Making Your Roof Accident-Proof

While the home is where the heart is as the famous saying implies, our home is also our haven against the elements. It keeps everyone safe from harm and provides shelter, safety, and security that we all desperately need. All parts of our house are important because, without one, our house won’t stand tall and proud. This time, let us focus our attention on the roof. It’s the part of the house we seldom think of because it is often out of our sight but it actually offers the most protection to us all.

The roof is our first-line of defense against many natural hazards like the rain, wind, sun, snow, and many others but it can also be one of the most vulnerable. It is why a good quality roof is essential to maintain the integrity of your home. Other times, you may need to go up your roof to check on something but end up falling and hurting yourself. This is also an important issue that we need to tackle as more houses and buildings are constructed each year that we need to ensure all workers stay safe whenever they are working on top of a high structure.

Falls make up more half of all construction-related injuries and deaths, and continue to present one of the biggest risks to employees in construction roles. The period between 1999 and 2007 recorded 580 construction-related fatalities in the UK. This averages at 73 fatal accidents a year, with 41 of these being falls. Several recent high-profile incidents of skylight accidents have brought increased attention to the danger, as have the significant fines and penalties construction managers have been facing. Risk of fall is one of the biggest safety concerns of roofing work, so consider what added measures can be put in place to make a roof a safe place to work.

Many people have been injured or even died because of roof-related accidents. Most of the time, these mishaps were preventable but still, preventive measures were not taken and resulted in one accident after the other.

Safety checks of staff equipment and working environment should be carried out with regularity, every day preferably, and any potential health and safety risks addressed immediately. Similarly, possession and condition of staff safety equipment should also be checked with stringency, and ill-equipped staff should not be permitted to work. Suitability and condition of hard hats, boots, gloves and other protective equipment should be checked regularly.

Ensuring safe working conditions for staff should be every manager’s priority, and this means good all-around oversight of the work environment and its contents. Introducing a quality control routine helps staff to look out for and spot potential safety hazards, and shares the responsibility of health and safety among the team. Establishing a company culture of top-notch health and safety should be the main objective when looking to improve roof safety.

(Via: https://www.shponline.co.uk/ensuring-health-and-safety-when-working-on-a-roof/)

Other times, you may find yourself in deep waters when a fallen tree goes through your roof during major disasters. How will you be able to save yourself from such a major headache?

And if a tree falls on your house, take basic measures to limit damage — but only if it’s safe.

“If there’s a leaking roof … if it’s safe to do so, limit the damage that’s being caused,” Sarkissian said. “… Of course, safety is the No. 1 priority,” he said. “If there’s a raging storm, raging winds, heavy rain, we remind people that safety has to come first.”

What else can you do to prepare for this weekend’s weather onslaught, if you haven’t already?

Plenty, said Erik Larson, an Allstate insurance agent in the Tacoma area for nearly 27 years.

Now is a good time to secure outdoor furniture, barbecues and other outdoor items.

“Make sure there’s nothing dangerous in proximity to the house, other structures or vehicles,” he said. “Sadly, it’s a little too late to do much pruning.”

Clearing storm drains can prevent localized flooding, he said. And buying a few sheets of plywood might not be a bad idea.

“You never know if you have to do some emergency repairs,” he said. “Something could easily come through a window. You want to be able to board it up pretty quickly and safely.”

(Via: http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/weather/article108161687.html)

Accidents do happen. For instance, there is little you can do when calamity strikes but to pick up the broken pieces and rebuild your life. You may be overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problem but you can make progress by taking one step at a time.

Survey the scene and assess the damage. Is your life in danger by this tree that went through your roof? Has the weather cleared up? Is it now safe to go outside or better to stay indoors? After knowing the answer to these questions, formulate your next step and make sure the inside of your house don’t suffer from more damage because of the gaping hole above you. Every problem has a solution and all you need to do is to ask for help if the problem at hand is beyond what you can manage.

At least twice per year, property managers should inspect and conduct maintenance on their roofs. An inspection in the spring will identify any damage that occurred over the winter months, and an inspection in the fall will ensure the roof is ready for harsh winter conditions.

When conducting the inspection, take a plan of the roof and note the locations of any anomalous conditions. The results of previous inspections can be used to determine whether the roof has deteriorated since the last inspection. Photographs can also be used to document changes in the condition of the roof over time.

Roof safety

A roof can be a dangerous place. Do not conduct roofing inspections in high winds, and never walk backwards on a roof; always watch where you are going. Unless the roof has a parapet at least 42 inches (1070 millimetres) high or a fixed guardrail, the Occupational Health and Safety Act requires that you do not get closer to the edge than two metres (six feet, six inches).

(Via: https://www.reminetwork.com/articles/15135/)

Protect you and your family from the dangers of any break in the integrity of your roof. Remember that anything inside your home can get damaged or you may even end up injured if your home doesn’t do its job of protecting everyone inside the house. Moreover, people who work in construction sites or other service-oriented jobs that entail them to work on top of roofs should also be wary of the dangers of falling. They should know what to do and what to avoid during working hours so as to prevent becoming another casualty of an accident that can claim your life when working on top of high places.

This link http://sandiego.preciseroofing.net/roof-installation/ can help you understand more about roof installation and even do the job for you, so you no longer get your hands dirty or risk injuring yourself in the process. Spring is the perfect time to check on the status of your roof and how it has weathered the rough seasons in the previous months because the weather has improved and the sun shines brightly again.

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