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Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 10:37 am
by henpecked
I would take delivery off of a block guy who had done it all his life. He use to tell me of how he would do 2 drops a day hand. Making a stair out of blocks to start, then running them off the wagon on his shoulder. He would jump back on the wagon from the ground one handed.
He also told me of the advent of the HIAB, he didnt like it, but was one of the first to use them. He said 3 months in he had to get back up the wagon, using his trademark 'jump' he went for it and ended up clattering his shins off the edge of the truck :laugh: :laugh: lost all his conditioning in such a short time. 15 stone and not a pick on him he said, 'I'm still the same weight', he told me laughing, 'but most of it has gone south now' 
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 5:21 pm
by bobbi o
PPE- vending machines. thought this was a wind up,but no coming to site near you soon and yes they take cash!
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 6:55 pm
by lutonlagerlout
i remember working on luton mosque in 1983 for sid farrow
cement lorry would show up and everyone on the site formed a chain carrying a bag a time into the cement shed
50kg bags then, but it was a laugh,I had a bag of lime split on me and they ripped me all day over it
same with the brick lorry, 7000 bricks all handballed off in 30 minutes or so
the mixer handle got stuck on a morning not unlike today
the only 16 year old on the site went to try and switch the mixer off
I should have realised why grown men were running and hiding
funny enough I haven't seen one of those diesel mixers for yonks
surely they cant be legal anymore on big sites?
LLL
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 7:22 pm
by dig dug dan
[/quote]things that spring to mindalways use a transformer and 110 volts,i still see lads with 240 leads for mixers[quote]
No one seems to use 110 anymore. You still have to use 240 to plug in the transformer!
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 7:25 pm
by ilovesettsonmondays
most things that were handle started were a nightmare . rollers especially.always remember the school kids pinching the wind up dumper a few times in birkenhead park.the lads left the handle in it after that and put dog sh1t on the handle . they never pinched it again
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 9:01 pm
by lutonlagerlout
dig dug dan wrote:
things that spring to mindalways use a transformer and 110 volts,i still see lads with 240 leads for mixers
No one seems to use 110 anymore. You still have to use 240 to plug in the transformer!
of course but at least you only have 2 feet of danger 
Its a pain having to get the tranny out every day as it weighs a bomb ,but at least its safer
every time i see 240 leads trailing across jobs,you can be sure an unmarked white van is not too far away :;):
the first 2 things i do on any job of a reasonable size is get an outside tap and a RCD external socket fitted
£150 a job but well worth it
and most ask for them to be left
LLL
Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 9:14 pm
by sussex
Wish i new then what i know now .....I might still be able to hear a conversatoin in the pub,not have to wear a hearing aid,not have raging tinnitus eyc etc.years of no protection have taken there toll.You only get one proper set of hearing PROTECT IT !!!!
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 10:01 am
by Tony McC
As a biker for over 30 years, I well remember the fuss over the introduction of compulsory bash hats, and now it amazes me just how many bikers now wear earplugs as a matter of course when riding. In the space of a generation we've gone from mass protest to voluntary self-protection with barely a bat of the eyelid.
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 5:19 pm
by dig dug dan
the first 2 things i do on any job of a reasonable size is get an outside tap and a RCD external socket fitted
thats excellent. i love a job where they have an outside socket so we can plug the kettle in and make a cup of tea!
do they do a 110volt kettle??
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 6:33 pm
by lutonlagerlout
I dont have kettles,radios,sandwich makers,or even mobile phone chargers on jobs
too many arguments
I know you are being the devil's advocate dan,but No one is allowed to use any tool other than 110v on any of our jobs
its been like that since i was a lad and to use 240v now would be like wearing moccasins to work :;):
I havent a clue what the difference in safety is between 110 and 240 but I cant recall 240 ever being used
cheers LLL
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 6:56 pm
by enigmaenigma
LLL,
In very basic terms, the 110 Volt should only realise a 55v shock…due to it being centre tapped etc and the difference in potential as a result of that.
Draw a horizontal line and mark one end 0 and the other 110, and then strike a vertical line in the middle of 0 and 110…the distance between the middle and either end can / should only be 55 volts.
However, that doesn’t mean 110 volt is a cure all, there can be issues in regards earthling arrangements and floating earths…where the power supply earth has / is at a different potential to the actual earth you are stood on.
(Think back to that race horse that got electrocuted, as 4 legged animals, as opposed to us 2 legs, can detect / be affected by potential differences far worse / easier…the front & rear legs can be at different potentials, whereas bipeds have both legs in the same camp, as it were)
Add into the mix other issues with class 1 equipment being used, or to many class 1 items.
So in general, it can be a mixed blessing, and a bit like the RCD, where people absolve all responsibility and think it catches all issues.
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 7:26 pm
by lutonlagerlout
I know when houses and extensions are done to current regs the consumer unit is a meeting point at some point every weekend
any overloading at all and it trips
which is what it is there for
the old fella used wall tie bundle wire as fuse wire and we never had a fuse trip when i was a kid :;):
LLL
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 7:45 pm
by dig dug dan
the only things i use electrical are 4" grinder, mixer and kettle, although the kettle is a rere one as most customers are good with theirs
Where would i stand on your jobs bringing my cordless sds, and wanting to charge the battery. they are ALL 240
I hear what you are saying, but its not a blanket enforcement the 240 rule
Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 8:13 pm
by lutonlagerlout
rgr that
i noticed the chipies today had all their batteries on charge
I am talking about drills,cutters,grinder,mixers,saws
my uncle pete went through the 110 lead breaking up a concrete base
i dont know if 240 would have killed him but he certainly got a shock from the 110
maybe its just my beginnings on large sites that made me that way inclined towards 110v
LLL
Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2014 8:38 pm
by Piotr Jankowski
i've removed this due to ongoing legal action and to check with tony.
Edited By GB_Groundworks on 1418116915