On the way back from our local supermarket, we received an alarming phone call from our daughter. Her homework had been destroyed! When we discovered a water leak in her bedroom, right above her desk, we knew we needed to act quickly. Her bedroom is on the top floor, and the water landed on her desk, soaking her freshly finished homework after a recent downpour. The source of the problem was clear; our roof was leaking. We didn't want any more" excuses" for unfinished homework, so we planned to tackle the job on the weekend.
My husband is a builder and could quickly remedy the problem with his dad. But now, the scaredy-cat in me comes out. You see, I don't have a fear of heights but of falling. And it doesn't only include me; I also worry about others falling. And the idea of working at heights made me very anxious. This brings us to the following obstacle.
How to Secure Yourself on a Roof
Contrary to my fear of heights, I feel incredibly confident about my thumb and index finger strength. I imagine I can stop a 190 cm human from falling off a roof by holding the seams of a t-shirt between my thumbs and index finger. But, of course, writing this down, the overconfidence in my digits sounds even more ridiculous than I had thought. So it was clear we needed a safe solution.
As mentioned before, my husband works in construction. Of course, working at heights in a professional environment is monitored closely to avoid accidents.
But what about doing work on your own house? Let's have a look at what we will need.
The Only Way Is Up
The first issue on the agenda is determining how you will get onto your roof. Do you have easy roof access? Do you have stairs leading to a roof deck? Great! But most of us need to find out what solution works best.
Roof Access Hatch
Many office buildings, apartment buildings and other commercial buildings have a roof access hatch. Sadly, most residential buildings don't have an access hatch to the roof. But, if you are looking for easy access to your roof, it might be worth considering the installation of a roof access hatch.
Of course, you need to keep in mind that installing a roof access hatch is something you will need a builder for. You are creating a hole in your roof, so the hatch must be installed by professionals who can guarantee it functions correctly and is adequately sealed.
That being said, in our case, the hatch wasn't the best solution. A roof access hatch is a great option, but it would take too long to install. And considering the repair was urgent, we couldn't wait for the installation. But again, this is something you need to evaluate for your personal situation.
Ladder access
To get to our roof, we opted for the ladder.
I must admit, I'm not a great fan of ladders. Yes, the fear of falling off clouds my judgement, but I once fell off a ladder. No real damage was done, but ladders can be bad news when misused.
For extra safety, we got some ladder brackets installed. Ladder brackets are hooks that hold your ladder in place when working on it. They secure the ladder and prevent it from slipping or moving in any direction.
There isn't much information on their installation, but they must be installed where the ladder has a secure footing.
Now we have figured out how to get onto the roof, it's now time to find out how to secure yourself on a roof.
Climbing Gear
We know how to get onto the roof; we now need to dress to impress.
Wear comfortable clothes that are not too baggy or loose. You will need to put a harness on, so too much fabric can get in the way.
Shoes are one of the most critical elements to working safely at heights. For example, slipping and falling are extremely dangerous when working on a roof, and you can prevent this from happening by wearing shoes with adequate traction.
Last but not least, you will need a safety harness. It's needed to keep you secured to the roof in case you would slip or fall. You will need to attach the harness to the next point on the agenda.
Roof anchor points
The last things on the list are roof anchor points. They are metal brackets that do exactly as their name suggests; they anchor you to the roof.
A roof anchor point is a secure hook to which you can attach a safety line or tether.
There are two typical types of roof anchor points:
A fall restrain anchor point keeps you away from the roof's edge, whereas a fall arrest anchor point stops you from actually fitting the floor.
We had both types installed. We could do most with the restrain anchor points, as the leak was pretty much in the middle of our roof. But you never know what other issues might arise in the future.
Roof anchor points exist in many shapes and forms. You have temporal and permanent ones for concrete, rafters, rail systems, metal sheets, … the list goes on and on. So it's safe to say that every surface has a specially designed roof anchor point.
Of course, a roof anchor point needs to be installed near your access point. Make sure there is one in arm's reach of your ladder brackets or hatch so you can easily latch yourself to the roof.
Now, on to the installation.
How to install roof anchor points
This part is the easiest part of the guide. First, you need to call the professionals. But, you might ask, can't you do this by yourself?
It turns out you can't. Australian WHS/OH&S require all height safety systems to be installed and certified by a certified installer. And there is more. The system needs to be inspected annually to check its condition and confirm it's safe to use.
Lucky for us, my husband knew a Sydney-based company they work at for big projects. So we called them, and they passed by the very next day to give us a free consultation.
The roof anchor points were installed before the weekend, and we could fix the roof safely as planned.
In short
Take working at heights seriously. It's more dangerous than we often think, and bravery alone will not fix the issue.
Consider the best way to your roof, through a hatch or the ladder, and don't skimp on quality workwear, shoes and harness.
Call the professionals for a safe installation and certification of your roof safety system.
So, when you DIY up high, please be safe and consider these steps, and you'll be fine.
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