darkstar
ArboristSite Guru
How can i check the lock valves. Thankstreepres13 said:
Another fatal boom failure.
- Thread starter ddhlakebound
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Treeman67 said:
My training course taught me limits of approach which apply above, below, left and right of the line. As long as the insulated portion of my boom stays a certain distance from an energized conductor I am good to go.
You seem to be worried about boom failure over the line but the with the trucks being dialectrically tested yearly I am confident in their structural soundness. I've seen 3 hydraulic hose ruptures with the booms in the air and the booms have stayed put where they are.
On the other hand, I might jinx myself with my bravado and my boom might rip a coulple spans off the poles tomorrow.
treepres13
ArboristSite Lurker
when you first get to your truck if the outriggers are still up all the way up and not down thays good now put the outriggers down mark them with a piece of tape or marker, shut power off, hit outrigger controls up and down if tk dosnt move outriggers do not move all is good,darkstar said:
lower boom lift out of craddle 3 or 4 ft shut off power ,move lower boom lever in and out if boom drifts down need repair it may drop a like a inch to lock thats ok now put lower boom up all the way just over center and shut off power a move controls observe, no movment ok lower boom cyl has 2 lock valves, top & bottom same as outtrigger cyls. there are 2 upper boom cyls. top and bottom 1 lock valve on each ,to test raise upper boom ouy of craddle 10 ft. shut power off , move control boom should not drift down,the load is on the bottom cyl. put upper boom over the back , shut power off, move control , no drift all ok the load is on top cyl in this position.all these cyl may move like a inch to lock. but if the booms drift down more than that replace the lock valve or at least the cartridge ,hope these helps it is all in the manuel altec parts are easy to get any magor hyd shop
darkstar
ArboristSite Guru
treepres13 said:
That helps a whole LOT . Ill check and check and check again . Thanx . I really appreaciate the helpful pointers . Dark
darkstar
ArboristSite Guru
Out rigger
One of my out rigger has been slowly lowering and leaking . It takes about 3 days for it to lower about a foot. Im new to bucket truck maintenance so its a big deal to me . I appreaciate any comments .
One of my out rigger has been slowly lowering and leaking . It takes about 3 days for it to lower about a foot. Im new to bucket truck maintenance so its a big deal to me . I appreaciate any comments .
trevmcrev
ArboristSite Operative
Treeman67 said:
Yeah he runs his own business and been around 10 years or so that i know of, so he has made a good go of things.
Trev
doggonetrees
ArboristSite Member
I had a problem with one of my out-riggers, it was the lock valve had some blockage. I have my truck tested yearly, but all this does is certify that it safe to work around energized lines. Daily inspections are a must, for this is where you hopefully find all the faults and are able to correct them. Possibly there was some damage done to the boom from improper use( overwweight, " springing the boom ") or something of that nature. I have had to trim over primaries and will continue to do so. The school that I went to did not adress this as it was a school for linemen, not trimmers. And I was working for a rural electric power association. Sad to hear about this accident, this was brought up in my crews safety meeting and now they have a new respect for the inspections I require of them.
Have a little faith
I have been up with a Genie S60, but not on trees. It was doing electrical work in a airplane hanger.
The lift was in excellent condition, and I had to run the boom right over a very expensive aircraft. Just about 30 million $$$ worth of aircraft to be more precise. If that thing had blown a hose....
I would be a little concerned about working around high voltage wires thou.
-Pat
I have been up with a Genie S60, but not on trees. It was doing electrical work in a airplane hanger.
The lift was in excellent condition, and I had to run the boom right over a very expensive aircraft. Just about 30 million $$$ worth of aircraft to be more precise. If that thing had blown a hose....
I would be a little concerned about working around high voltage wires thou.
-Pat
matthias said:My training course taught me limits of approach which apply above, below, left and right of the line. As long as the insulated portion of my boom stays a certain distance from an energized conductor I am good to go.
You seem to be worried about boom failure over the line but the with the trucks being dialectrically tested yearly I am confident in their structural soundness. I've seen 3 hydraulic hose ruptures with the booms in the air and the booms have stayed put where they are.
On the other hand, I might jinx myself with my bravado and my boom might rip a coulple spans off the poles tomorrow.
i not worried, i had my own judgement of common sense, with confidence with my experiences. it up to me decided if what practical or not, just my opitions which may not apply other line man or climber. i had to seek out what best for me. Now i never had any line rupture while i was on the boom, but i seen guy operated and rupture line and get out conrol and i had to switch hydraulic power to ground bring bucket down.. it puzzle me as Why?? nobody talk about it, expected splice rupture line together. however you may be high maintenance guy to keep up your equipment , i think it really important but few company i had work for don't,so my apology to you and Clearance of my comment of about " stupid over primary line "
Treeman67
clearance
Addicted to ArboristSite
Sorry I asked if you were drunk, Treeman, I said that running a boom over the primary is fine, but, to be honest, my time spent running booms around power or not never did I feel totally safe. I feel safer tied into most trees. Booms do fail from time to time, that is true, so do tie in points, when I tie in I am looking right at the branches, cause I always climb with spurs. Do what feels right for you, its right to trust your instincts, be safe.Treeman67 said:
darkstar
ArboristSite Guru
Bucket trucket failure
This should be a sticky.
Common reasons why booms fail ,and how to prevent them.
This should be a sticky.
Common reasons why booms fail ,and how to prevent them.
clearance said:
its alright, at least we work it out with better understanding each others.i do repected of line of your work, you alot braver than i am..lol, thanks for your honestly, Clearance....
Treeman67
Sunrise Guy
Addicted to ArboristSite
I have watched many a guy work in a bucket. I have seen outriggers shifting ever so slightly on the ground as the arm extended. I have seen trucks lean with the shifts. There is no way I'd ever work a bucket truck, no way. I am sure that with painstaking maintenance the buckets are reasonably safe, but I'm also sure that this type of maintenance is rarely done by many, if not most, companies that are more concerned with their bottom lines than with the power lines their expendable workers are perched above. I'll hang upside down cutting limbs eighty feet off the ground on my line that I check daily, but try to send me up in a bucket and I'm outta there. Call me a p@##y, I don't care. If I had a degree in engineering and knew all of the specs on a given bucket backwards and forwards, and could do all of the maintenance checks myself, things might be different. As it is, I'm a climber on ropes, and that's the way it's gonna stay.
beowulf343
Addicted to ArboristSite
I feel the same way Sunrise-can do anything in a tree while hanging from my rope but I avoid buckets like they were the plague.
RedlineIt
ArboristSite Guru
Sunrise,
If you're grounding for a bucket operator and you see the outriggers sinking into soft soils and the truck leaning or rocking, it's your job to tell the operator this is happening! Immediately!
Booms have a lot of flex in them, movement of the truck is impossible to detect while floating on the end of that stick. That's why you're on the ground, to see the unsafe situation and REPORT IT TO THE OPERATOR!
If I came down off a boom to hear you tell me the outriggers were shifting, and you said nothing, I'd kick your teeth out.
RedlineIt
If you're grounding for a bucket operator and you see the outriggers sinking into soft soils and the truck leaning or rocking, it's your job to tell the operator this is happening! Immediately!
Booms have a lot of flex in them, movement of the truck is impossible to detect while floating on the end of that stick. That's why you're on the ground, to see the unsafe situation and REPORT IT TO THE OPERATOR!
If I came down off a boom to hear you tell me the outriggers were shifting, and you said nothing, I'd kick your teeth out.
RedlineIt
Sunrise Guy
Addicted to ArboristSite
Man, did I say anything, ANYWHERE, about keeping quiet about what I observed???? Cool your jets. I don't take kindly to implied or expressed threats.
clearance
Addicted to ArboristSite
When you set up a boom truck, you use proper outrigger pads to prevent settling. I put the outrigger down on the side the boom will work first, sometimes using two pads and lifting the truck off its front wheel to imitate the forces generated by the boom being over the side. Then I put the other outrigger down to stabalize the truck, this is for road side tree work, obviously if soft ground was on both sides of the truck you would use the first method twice. In really bad ground you can cut logs 4' long and make cribbing, don't be in a hurry. If you use a boom a lot, you are attuned to its behavior and quirks, the man running the boom is ultimately responsible for its setup, not the groundsman. If the boom is flexing a lot, it's being abused, smooth movements is the hallmark of good boom use, crane use, etc. Redline, if we were using a boom I would show you a few things, take it easy, no need to assault your groundsmen who doesn't know anything.RedlineIt said:
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