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Do you wear safety boots?

When I started out the answer was "no". After one of two incidents the answer is "definitely".

Yesterday clearing leaves by a tennis court the blower luckily revealed this under a pile of leaves - it was pure luck that the blower cleared the leaves before we tried out the effectiveness of the steel midsole of the boots!

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  • One of my guys was maneuvering a Hayter Harrier round a tight little path (which he had done many times), we heard a loud bang and somehow he had managed to get his foot under the mower, which had ripped his steel toe cap off the boot and sent it like a shell into a fence panel - hence the bang!  Poor lad was standing there shaking, looking at his totally unscathed toes!  Don't take chances!

  • PRO

    In my opinion, steel top caps are always best practice. Having worn them every day through four different trades since 16, I dread to think what might have happened without them! Just the other day a pair of boots due to be 'retired' got battered across the toes by a industrial recessed concrete fence post weighing in the region of 75kg which suddenly and unexpectedly snapped. Leather badly scuffed but nothing broken. Boots can be replaced - toes can't!

    Besides of that on commercial sites, they are a legal requirement (and rightly so!).

  • Hi 

    Yes always wear safety boots but I wear composite rather than steel, warmer in winter and lighter.

    Regards

    Mike 👍

  • YES always. I had an employee turn up on site and he had forgotten his boots. He managed to stand on a nail and was off work for a week with a swollen foot. They have saved my feet many times. However, I did drop a slab and it missed the steel toecap and landed edge on further up. Very painful.

    Can I also give a shout out for safety glasses. I cut a piece of stone fully kitted out with safety gear and then noticed a little burr. I had already taken my safety glasses off by them and without thinking thought I'll just clean that up. A shard of stone stuck in my eyeball. I ended up having it removed in the hospital and was on antibiotics for over a week. Luckily there was no major damage but only because of where it landed. I could have been blinded. So please wear them. I know we all hate them on a hot day but it is worth it.

  • PRO

    I was actually surprised that this is even up for debate. Safety boots are an absolute basic essential.  If an employee arrived at work without their safety boots  they wouldn't be working that day.  

    • PRO

      Totally agree..,but every so often on here a thread gets going on "what boots do you wear" and all kinds of non S3 certified things get recommended !!

  • PRO

    Always, my first boss drummed it into me and you had to wear them at hort college so it has stuck with me, all employees have to follow suit.....

  • PRO

    Useful aide-memoire......

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  • I always wear safety boots and can't see the point in not there is plenty of choice available, styles and price.  You don't pay VAT on saftey equipment so its a no brainer.  Building sites often insist on 5 point PPE which may seem over the top but if it prevents injury then its working.  Also it looks more professional.  Steel toe cap boots have saved my feet countless times, I also wear a Chainsaw Helmet most of the time I'm working which again for £30 is protecting my head, eyes and hearing.  This stuff is cheap to buy and saves days off with injury and worse! I've seen plenty of people using equipment without but as the old saying goes you can't teach stupid!  

    That looks like a really nasty nail so glad you had chance to do something about it before it was too late.

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