On 10/9/01 7:48 PM, Dan Levin at djl@andlev.com wrote:
>Most towers that I have seen and/or climbed have no
>fall protection system installed. The climber uses a
>fall protection lanyard, either with a single clip or
>a forked lanyard with two clips. In either case, you
>either have to climb unprotected (efficient, but very
>dangerous), or clip and unclip every couple of steps
>up and down the tower. With a single lanyard, every
>unclip to move your protection is risky. With a
>double lanyard you don't have the risk, but you still
>have the hassle of moving your protection every
>couple of steps.
>
>In at least some (maybe all, I don't know)
>professional tower installations, a permanent fall
>protection system is put in place. These systems use
>a track or cable to provide 100% continuous fall
>protection to the climber.
Don't you need a double-lanyard system to climb safely to install the
fall protection system? Don't you spend the a lot of time on the tower
when erecting it? (In which case, the fall protection system would not
yet be installed)
>The summary is that for around $200 ($116 for the
>Microloc, $35 for the cable, a few bucks for the
>clamps, spacers, etc.), I have a full time reliable
>fall protection system. In the context of a multi-
>thousand dollar tower system, $200 seems well worth
>it.
A fall arrest lanyard, and a short safety lanyard can be had for little
more than $100 from places like Champion Radio.
I climb with three: a 6' fall arrest, a 3' rope lanyard that I use as my
safety when I reposition the fall arrest, and an adjustable belt lanyard.
I got all my climb safety gear from Champion Radio for less than $300. It
was one of my first purchases, right after the tower sections themselves.
Well worth it.
I don't mind the constant repositioning of the clips. But then, my tower
is short (44 feet). I have seen experienced tower guys free-climb and
then belt-in. That makes me nervous just watching them from the ground.
Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL Mail: aa4lr@arrl.net
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
-- Wilbur Wright, 1901
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