Working at Height
Mounting a solar panel, a security camera, a TV aerial, a weather station or a wireless bridge usually means working on a ladder, a roof or a mast. Falls from height are one of the most common causes of serious injury in home improvement, and overhead power lines add an electrical hazard that kills people every year. Neither hazard has anything to do with the electronics you are installing — and both are entirely preventable with planning and the right equipment.
Ladder Safety
Most falls from height in home installations are falls from ladders, usually from a few metres — high enough to cause serious head, spine and wrist injuries. The basic rules are simple and effective:
- Inspect the ladder before every use: no cracked or bent stiles, no loose or missing rungs, working feet and locks.
- Set the angle at about 75° — one unit out at the base for every four units up (the 1-in-4 rule).
- Extend it at least 1 m (three rungs) above the landing point if you are stepping off onto a roof or platform, and tie it off at the top.
- Keep three points of contact (two feet and a hand) while climbing, and carry tools in a belt or haul them up on a rope rather than in your hands.
- Do not over-reach. Keep your belt buckle between the stiles; move the ladder instead.
- Never use a metal ladder anywhere near overhead lines or live electrical work — use a non-conductive fibreglass ladder.
Roofs and Fall Protection
Roofs are deceptive: wet tiles, moss, dew and loose granules make even a gentle slope slippery, and fragile roof materials (old asbestos-cement sheets, skylights, plastic panels) can give way underfoot. Where a fall of more than about 2 m is possible, plan fall protection before you start:
- Edge protection or scaffolding is the best option for larger jobs such as a solar installation — it stops a fall happening at all.
- A fall-arrest system — a full-body harness, a shock-absorbing lanyard and a rated anchor point — stops a fall that does happen. A waist belt or a rope tied to a chimney is not a fall-arrest system.
- Roof ladders and crawling boards spread your weight and give you something secure to hold on pitched and fragile roofs.
- Choose the conditions: dry, calm weather, good light, and never alone (see below).
A harness must be inspected before each use, fitted correctly and anchored above you to a point rated for fall arrest. After any fall, it must be retired. Anyone using fall-arrest equipment also needs a rescue plan: a person hanging motionless in a harness can suffer serious harm within minutes.
Overhead Power Lines
Before raising a ladder, mast, pole or panel, look up and identify every overhead line nearby, including the service drop to the house. Keep everything you handle well clear: a common rule is at least 3 m (10 ft) from lines up to 50 kV, and more for higher voltages — check the guidance from your local utility. Plan the work so that nothing could fall, swing or be blown toward a line, and remember that a long object can tip over a distance equal to its full length.
If anything does contact a power line, treat it and everything touching it as live. Stay away, keep others away, and call the utility and emergency services. Do not try to pull a person free with your hands.
Masts and Poles
Masts for aerials, cameras and weather stations look harmless on the ground but behave very differently in the air. A 6 m pole carries considerable leverage at its base, and a gust of wind on a dish or panel can wrench it out of your hands. Raise masts with a helper, use guy ropes or a hinged base where possible, and never raise a mast near overhead lines. Brackets must be fixed into sound masonry or structure with fixings rated for the load, including wind load.
Never Work Alone
A helper on the ground holds and foots the ladder, passes up tools, keeps people out of the drop zone below, watches for overhead hazards while things are raised, and can call for help immediately if something goes wrong. Agree signals before you start and keep the helper's attention on you, not on their phone. For any job at height, the helper is part of the safety equipment, not a convenience.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a harness to work on a ladder?
For short, light work on a correctly set-up ladder with three points of contact, a harness is not normally used. For work on a roof, near an edge, or anywhere a fall of more than about 2 m could happen without a ladder's support, use edge protection or a properly anchored fall-arrest system. If in doubt, use a scaffold tower or hire a professional.
How close is too close to a power line?
Keep yourself and anything you are holding at least 3 m (10 ft) from lines up to 50 kV, and further from higher-voltage lines. You cannot tell the voltage of a line by looking at it, so treat every overhead line as dangerous. Your local utility can advise on required clearances and, for some jobs, can shroud or disconnect a line.
Is a solar panel installation a DIY job?
Small off-grid panels on a shed or van are often installed by hobbyists. Roof-mounted systems involve working at height, heavy panels that catch the wind, and roof penetrations that must be weatherproof, and grid-connected systems usually require a qualified installer by law. Plan the access and fall protection first, and get professional help for anything beyond your experience.
Test Your Knowledge
Answer the questions below to check your understanding of this lesson. Every answer can be found in the lesson above.