me I think I'd prefer to be tied to something just to be on the safe side... but I'm not exactly sure how to go about it.
> PS: it's a colorbond roof

  I wouldn't advise anyone to go on a double story house roof unless you are experienced, i have been working (roof painting) over 40 years on roofs and it can be quite dangerous if you don't know what you are doing.
If you must go on it, make sure that you don't go on the roof while it is damp from the overnight dew, (wet roofs are treacherous unless they have been water blasted to get rid of years of scum build up)  so make sure the roof is dry.
make sure your ladder is long enough to go past the gutters about a meter to give you better access off the ladder to the roof, easier to get off the roof too.
Wear good sneakers with good gripping soles, the Dunlop Volleys are excellent for this.
Don't over reach if you are cleaning the gutters off the ladder. If you are afraid of heights, don't attempt getting on the roof. call in an expert to do the work.
I have worked on roofs, as I said for over 40 years and still do from time to time and I had never slipped until about 5 months ago and broke my arm and wrist. I was lucky not to come off the roof. My brother in law who was my partner, fell of a roof he was working on and died.
Holding or being tied to a rope will give you confidence but in the event of you slipping, you can do yourself serious injury just from the fall on the roof. Believe me when you slip, you get no warning, you fall like a ton of bricks. So please be careful.
If you are going to work off the ladder to clean your gutters, get a mate to stand at the bottom of the ladder and hold it for you or even stand on the bottom rung to stop the ladder from slipping.  If you just be careful, you should not have any problems.

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## durwood

You can buy safety harnesses to wear if you are going onto a roof. It mandatory for workers working high up now with the OH&S rules.  
My place is 2 story and I have been up on it lots of times over a 25 year period, always wear a good sneekers or bare feet. I've also got a good ladder to do the gutters but as we don't have any trees close to the house they rarely need fixing. I have a special timber fixture I clamp to the top of the ladder to stop it slipping especially after an alumimium ladder I was using blew down when I was up there. 
Weelinround's suggestion about using a rope reminded me of a story I saw in the paper a few years ago. 
A guy went up on his roof to repair something and used a rope which he tied onto the tow bar of his car. He threw it over the roof and edged down the other side to where he wanted to work. His wife came out hopped in the  car and towed him up over the roof  ond down onto the driveway. 
He survived but was in a bad way when they took him to hospital.

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## wookiebreath

> I wouldn't advise anyone to go on a double story house roof unless you are experienced.....
>  Holding or being tied to a rope will give you confidence but in the event of you slipping, you can do yourself serious injury just from the fall on the roof. Believe me when you slip, you get no warning, you fall like a ton of bricks. So please be careful.

  Thanks for the excellent response... I think perhaps caution may be the best policy here... and I will get someone around to do it (the first time at least)..    

> You can buy safety harnesses to wear if you are going onto a roof. It mandatory for workers working high up now with the OH&S rules.

  I'd be happy to get a harness but I can't see where you would connect the safety rope other than on the ground somewhere at the other side of the house... I also imagine that the one time that you do slip will be the time that you have played out the rope enough so you can reach the corner of the roof and then you'd fall 10 foot anyway before the slack of the rope kicked in  :Shock:

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## Wild Dingo

> Thanks for the excellent response... I think perhaps caution may be the best policy here... and I will get someone around to do it (the first time at least)..

  There you are then... the voice of sanity reaches inside your head and you say the exact right thing!! Workplace deaths and severe injury are on the rise and home warrior handyman injury and death are going up at an ever increasing rate... so best policy that allows you to come home to your loved ones at the end of a job dictates that you get someone to learn from.   

> I'd be happy to get a harness but I can't see where you would connect the safety rope other than on the ground somewhere at the other side of the house... I also imagine that the one time that you do slip will be the time that you have played out the rope enough so you can reach the corner of the roof and then you'd fall 10 foot anyway before the slack of the rope kicked in

  When you do get the hang of this please DONT SCRIMP on the safety harness ropes and other gear!! DONT... get the best you can quite simply its your life and limbs your risking up there. 
Of and on over the last 40 years Ive worked on roofs from double storys in Perth to bloody great 100ft high places on mines in the territory... and although most back in the 70s 80s and even much of the 90s you just shot up and got to work... if an accident happened it happened... nowadays Im older and I reckon smarter  :Wink 1:  and wont go up unless the best damned saftey gear is in place!! 
regarding the bloke being pulled over the house by his missus when the rope was connected to the tow bar... a mate of mine on a job in the bush about 20 years back with an young offsider did much the same thing told the kid to get ready to buggar of to get lunch (a short trip to town) and he would finish up... the kid got down on the ground the wind was picking up the mate called out to the kid kid that he wouldnt be long the kid thought he meant for him to buggar of and get the lunches kid raced to the front of the truck and started up... took off... with mate still harnessed to the rope still nail gunning timbers in place... mates head collided with the roof main beam causing massive injuries to his cranium scrunching his neck compressing his spine nail gun kept shooting nails ending up with 10 in his leg one in his groin and two in his stomach... landed on the ground and was dragged the short distance to town. 
mate ended up with a severe brain injury a broken neck and back permanently quadraplegic no skin on his legs and his stomach hanging out... the nails caught on shyte as he was dragged along... he should have died a dozen deaths but survives... just... well he exists in a world that no one else can visit and where he knows no one fed through a tube on a hosital bed... but he lived through it... along with everything else he lost his fiance and their baby she to give her her due stuck with him as long as she could but the injuries where in the end too much for her and the bub so she went on with her life... without him... the young fella commited suicide a month later 
That kids death was the pivot that got me into becoming a counsellor... that kid was my nephew. 
Remember mate shyte things can happen to good people 
Take care of yourself mate... do it safe do it right and come home at the end of the day.

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## pharmaboy2

jeeeezuus!  tying off to a towbar- the risk seems so obvious - I suppose he neglected to take the keys with him....... 
Personally I've got a 150ft rope that is tied off to a pier on the oppposite side to the working side and tied tight enough round the waist so it cant pass the shoulders or the hips - enough slack to reach the gutter at a stretch (to reach the inevitabl;e dropped chisel!) and no more -  if a rope grabs you once you are over the edge, it may not save you - lots of safety harnesses can cause death hanging from them for an hour or 2 (blood restriction to the lower body). 
I think the main thing is to be so well set up that you arent likely to untie just to do that last little bit at the end of the day - so sometimes a lanyard can be useful to work off, but again, I never use ropes as a way of working - if you start hanging off it with your weight, then its now a potential cause of a fall, and not a safety device - oh and 4*2's screwed into a steel roof through the existing roof screws makes a real slippery roof into quite a manageable thing for a longer job. 
As in above posts, if you are scared or dont feel confident then get someone who is - the guy sliding on his ???? down a tile roof cause he's scared of falling is a greater danger by far than the guy strolling in his volleyslike he owns the place.

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## China

The best way to stay safe while working on the roof is to have someone else do it for you

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## Eli

I work high for a living. I climb all kinds of things. I do alot of roofs, but I'm used to them, and often wear no gear. Liability issues are making this change in every industry. I'm often bridging over open spans with a 40-75 foot drop and even in a harness, the sweat breaks out on my forehead for the first 3-5 minutes every time. I regard this reaction as healthy. I've never been hurt because I'm scared every time, and I channel this fear into caution while proceeding with work. I would advise you to proceed with caution, look into available safety equipment. Just to put it into perspective, my top of the line fall arrest harness and lanyard ONLY were about US$400. You'd also need a good climber's line and ascension tools.....another 200-300 minimum.  http://www.treeclimbing.com/content/blogcategory/39/82/ 
Depends a lot on how you are with height as well....
It is a lot easier to get somebody else to do it.

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## Munga

I have an old Queenslander two story with a very steep and slippery tin roof and when younger and gamer it was no problems to work on but as one gets older the nerves get a little worse so I installed a large ring bolt at the peak of the roof with a stainless steel cable permanently attached that I tie onto when I ever have to go up.
It's a good feeling leaning back working and knowing that you're securely tied on, I also use a good quality safety harness.
Arch

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## wheelinround

Hi Wookie if you have the access around the house you can hire a small cheerypicker http://www.infolink.com.au/articles/...ker_z70344.htm
or maybe on of these just for doing the gutters http://www.infolink.com.au/articles/...ift_z70434.htm 
they can be towed behind a car or placed on a trailer and towed no idea of costs but a quick phone call would sort that out. 
Ray 
Having lived in a 2 storey place prior the wheelchair we had to get a contractor in to clean out the roof as birds nests had been infested with lice and other bitties, he came with just an extension ladder and no assistant  :Doh:  twice he nearly fell he was at the apex of the roof not a thig tograb hold of no saftey equipment t all.
He  leared out 2 large garbage bags of nest.  This guy was a handy man through the estate agent he came back later to repair/replace a cracked tile he gained access through the roof removing tiles to do so  :No:  to which he broke 3 more tiles and we suffered even more water damage or should I say the owner did. 
I helped build a factory extention for the company i was working for at the time when younger about 18 yrs old 
33 foot side walls sheeting the roof with gal roof sheets long as buggery. all we had on was overalls they went after the first lunch break shorts n tee's after that we were all sunburnt lobsters) sneakers and gloves no harness no scaffold to get down for lunch or finish we jsut used the gloves and slid down the farmes. 
Then the years of clambering roofs of buses and coaches while spraying them nothing but scaffolding some times to stopp the fall generally just a ladder.

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## Geebung

:Shock:  Some frightening stories here...especially Dingo's (that must have been tough for all involved) ...it really does pay to have a good think about things before you go and do them...taking a few minutes to think about the outcomes of your actions really can save your life. 
I recently had the exterior of my house painted...before painting one of the gables I asked the painter how he was going to do it...he said that he would just climb up and stand on the roof (we had an extension put in a while ago that juts out from the gable, you can access it by standing on the roof of the extension). I thought that a little dangerous as I had been up on the roof a few times and always used a harness and rope attached to a fence post...and even then I would slip and slide on the roof. 
When it came time to paint the gables he asked me if I had any cordial...I said "no but if you are thirsty I have some mineral water"...he said he didn't want a drink, he wanted the cordial for his shoes. He wanted to coat the soles of his shoes with the cordial concentrate...sticks like glue he reckoned. I didn't have cordial but did find some concentrated apple juice...which turned out to be just as sticky. 
I thought this to be a quirky but innovative tip. However, while the sticky shoes may stop you from sliding they won't stop you from tripping or stumbling and then plummeting to the ground below.  
Always, ALWAYS, think of your safety first...your LIFE is ALWAYS worth more than quality safety gear or getting someone more qualified to do the job.

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## wookiebreath

> Hi Wookie if you have the access around the house you can hire a small cheerypicker http://www.infolink.com.au/articles/...ker_z70344.htm
> or maybe on of these just for doing the gutters http://www.infolink.com.au/articles/...ift_z70434.htm

  Cherry Pickers appear to be $200 for 4 hours...
That man lifter thing might be the go though... its only $80 for 4 hours...

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## Draffa

> Remember mate shyte things can happen to good people

  And rarely happen to bad people.  

> I have an old Queenslander two story with a very steep and slippery tin roof and when younger and gamer it was no problems to work on but as one gets older the nerves get a little worse so I installed a large ring bolt at the peak of the roof with a stainless steel cable permanently attached that I tie onto when I ever have to go up.

  That's what I'm planning to do to my place.  

> Hi Wookie if you have the access around the house you can hire a small cheerypicker Kennards Hire introduces new cherry picker

  I paid $220 for 4 hour hire of a 'little' tow-behind cherry picker from R&R Hire.  Best thing I've spent money on so far (but make sure you've got something that can tow it.  I reckon I was pretty much at the limit of the little old Hilux).  :Smilie:

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## Moondog55

I have to ask why OH&S certified gear is so bloody expensive when climbing gear is so cheap in comparison??
Some-one somewhere is making far too much money on the certification business.
Safety harness should cost about 50- all it is a 8 dollars worth of polyester webbing and a couple of 55 cent buckles and a 4 dollar tie in and takes about 2 minute to stitch up on a decent machine.
yes wear a harness but unless you need to and it  is tax deductable do not waste your hard earned cash, get the cheapest and lightest alpine climbing harness you can find or even better and cheaper and just as comfortable and safe would be a swami belt. 
Where you should not scrimp on is the rope, buy the best rope you can, but you should not need an Alpine rated 11 / 12 or 13mm rope as you are not likely to fall more than a few meters, 8mm CLIMBING rope will be more than adequate, do not use anything but climbing rope with a climbing harness

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## Black Cat

I have a roof ladder. Basically it hooks over the ridge line and you can climb up it like a real ladder but at less of a slope.  Works for me, but i have an internal gutter so can move it around on the outer slope while I am on the inner slope. If I slip there, I land in the gully and no harm done (except to the gully). Always have some one to hand to call the ambulance if you need one.

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## stevoh741

gone are the days where you connect the garden hose and through it over the roof to hang from on the other side.......

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## Moondog55

Having a harness and safety lanyard is a reasonably good idea but can you imagine hanging there until someone noticed you or heard the screams for help, put you r mobile or portable in your pocket so you can call )000(  or learn how to self rescue using prussicks or jumars

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## Ken-67

Blackcat got here first, but that was my thinking; get a roof ladder. By far the safest. Incidentally, here in Qld, H&S regulations require a safety barrier be built around a roof before any work commences. An expensive excercise for the home owner, but certainly safer for tradesment traipsing around up there, especially on the heights of some of these Queenslanders.

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## Handyjack

With a lot of buildings, the time and cost of the work is small in comparison to the cost of the access and safety precautions. It would be nice if you could get a boom lift in to access all walls and gutters of your buildings. Yes there is a cost, but there is also a cost for injuries.

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## manofaus

If you plan on doing the job yourself, you can make plates that you use your tek screws to hold down, which you can connect a fall prevention line and harness to. Put them up from your ladder. (one on each end of your ridge line, and then throw a rope over between the two) The idea is not to stop you when you fall, but prevent you from going over the edge. Climbing harness are not designed to haul you from the side, middle of the chest or the middle of you back. If you are in a harness and fall and are suspended you can still die in 6 minutes if your weight is supported by the inside of your legs. Cuts off the blood flow. If you do get into a harness make sure someone knows you are doing it and observes you.

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## autogenous

I believe the regulations are in some states that eyelets are fixed in the ridge line over a certain pitch.  When someone is on the roof they wear a rope attached to the nearest eyelet with a harness to prevent a fall. 
Always walk on the battens more so where they intersect with the rafters.

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