Ladders and Scaffolds for Fence Contractors

Ladders and Scaffolds for Fence Contractors

Fence work looks like ground work until the top rail goes on. Six and eight foot privacy fences are built from both faces, the outside face usually belongs to a neighbor, and the last two feet of a picket run is the part that hurts people.

Privacy Fence Height and the Right Stepladder

A six foot privacy fence puts the top rail at six feet and the picket tips at six and a half. That is exactly the height where an ordinary five foot stepladder stops being useful and an eight foot one is more ladder than the job needs.

Our Werner Type IA fiberglass stepladder in the 8 foot size is $189 and sets the working platform at the top rail without reaching over it, which is the difference between driving a screw and fighting one.

Six foot ladders work for rails and most pickets. Keep one 8 foot ladder per crew rather than per man, and stage it at the rail line while the rest of the run goes up from the ground.

Working the Outside Face

Neighbor side work is where fence crews get hurt and where complaints come from. A ladder set in a flower bed, on a slope, or against a fence that is not fully fastened is a fall waiting to happen.

Set the feet on firm ground and never on the picket stack. When the ground falls away, a leg leveler or a block under one foot beats a helper holding the ladder.

If the neighbor is home and the fence line runs tight to their house, work the outside face from a scaffold on your side and reach over, rather than asking for access you may not get.

Gates, Posts and Heavy Hardware

A gate is the heaviest part of a fence and the part that gets worked at chest and head height. Hanging a six foot gate on a post at the property line usually needs two people and a temporary support.

Our Baker scaffold unit at $229 is the tool fence crews borrow once and then buy, because it rolls along the line and holds the gate at the right height while the hinges are set.

Add the set of four outriggers at $87.80 on any lot with slope. Most residential lots in Frisco and Prosper are graded, and a rolling unit on a grade is a unit that walks while a gate swings.

Commercial and Steel Fence

Commercial runs are eight to ten feet of steel or ornamental, with posts set in concrete and panels bolted at height. That is scaffold work, not ladder work, and it usually runs along a property line with a sidewalk on one side.

A frame set with planks gives a continuous platform along the run, and a rolling unit moves between bays. Either way, the traffic side needs cones and a spotter before anyone climbs.

Outfitting a Fence Crew

Most fence crews run one 8 foot fiberglass stepladder per truck, one 6 foot ladder for gates and rails, and a Baker unit with outriggers for gates and commercial runs.

Tell us the fence height and whether the lot is graded and we will put the list together.

Everything ships from 5030 Dexham Rd. Ste. 103 in Rowlett, TX, and local crews can pick up the same day. Call 972-331-1090 and we will tell you what is on the floor right now.