Home Safety
Installing your home security cameras or fixing or repainting your roof can pose the risk of falling from a great height, which is going to be a huge problem, especially for your hospital expenses. The sure way to avoid that is to have safety nets placed before you do any risky home activities that require you to be at a certain height. However, how does safety net work? This article will provide you information on safety nets, their benefits, and how to maintain them properly. Read on.
What Is a Safety Net?
Before we go into the details in answering the question: “How does safety net work?” Let us learn what safety nets are first. Safety nets are measures placed around a construction site or building, and even in yards and indoors to protect people from falling when working at heights.
Many workplaces have the risk of falling, so safety nets are required to fall arrest systems, and not having one can have legal consequences. They are designed as a barrier to prevent a fall or to catch someone from falling and suffer serious injury.
The Components of Safety Nets
Safety nets are not as effective and may even pose a risk if made of cheap or not durable materials. Learning about the components of safety nets will help you understand how these things work. Here are the four main components or parts of a safety net
Mesh Rope
This component makes up most of the safety net. It has at least three separate strands braided together to prevent it from unraveling.
Border Rope
This component is a continuous rope passing through each mesh and around the perimeter.
Tie Rope
This component is the one you tie or fasten to your anchor points or stable structure when installing the safety net.
Coupling Rope
This component is for connecting another safety net when installing more than one in your home or work area.
The Benefits of Safety Nets
There are multiple reasons why you should install safety nets when you are working at height, like painting your roof, installing your home security systems, and even just protecting your children from stair railings.
Here are a few of the benefits of installing safety nets:
- Safety nets reduce falls and lessen incident effects, like a serious injury.
- It provides passive safety.
- It reassures workers that no harm happens.
- It allows you to work without being restricted from movement.
- It also lessens the need for using cranes in construction.
- It costs lesser compared to other fall protection systems.
How Does It Work?
You ask yourself, “How does safety net work?” Safety nets are there to progressively stretch and absorb the energy of your fall so that you will be less likely to be injured. It has a scientifically researched tensile strength that deflects the impact.
The farther the fall height, the greater the impact is, so the safety net must have greater deflection quality. This deflection allows the nets to absorb all the energy from the impact of the fall and reduces the risk of serious injury. So, do safety nets work? They surely do!
Maintaining Your Safety Net
Now that you know more about safety nets, you should also know how to maintain them and keep them safe and always ready. To properly maintain your safety net system, the best thing to do is to follow the manufacturer’s specifications.
You must check them regularly, or as required by the manufacturer or by law. Always make sure that your safety net has no damaged components; check the mesh, border, tie, and coupling ropes. If there are damages, you have to remove them immediately for repair.
How Can Safety Nets Get Damaged?
These are a few reasons why safety nets get damaged, whether during use or while being stored:
- Ultraviolet exposure
- Extreme weather conditions
- Sharp objects
- Exposure to heat or welding sparks
- Wear and tear of nets from previous loads or impact
Doing Visual Inspection
These are few of the things you need to do during a visual inspection of your safety nets:
- Check if there is the correct installation of the nets.
- Look for abrasions or cuts in the mesh.
- Look for heat or friction damage.
- Check whether there is damage to the stitching.
- Look for damaged or deformed fittings.
- See if there is debris or equipment on the net.
- See defects in the knots of the mesh.
- Look for other signs of damage and deterioration.
Knowing how does safety net work also relies on how you properly maintain these safety nets from the elements and damage. Always keep these things in mind to avoid risks and injury to yourself and others. Here’s how to learn more about Safety Nets.
Conclusion
Now you know the answer to, “How does safety net works?” Remember that there are different components to a safety net, and you must make sure these are well-maintained. Also, keep in mind the guidelines on how to maintain your safety net and what can cause damage to them. Familiarize yourself with the dos and don’ts in storing these safety tools as well. Your safety is the topmost priority.