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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 bei …

Ladder Safety for Pest Control Technicians A pest control route runs ten to fifteen stops a day, and most of them involve a ladder for three minutes. That ratio is exactly what makes ladder injuries common in the trade: short climbs, unfamiliar houses, wet grass and a tech in a hurry to make the next appointment. Eaves, Soffits and Wasp Work Paper wasps and mud daubers build under eaves, in soffits and behind shutters, which puts the work at 10 to 20 feet on a two-story house. A 24 foot extensi …

Ladders for Restaurant and Hotel Maintenance A restaurant or hotel maintenance tech works in spaces that were never designed for a ladder: a service corridor with a cart turning in it, a guest bathroom with a 7 foot ceiling, a kitchen with a hood at chin height and grease on every surface. The right ladder here is the one that fits, not the one with the highest rating. Gear That Fits a Service Corridor A 6 foot stepladder is the backbone of hospitality maintenance. It handles ceiling tiles, lig …

Ladder Setups for Garage Door Technicians A garage door technician climbs the same eight feet forty times a day. Springs, tracks, hinges and opener rails all sit at or above head height, and the difference between a good day and a bad back is whether the ladder lets the tech stand square to the work with both hands free. The Work Is Overhead, Not Up High Residential ceilings run 8 to 10 feet, and the torsion spring sits roughly 6.5 to 7 feet above the floor on a standard door. That puts the spr …

Ladders and Scaffolding for Deck Builders A deck is the one exterior job where the work sits at chest height instead of overhead, and that changes everything about access. Crews still hurt themselves on decks, mostly by reaching sideways off a stepladder with a nail gun in one hand and a board in the other. Deck Height Decides the Tool Most Dallas decks sit between 24 and 36 inches above grade, which sounds like ground work until the rim joist, the band and the railing posts all land at three t …