Better Safe than Sorry: Painting Home Exterior Walls

Painting home exterior walls can bring a house back to life from the dead, boring, and outdated color of previous years. It may seem like a simple project, but many find out that painting home exterior walls takes time, effort, and skill. Not to mention, it takes steady nerves to ascend and work from lengthy extension ladders near the roof of your home. Nevertheless, if you are set on getting the job done yourself, you will have to know a few things to provide the safest work environment possible. This will ensure that you get the painting of your home exterior without any injuries or fatalities.

Getting the Right Ladder for the Project

For painting home exterior, you will need a fully functioning ladder. Make sure that you inspect any ladder before use. If you find that the ladder that you intend to perform the job with is damaged or need repair, make sure that you get it repaired or replaced before determining it is safe for use. Along with being functional, the ladder must be able to perform safely. To do so, the ladder you need must be long enough to offer the reach you need to paint even the highest areas on your home. Because it is extremely unsafe to move a ladder during use, the ladder should offer enough height where it is used. A good rule of thumb is to use an extension ladder that is at least one foot higher than the structure being ascended. This means if the roof of your home is 12 feet, the extension ladder should extend at least 13. Additionally, choose a ladder that is rated for the weight of both you and the materials you will ascend the ladder with. There are a number of different safety ratings, some ladders offering up to 375 pounds of load capacity. To choose the right extension ladder for your home exterior painting project, visit our website to check out our inventory of Werner products.

Setting up for Safe Use

Now that you have the right ladder, you’ll have to know how to safely set it up for proper use. Since you’ll be outside, make sure to choose a day that is offering nice weather. Too much wind or rain can increase the risk of slips and falls, and the more you can prevent an accident the more you set yourself up for a safe ladder experience. Also, make sure to always place your ladder on dry, level ground. This will ensure that your ladder does not slip or move while you are working on it. Extension ladders are single-sided, meaning they have to rest upon your home for you to climb it. To be safe enough to use without threat of slipping, the ladder should be angled properly. The suggested angle is 2:1; for every two feet of ladder, one foot should be added to the length from the home to the feet of the ladder. This will provide the needed angle to ascend the ladder safely and efficiently.

Using your Ladder Safely While Painting Home Exterior

After choosing your ladder and setting up for safe use, now you must perform safe use. To assure this, make sure to always use the 3 out of 4 rule. This means that all time, 3 of four of your limbs should be touching the ladder at all times during ascension and dissension. This will assure that is you are to slip, you have the best chance of regaining balance and preventing a fall. Additionally, if you are going to be working from extreme heights like a two story building, think about investing in a fall arrest system. This is a harness system that uses a lanyard, rope, and roofing anchor to offer fall security from heights that could potentially take a life. In fact, OSHA requires that any job over the height of 10 require additional safety equipment. Especially if you are new to ladders or are climbing to great heights to perform home exterior painting, make sure to use a safety harness system, which can be purchased on our website.

Have questions about painting exterior home safety or our products designed to keep you safe throughout your home renovation projects? Give us a call today at 1-800-833-0800.

 

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