Safety Area Around A Roof Hatch

This is what your roof hatch should look like.

Safety area around a roof hatch.

Placing bright yellow guardrails around the roof s perimeter can be unsightly. Osha considers a roof hatch to be a hole in your roof and it must be protected with the proper fall protection railing. Also the american national standards institute ansi standard a14 3 1992 safety requirements for fixed ladders section 5 2 3 1 extensions for individual rung ladders stipulates that the general requirement for extension of the ladder above the access egress level does not apply to ladders intended for manholes and terminations with hatches. Or personal fall protection.

Osha 1910 28 b 1 i 1910 23 a 4 ibc1015 7 roof access. However if there s something near the edge like a condenser unit the edge that needs maintenance guardrails must be placed right up to the edge. A common way to protect a hatch is with a roof hatch safety railing which maintains a constant protective barrier around the hatch. Guardrails are a popular roofing safety option.

All products feature engineered lift assistance for easy one hand operation. Except as provided elsewhere in this section the employer must ensure that each employee on a walking working surface with an unprotected side or edge that is 4 feet 1 2 m or more above a lower level is protected from falling by one or more of the following. Cannot use roof hatch railing roof hatch railing may be required by osha depending on your site conditions increased strain on hardware installation on pitches 4 12 and greater are not covered by warranty decreased opening area due to roof hatch angle see above photos. We are your single source for safety railing system.

A roof hatch should be protected with a perimeter railing that has a spring loaded industrial safety gate to allow entrance and exit from the hatch. Because railing systems are permanently affixed to the hatch it is not necessary for workers to close the hatch cover when they are on the roof. When entering or exiting a hatch the self closing safety gate automatically swings shut and maintains a barrier around the hatch. A variety of special sizes are also available to provide an accessible way to install or remove large pieces of equipment from a building.

Another option is to install a hatch railing system around the roof hatch to protect the opening when the cover is in the open position. Safety rail source provides osha compliant roof edge guard railing skylight screens railing roof hatch railing and many other fall protection products for the best safety solutions at the lowest prices. Typically rails are installed six feet from the roof s edge.