9 Professional Painting Tips That Can Save Your Life

Professional painting Safety tips you should know before starting. Are you properly equipped physically and with the proper equipment to handle your exterior painting project?  

The following equipment considerations are important for your safety and productive work.

1. Buy and install ladder levelers on your ladders. Over 70 % of all ladder accidents are caused by make shift props for ladders. Levelers attach securely to the legs of your ladders providing a very secure fit. Safety minded and production oriented painting companies use them. Good quality levelers make your ladder a lot more stable and greatly reduce your risk of injury. Once you have them installed they will last for a long time. They will provide safety for all your outdoor painting projects. They will increase your production significantly. They are well worth every penny you spend on them.One other thing you will want to consider. Ladder levelers will save you a lot of time. You will not be constantly trying to fit something under the leg of the ladder. This in itself is well worth the investment.
2. Do you have the proper range of ladders to safely reach all areas of your house? Professional painting companies usually have the following range in ladders as standard equipment. Coming from a professional painting perspective, I recommend a 6 foot step ladder , a 20 ft extension, a 28 ft extension, and a 36 ft extension ladder if your house is needs a ladder this size. This range will allow you to comfortably reach all areas of your house that are accessible with ladders. The advertised length of a ladder is not the actual accessible length. The lap of your ladder when fully extended will reduce its reach by 3 or 4 feet. As an example, a 28 foot rated ladder will only extend about 24 or 25 feet. Also you have to consider that you are going to lose a couple more feet when you place the foot of the ladder out from the side of your house to give you a proper angle to safely climb the ladder. A 28 ft ladder will only give you about 20 to 22 feet access.
3. Buy the correct drop cloths for the project? Canvas drop cloths are fine for the tough stuff like most shrubs, bushes, drive ways and hard surfaces; however they are too heavy for smaller plants or flowers. The best thing to use on small plants or flowers is old bed sheets. They allow the plants and flowers to breath and they are light enough to provide protection without crushing the delicate plants.
Plastic drops are a no no. The plastic can permanently damage your shrubs or flowers. The plastic doesn't allow your plants to breath and the temperature can reach damaging levels. Only a few hours under plastic is all that's needed to damage your plants. Plastic can cause the tops of your plants and shrubs to die.

4. Make sure you drink plenty of cold Gatorade through out the day to avoid dehydration. I can’t emphasize this enough. Painting outdoors in the sunlight will dehydrate you quickly, especially if you aren’t use to this type of work. Don't let dehydration catch you by surprise. It doesn't take long to dehydrate. You can suddenly become light headed and lose your balance. Staying properly hydrated is very important for your health in other ways. One of the more serious complications you can develop from dehydration is a stroke, so always play it safe and use lots Gatorade.
5. Pick out a place where you can rest in the shade. Don't over exert yourself. Painting the exterior of your house is time consuming and most homeowners try to pack to much painting into one day. This can be a huge mistake, Don't allow yourself to get into trouble physically. This is easy to do if you try and stretch your physical limitations on hot sunny days.
6. Are you physically fit enough to safely rise to the challenge? Climbing up and down a ladder all day can cause your legs to severely cramp. The muscles in your legs need to be prepared for this type work. Legs that are over stressed can become suddenly weak and shaky, increasing the risk of falling from your ladder. It is important to evaluate your condition before putting yourself at risk. If you have some physical preconditions you should consult your doctor for advice before attempting painting the exterior of your home. Most homeowners can't perform physically at the level that professional painters can. Professional painters are used to their work. They run up and down ladders all day every day. You may not be used to it and that can cause you problems.
7. There's nothing worse than having to fight wasp while standing on the end of a 36 foot ladder. Eliminate all wasp nest before attempting to paint. If you are standing on the end of an extension ladder, you do not want be fighting wasp. It is dangerous to be fighting wasp with your hands when your hands should be gripped to the ladder. You can easily be distracted to the point of losing your balance and falling.
8. Rent a roof ladder. If your home has areas that need to be painted above a roof line then rent a roof ladder for a day. Don’t take the chance of sliding of a roof and killing yourself. A roof ladder hooks over the peak of the roof and lays flat on the shingles allowing you to safely walk up the ladder to service the wall and soffit areas above the roof line. They are inexpensive to rent.
9. Never place your ladder on a slope that falls backwards and away from the ladder. It is extremely important to always notch the ground out using a shovel and pic. Make a level, flat spot for each adjustable leg of your ladder. You have to lean your latter against the house, sloped enough to allow for you to properly navigate up. This slope, combined with the land slopping backward and away from your ladder, can make an extremely dangerous situation. Notch the ground and reseed the area latter. It is always best to play it safe. This is a very important safety tip that professional painting companies teach their workers.

Carefully plan your painting project. Make sure you are properly equipped to maximize safety. Make sure you are comfortable with the amount of time it takes compared to the time you have to give to the project. Don’t rush it. If you really find you don’t have the time or are physically unable to safely tackle the project, then hire a professional painting company. They can do the project in a fraction of the time it will take you.

Our professional painting services are available in the following cites: Atlanta, Marietta, Roswell, Alpharetta, Smyrna, Austell, Vinings, Acworth, Kennesaw, Woodstock, Dallas, Canton, Duluth, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, and Norcross Georgia.