Installation Electrical Safety

April 28, 2017

Electrical Safety and How It Affects The Installation Process

Our team at Gutter Cover Kansas City® is always looking for ways to better our installation process. It’s not uncommon to come across electrical wires and dealing with electrical safety when installing our gutter guard.

Our goals include keeping the home safe as well as keeping our installation crews safe. That’s one of the reasons why we have monthly meetings, to discuss findings that could help better any system we have in the company. Electrical safety will be one of the topics we discuss at the next meeting.

Below are some photos that MATT our installation manager took while he was out at a job. The photos show an example of him using a rubber mat on a live wire to create a barrier between him and the electricity. Furthermore, we want to help educate to be aware of the surroundings. Looking for anything such as branches that might be touching the lines. This helps ensure safety while working around the wire.

So why a rubber mat?

Rubber is considered an insulator that is used to coat metals and other conductors to help stop or reduce the flow of electrical current. This helps prevent shock, fires, and short circuits.

Some installations will call for us to call a power company to decide if the lines are safe to work around. Or if they need to be moved in order to complete the full installation. After that is determined we will continue the installation safely.

So why would we be concerned about electrical safety, other than obvious reasons?

According to OSHA, “Electricity has long been recognized as a serious workplace hazard, exposing employees to electric shock, electrocution, burns, fires, and explosions. In 1999, for example, 278 workers died from electrocutions at work, accounting for almost 5 percent of all on-the-job fatalities that year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. What makes these statistics more tragic is that most of these fatalities could have been easily avoided.”