Working Above Parking Garage Decks

Working Above Parking Garage Decks

A parking structure is a stack of low ceilings with open edges. Between the slab above and the deck below there are seven to eight feet of clear height, the lighting and conduit live up there, and the parapet at the edge is the only thing between a tech and a two story drop.

Seven Feet of Clearance

The clear height between decks is the constraint that decides everything. A frame scaffold will not fit standing up, and most stepladders cannot be opened under a slab without fouling the ceiling.

Our rolling steel scaffold tower at $849 for the 5 foot 8 inch frame is the size that fits under a deck with a person on it, and it rolls between bays without being taken apart.

Measure the lowest beam or sprinkler main before ordering. A tower that fits under the slab but not under the main gets abandoned halfway down a level.

Lighting, Conduit and Drainage

Garage maintenance is mostly overhead: fixture replacement, conduit straps, speaker and camera work, and the drain leaders that run along the soffit. All of it sits within reach of a short tower, which is why garages are tower work rather than ladder work.

For the fixtures over a drive aisle, work one bay at a time with cones at both ends. A rolling tower in a live garage needs a spotter who is watching cars rather than watching the work.

Parapet and Open Edge Work

Parapet work, signage, expansion joint repair and the cable rail all happen at the open edge. That is fall protection territory, not ladder territory, and the harness anchor has to be engineered rather than improvised around a post.

Our UpGear fall protection kit at $89.38 covers the harness and lifeline side, and a walk-through extension ladder at $255.68 gives a handhold at the top instead of a step onto the parapet.

Never lean a ladder against a spandrel panel or a precast edge. Those panels are not designed for a side load, and a ladder foot on a chamfered edge is a slip.

Stair Towers and Lower Levels

Lower levels are darker, wetter and often have a lower clear height than the top deck. A Werner aluminum extension ladder in the 24 foot size at $360 reaches the underside of a ramp or a high soffit that the tower cannot get to.

Drain the deck before setting any ladder. Standing water on a sealed slab is the most common slip in a garage, and it hides the rebar patches that make a foot rock.

Outfitting a Garage Crew

The usual garage kit is one 5 foot 8 inch rolling tower, one aluminum extension ladder for ramps and soffits, one walk-through ladder for parapet access, and a fall protection kit kept with the tower.

Tell us the clear height and whether the work is over a drive aisle and we will size it.

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.