A Different Kind of Slippery Slope

From our friends at Guardian Fall Protection…

A Different Kind of Slippery Slope: How The Slope Of Your Roof Affects Fall Protection

According to OSHA, a low slope roof is “a roof having a slope less than or equal to 4 in 12 (vertical to horizontal)”, and a steep roof as anything greater than 4/12. For those of you who are protractorally inclined (inclined, get it?), a low slope roof is from 0 degrees to about 18.4 degrees, and a steep roof is from 18.5 degrees on up to 45 degrees or more. Depending on which side of 4/12 your roof is determines how you must address fall protection.

So What Are My Options?

On low slope roofs, as would be expected, there are a few more options available to the worker for fall protection. Or as OSHA puts it:

“…each employee engaged in roofing activities on low-slope roofs, with unprotected sides and edges 6 feet (1.8 m) or more above lower levels shall be protected from falling by guardrail systems, safety net systems, personal fall arrest systems, or a combination of warning line system and guardrail system, warning line system and safety net system, or warning line system and personal fall arrest system, or warning line system and safety monitoring system.”

Read the rest of this article here.