There are a wide range of scaffold towers on the market from simple DIY towers to the more complex structures used for trade. For the home DIY enthusiast, a mobile scaffold tower can be easy to use and does not require any specialist knowledge.
However, if used for professional purposes and the tower is larger in scale, the Work at Height Regulations states that any person who is working at height must be competent using the relevant equipment and they need to be able to prove their competency. At BPS we have scaffold towers that suit the needs of both homeowners looking for ladder alternatives and professional tradespeople who need scaffold towers for their day-to-day work.
When should scaffold towers be inspected?
Anyone using a scaffold tower should inspect it as often as is necessary to ensure its safety. On towers where it is possible to fall 2m or more you should conduct inspections after assembly or a significant change, before use and following any event that could have had an effect on the tower’s stability or structural integrity.
For a tower where it is possible to fall a distance of less than 2m the inspection requirements are slightly different. It should be inspected after assembly and before you use it, as well as after any incident that could have affected its stability or structural integrity, and at appropriate intervals depending on how frequently you use it and the conditions in which it is used.
Do you need to fit stabilisers on scaffold towers that are 2.5m or less in height?
This depends on the manufacturer’s instructions for the height of the tower you are building. The traditional 3:1 rule for the ratio of tower height to base dimension does not work anymore for determining how stable a scaffold tower is. Base dimensions are now determined by a tricky calculation in EN1004 which considers a lot of factors. The only way to know if the stabilisers are needed and what size stabilisers you need to use is to look it up in the manufacturer’s instructions schedule of components. It is important to keep in mind that you need to fit stabilisers at the first opportunity in the build sequence and remove them at the end when you are dismantling.
What should you do if you need extra height on your tower or you want to reduce the height?
Generally, the only way to increase or decrease the height of a mobile scaffold tower is to use the right height of end frames.
Overall, yes anyone can use a scaffold tower, but it depends on how they are going to use it. If you are looking for a tower that you can use at home for DIY you can follow the detailed instructions. However, if you are needing a larger scale scaffold tower for more advanced use, you need to be competent and experienced in using scaffold towers with some previous training. Find the best scaffold tower to suit you and your needs at a competitive price when you order from BPS. Don’t miss out on an incredible deal today.
