I use a Petzl professional full-body harness. They don't make the model I
have anymore, but it's pretty close to the AVAO BOD FAST. The Petzl
harnesses are lightweight compared with other industrial full body
harnesses, strong, superbly made and well-designed. They're expensive, but
it's your money or your life, right?
I use three methods to stay clipped on to the tower at all times:
First, a fall-arrest Y-lanyard attached to the rear D-ring. One of the
lanyards is always clipped to the tower as I climb. I have a Y-lanyard with
large gorilla hooks, but found they're heavy and require some hand strength
to operate, resulting in greater fatigue while climbing. I replaced that
lanyard with a Black Diamond Via Ferrata Y-lanyard with smaller, lighter,
easier-to operate hooks. The downside is that the hooks are too small to go
around the tower legs, but I'm comfortable with clipping to the rungs on my
Rohn 55 tower. When I reach my working position. I clip the two hooks as far
above my head as possible to minimize the length of a potential fall. NOTE:
As no one that I know of has reviewed use of a Via Ferrata for tower work,
use one at your own risk.
Second, I have short "Quickdraw", which is a pair of carabiners connected
with a 6" nylon strap. I clip one carabiner to my chest D-ring and clip the
other one to a tower rung when I stop climbing, either for a rest or to
place the positioning lanyard (see below.) If I don't need to move around
much when the positioning lanyard is in place, I'll leave the Quickdraw
attached.
Third, I have a Petzl adjustable-length positioning lanyard. When I reach
the work position, I clip the two fall-arrest hooks to the tower, clip on
with the Quickdraw and thread the positioning lanyard through the tower so
that it goes around the legs. It's possible to put the positioning lanyard
around outside of the tower to provide more mobility, but I question whether
that's advisable and don't do it.
As I get older, I find that clipping and unclipping the Y-lanyard hooks is
more and more fatiguing and can lead to hand cramping. So I'm seriously
considering a safety cable. It's complicated because I have three TIC rings
on the tower, so the cable would have to pass inside the rings. I'm hoping
there's a safety cable brand with standoffs of the right length to clear the
rings and brackets. So far, it looks like the Tuf-Tug cable might do the
job, and it's specifically rated for attachment to Rohn tower rungs (other
brands seem to be designed to attach to ladders with thick cross-members and
it's not clear they would safely attach to Rohn tower rungs.) Again, this is
an expensive solution, but it's my money or my life.
73, Dick WC1M
-----Original Message-----
From: Keith Dutson <kdutson@sbcglobal.net>
Sent: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 6:47 AM
To: Tower Talk <towertalk@contesting.com>
Subject: [TowerTalk] Climbing Harness
I started climbing back in 1998 when erecting my 150 foot Rohn 45 tower. My
ham friend who had been climbing for many years recommended a Miller nylon
climbing belt with two nylon gorilla hooks to attach while climbing. This
has served me well for more than twenty years, but as I get older, I am more
concerned with safety. I think it is time for a full body harness with fall
arrest. I would use the gorilla hooks attached to the fall arrest.
What are you using? I would like some advice, especially regarding fit and
comfort, as well as performance. Thanks.
73, Keith NM5G
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