From festive streetlamp décor to intricate lighting displays, commercial and municipal destinations know the effect holiday decorations can have on commerce. That’s why businesses and communities annually invest in decking the halls – which often means installing decorations in elevated and hard-to-reach areas. When there are miles of decorations to install and maintain, a bucket truck can be an easy and efficient solution. In this post, we discuss how to use a bucket truck to safely decorate for the holidays.
Advantages of Decorating with a Rented Bucket Truck
A bucket truck, also known as a boom lift truck, is a type of aerial lift that can be driven on roads like a regular vehicle. This makes it an ideal solution for installing commercial and municipal holiday decorations in busy areas for the following reasons:
- Maneuverability and Versatile Reach: The back of the truck features a jointed, telescoping arm that can lift the work platform (or bucket) up and over obstacles.
- Mobility and Accessibility: Bucket trucks can be driven just like a regular truck. This allows you to easily navigate congested roadways to keep the project on schedule and minimize disruptions to nearby neighborhoods and businesses.
- Safety: A boom truck can include outriggers, stabilizers, and other advanced safety features to protect workers from tip-overs or falls.
Why Rent a Bucket Truck for the Holidays?
There are many advantages to renting a bucket truck rather than buying one, including:
- Cost Savings: Renting eliminates the large upfront payments and maintenance costs that come with ownership.
- Access to High-Quality Models: Rent a bucket truck from Herc Rentals and benefit from access to premium makes and models with the newest technology.
- Holiday Season Flexibility: With a bucket truck rental, you can offer seasonal services or take on more projects without long-term commitments.
- Less to Coordinate: Herc Rentals handles the maintenance and can coordinate delivery of equipment directly to your project site. This frees your team to focus on the job at hand.
How to Safely Decorate for the Holidays with a Bucket Truck
A fall, tip-over, or collision with nearby objects like power lines can be devastating to people and property. So, safety is the top priority when you’re doing holiday street decorating at height. And, although bucket trucks come equipped with advanced safety features, you need to know how to use them properly.
Once you’ve chosen the right size of bucket truck for your holiday decorating project, follow these seven steps to keeping everyone safe.
1. Read the User’s Manual
Don’t start any elevated holiday decorating tasks before reading the operator’s manual of your bucket truck. The manual will tell you everything you need to know about capacity limits, how to move and secure the lift, and how to troubleshoot issues that may arise.
2. Inspect Equipment Before Use
Inspect the truck before each use to ensure it’s in safe working condition.
For example, OSHA requires that all lift controls be tested daily before use to make sure they’re in safe working condition. If a malfunction or damage is discovered, contact your equipment rental provider before continuing.
3. Only Allow Trained Operators to Work from the Bucket
OSHA requires a trained and authorized aerial lift operator to operate the bucket truck. With proper training, operators learn how to minimize the risk of falls, tip-overs, and entanglement with objects and power lines.
Only trained and authorized aerial lift operators can operate a bucket truck. View OSHA’s Aerial Lifts eTool for more information.
4. Maintain a Clear Area Around the Bucket Truck
When working at height, tools or other holiday equipment may get dropped or could fall. To avoid injuries and damage, park the truck on a level surface and keep the area around the bucket and the truck clear of people, animals, and property.
5. Keep the Combined Weight Within the Truck’s Load Limit
Add up the estimated weight of the workers who will be in the bucket and all the gear, decorations, and tools they will be using. To avoid a dangerous collapse or malfunction, make sure the total weight will not be heavier than the truck’s load limit (or weight capacity).
6. Use Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Make sure all operators wear, and properly use, fall protection equipment when working in the bucket. This means they should always wear a harness that is attached to the boom or bucket.
7. Maintain a Safe Distance from Power Lines
Keep the boom, bucket, and workers at least 10 feet (3 meters) away from all overhead cables and power lines. When possible, rent a bucket truck with an insulated bucket for extra protection against electric shock in the case of accidental contact.
5 Holiday Lighting Safety Tips
The bucket truck isn’t the only aspect to safely decorating for the holidays. You will likely also be installing and maintaining hundreds of feet of holiday lights and other electronic decorations. Here are five reminders for safely making your season bright.
1. Select the Safest Lights
Municipal holiday decorations need to be durable and safe to use outdoors in harsh weather. Select holiday lights that have been tested and certified for your intended use. Look for marks such as UL, CSA, or ETL on the packaging and if the lights are designed for indoor and/or outdoor use.
Also consider which type of bulb would be safest to use near delicate decorations like dried pine garlands. LED lights often produce less heat and use less electricity than incandescent lights.
2. Inspect Decorations and Lights for Potential Fire Hazards
Damaged holiday lights can cause a fire or electrical shock when they short out or arc. Regularly inspect all lights for exposed wire, damaged sockets, broken bulbs, or bent plugs.
This is especially important when decorations that have been sitting in storage are installed in a place where animals or people could damage them.
3. Make a Plan and Avoid Connecting More Devices and String Lights Than the Maximum Limit
Don’t overload your circuits by stringing together more lights and decorations than an outlet can handle. The decoration packaging will likely indicate how many strings can be linked.
Enlist the help of an electrician to help you identify the maximum capacity of your current circuits. Then plan your commercial holiday lighting installation and install additional circuits and outlets as needed.
4. Plug Decorations and Lights into Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCIs)
GFCIs help reduce the risk of electric shock by detecting interruptions in the current and cutting the power. GFCI outlets are especially important when decorating outdoors or near water features. Use portable GFCI outlets outdoors to avoid overloading circuits or creating trip hazards.
5. Unplug Lights and Decorations Before Electrical Repairs or Replacing Bulbs
Turn off and unplug all electrical decorations before making repairs. This will minimize the risk of electrical shock.
Decorate Safely with a Bucket Truck from Herc Rentals
Give your team the gift of the right gear this holiday season with a bucket truck from Herc Rentals. Our bucket trucks help make holiday decorating safety easy. With a Herc Rental bucket truck, you can take holiday cheer to new heights with advanced safety features like insulated buckets and excellent maneuverability and reach.
Plus, our equipment experts are ready to help you save time and labor with prompt field maintenance and equipment delivery services.
Explore our crane and bucket truck selection today or give us a call at (888) 777-2700 to discuss options with an equipment expert.
