# How safe are you when doing house repair?



## ownerbuilder2012 (Sep 27, 2012)

Hi everyone, 

There's no doubt that you've done a couple of house repair, but how do you keep it safe? 

How do you keep your work safe?


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## nealtw (Sep 27, 2012)

Read the books, watch the videos and ask questions. So you have some idea what to expect before you start ripping and taring. And keep a broom in the left hand to keep the work area clean.


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## ownerbuilder2012 (Sep 27, 2012)

I agree with this, every home repair is different from the other, and also requires different safety procedures.


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## drewdin (Sep 28, 2012)

pay attention to what you are doing, measure twice and cut once, if your not sure about something stop and find out how, dont just guess. People laugh at me but I wear standard PPE depending on what Im doing, steel toe, hard hat, glasses and respirator if its dusty/ insulation work. I plan on enjoying the house when im done


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## Wuzzat? (Sep 28, 2012)

Not in any particular order:

Think of as many ways to do a task as you can.  If there is a tool that allows you yet another way, get it.  After a while this thought process will become automatic.

Avoid a fall of over 14' at all costs.

Get accounts of accidents from OSHA and try to figure out all the wrong assumptions the injured person made.  Foreseen is forewarned  is forearmed.

Understand basic physics so you have some idea of forces and the directions of those forces.  If a car weighs 3000# and has a front:rear weight distribution of 60:40 you should know what each tire is carrying.
Understand Center of Gravity.

Lift weights so you are better able to control power and hand tools.

Do not endanger or injure bystanders because it will make you unpopular.

People who feel guilty, and masochists, may be accident-prone; if you ruminate about couldas, wouldas and shouldas, be careful.

It is possible to scratch your cornea even if you wear glasses.

As safety increases, productivity decreases.  This is a zero-sum-game that labor and management play every day.

If you want to see some of your bones without the benefit of an X-ray you can use a table saw with the guard removed.

As to hand injuries, 
-degloving
-shotgun wound to the palm
and
-cement mixers 
are all pretty effective.

The risks and consequences vary depending on your age.

For a legal angle on this, search on "proximate cause."  For general risks, try
http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsb2254.pdf


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## ownerbuilder2012 (Sep 28, 2012)

drewdin said:


> pay attention to what you are doing, measure twice and cut once, if your not sure about something stop and find out how, dont just guess. People laugh at me but I wear standard PPE depending on what Im doing, steel toe, hard hat, glasses and respirator if its dusty/ insulation work. I plan on enjoying the house when im done



Nothing is wrong about wearing PPE, even if you're dealing with minor house repairs or projects.

Think about it, safety glasses would look better on you than an eye patch.


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## CallMeVilla (Oct 1, 2012)

Stay focused at all times, particularly around power tools.
Stay alert about the position of your hands in relation to nail guns.
Wear steel tipped boots
Wear gloves whenever possible
Pay attention to slipping and falling hazards
Turn off the power before wiring
Test every circuit for energy before touching them

The list is sooooo long


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## Wuzzat? (Oct 3, 2012)

On the measure twice/cut once, no measurement is perfect and usually the penalty for being oversize is much worse than being undersize, or vice versa.  I usually write down a desired dimension along with a reasonable max and min dims.  

And if the workpiece is not in your workshop, take digital photos.  There is always some dim that you should have written down that you didn't.


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## ownerbuilder2012 (Oct 3, 2012)

Wuzzat? said:


> On the measure twice/cut once, no measurement is perfect and usually the penalty for being oversize is much worse than being undersize, or vice versa.  I usually write down a desired dimension along with a reasonable max and min dims.
> 
> And if the workpiece is not in your workshop, take digital photos.  There is always some dim that you should have written down that you didn't.




I'm also very particular with this. It is very common rule when you're working on a project. A mistake in measure can be costly, undersize or oversize.


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## nealtw (Oct 3, 2012)

Anyone can be perfect, it takes a pro to hide the mistakes.


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## Wuzzat? (Oct 4, 2012)

nealtw said:


> Anyone can be perfect, it takes a pro to hide the mistakes.


That's pretty good. . .

Plus, you said the magic word
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfectionism_(psychology)


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## notmrjohn (Oct 4, 2012)

Lift with knees not the back. Get help on heavy things. A spotter helps when moving things. Clear the path before carrying anything to anywhere. Have an escape path. Do not lean too far out from ladder keep hips between sides of ladder. Do not climb too high on ladder when working from it, shoulders below end of ladder.

Let someone know where you are and what you're doing, about how long job will take. Have someone within shouting distance. Have cell phone on person, easily accesable, speed dial for emergency service.

check extension cords for abrasions etc. ,ake sure it is grounded. Never assume a circuit is dead, check it with meter or circuit tester.  Unplug appliances when working on them even if circuit breaker is off, someone could turn it on.

See my sig line. About the watch the fence, be aware of where blade is, never reach over it.  Use a push stick and feather boards. Before unplugging any tool or machine make sure it is off. If it comes to life when you plug it in, someone could get hurt.


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## Wuzzat? (Oct 4, 2012)

notmrjohn said:


> keep hips between sides of ladder


I've never heard of this but it's more like "keep your belly button within the ladder rails."

"
Conclusion
A person's center of mass is slightly below his/her belly button, which is nearly the geometric center of a person.
Males and females have different centers of mass- females' centers of mass are lower than those of males.[probably because males have more upper body strength and muscles are heavy]
"
Holding a heavy tool at arm's length outside the ladder rails may also be pushing your luck.
The stability of ladders other than stepladders seems to depend strongly on the friction of the ladder against the surface it is leaning on.

BTW, I did reach over the blade and that cost $50K with me having to pay about $12K.  
And my hand works, sort of.  Officially I am 3% crippled according to some formula.

On the upside, you get to meet a lot of nurses in a big hurry.  

On the downside, when you go under anesthesia your life is literally in the hands of people you've never met and don't know.  Just hope they are having a good day.


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## notmrjohn (Oct 4, 2012)

"A person's center of mass is slightly below his/her belly button," True if arms are down at sides,  legs straight, feet together.Raising arms raises center. outstretched arm moves center in that direction. leaning out to side on ladder some people move feet opposite way to wedge against rail, holding to rail with that side hand. Even if navel in rail, much weight on leaning side plus lever action causing top of unsecured ladder to slide. Feet on leaning side puts even more weight that side and tendency to lean out even farther.  Add tool and possible soft or slippery footing for ladder. I was taught,  50 yrs ago, to keep hips inside rails.

OSHA and American Ladder Institute, just say keep the body near the middle of the rungs. If you keep belly button in center, hips shouldn't be outside rails.

Also ladder feet should be about 1/4 distance from wall as ladder rails are long.

American Ladder Institute, who knew? Wonder if they have a museum. Ancient pre-historic stone ladder, authentic piece of Jacob's ladder. great ladders in history, ladder from storming of Alamo, from Chicago fire.  ladders of celebrities, step ladder used by Mickey Rooney to kiss Ava Gardner. ladder Hall of Fame?


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## Wuzzat? (Oct 4, 2012)

notmrjohn said:


> step ladder used by Mickey Rooney to kiss Ava Gardner. ladder Hall of Fame?


She was 5' 6", he 5' 2".  I'd think he could reach most places on her without a ladder, but I wasn't there at the time.  

Seems like neither she nor Joan Collins were pleased with what services were rendered by their men.


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## notmrjohn (Oct 4, 2012)

Seems Mickey wasn't pleased by those rendered by his women. Or it coulda been vice versa in all cases.

When using a vice keep your digits outta there.


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## GloriaSmith279 (Oct 15, 2012)

Every house repair job is different. So the precautions and safety measures to be taken are different. Be sure about the procedure before you begin.


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## GloriaSmith279 (Oct 15, 2012)

And the best option would be to take professional help.


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## Wuzzat? (Oct 15, 2012)

GloriaSmith279 said:


> And the best option would be to take professional help.


This depends on how much money you have vs. how much time and tools you have vs. how much risk you are willing to take on vs. how healthy or old or strong or skilled or creative you are.

And men view disfigurement differently from women, with good reason.

For risk aversion or risk proneness, here's a test
http://www.humanmetrics.com/rot/rotqd.asp


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## notmrjohn (Oct 15, 2012)

GloriaSmith279 said:


> And the best option would be to take professional help.



I done did that, didn't help, I'm still certifiably nuts. Leaning way out from ladders, laying on roof  head hanging down to work on soffets, running with scissors, sticking tongue in light sockets to see if power is off.


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## nealtw (Oct 15, 2012)

I am alway amazed at the gutter guy standing on the edge of a roof with a 40ft gutter and leans over puts it in place and drives a screw in it. His next mistake will be his last.
Pros are just as nuts as the diyers.


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## ownerbuilder2012 (Dec 23, 2012)

Measure twice, cut once. That's the rule! If you can't follow that you'll have to pay the price.


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