Arborists often perform difficult and dangerous tasks on a regular basis in the highlands. They have to manage their own safety without causing unnecessary damage to trees, the local environment, or the people around them.
Working in horticulture is a lot more dangerous than construction, making it one of the riskiest industries. Proper selection and maintenance of equipment are essential for the safety of workers and teams in the field.
Equipment that every arborist should have
- Get a harness
Only those specifically designed for tree work are recommended. Climbing harnesses have many unique features that may not be noticeable at first. They are designed for “job positioning” and are sometimes referred to as “sitting cords”. They are very different from recreational/climbing harnesses and fall harnesses. They have a low centre main attachment point, commonly referred to as a “bridge” and most importantly a side “D” ring for strap/flip strap accessories.
- Flipline
Flip, strap, or pole strap (all the same) attached to the side D-ring of the harness to secure it to the harness that will be used. Hook the shaft, then the D-ring on the other side. This is an important part of motivating rock climbing, and in addition to the climbing rope, you also need to keep yourself in place when performing the cut and provide some extra support.
- Adjuster
Unless you’re part of a complete racing system, you’ll need an adjuster for your Flipline or Lanyard. You can adjust the working position by lengthening or shortening the strap.
The ropes offered for arborists are specially designed for climbing trees and are approved by the manufacturer. Climbing ropes and other random ropes are not suitable and will behave differently if used for purposes other than their intended purpose. Climbing ropes are often likened to a “lifeline” and that should be considered exactly that!
Your life you know can depend on it! There is no fixed length, it depends on the size of the tree you are trying to cut. Usually, you will need twice the length of the tree, but this depends on your climbing technique. The common lengths people are looking for seem to be 35m,
5m, 50m, or 60m. Or you can choose the length you like, in meters.
- Climbing Rope
Climbing rope is a friction barrier. It is used to adjust the position on the vines and allows you to get up and down the tree. It can at least be connected to one end of the vines, but more often it is another particularly short cable with high heat resistance. Friction during cool-down creates a large amount of heat that is concentrated in one place that can be melted through conventional cables. There are also Prussian cords sold over-the-counter, Prussik cords with loops or eye terminals, or devices designed as an alternative to cables. Mechanical pruning.
- Carabiner
For climbing, we recommend a three-action self-locking carabiner…or a carabiner. They can be alloys or steel, but most use alloys for mountaineering and hold steel for use in trusses. These are used to securely connect screws, pullsicks, laces above, and harnesses. You need at least two, but at least four. You can look into getting alloy self-locking forklifts or steel self-locking forklifts.
- Spikes
Branches are used to rest on trunks or limbs that have no natural fulcrum. You can use a harness and flipline to “walk” on the log. If you are concerned about the plants you are working on, we recommend that you only use them during transfer, not during pruning.
Keep in mind that this is just a list of ‘basic’ arborist equipment. Please feel free to take into account brands and pricing that suit your own individual needs. There are various other tools that make your work more productive, easier, safer, and even more fun. Choose arborist equipment from IQS Solutions.