# Falling through a ceiling!



## mofos be cray (Nov 14, 2016)

How'd he put a knee through? Was he working or crawling? If he's working he has to use the boards if he can't be careful. If he's moving he's got to slow down and move with more purpose. And maybe have footwear for the attic that isn't work boots.
I also bet he doesn't have a headlamp and is using his phone for light. He needs a quality light.


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## splatz (May 23, 2015)

@Southeast Power had a suggestion in another thread about using 1/2" EMT for stakes, I couldn't figure out what he needed stakes for until I read this post. 

Cut a piece of 1/2" EMT, straight at one end and diagonal at the other, to make a stake. Strap the stake to the work light you use in attics. Chop off the head of the last guy that went through an attic floor, and put it on that stake.


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## oldsparky52 (Feb 25, 2020)

splatz said:


> @Southeast Power had a suggestion in another thread about using 1/2" EMT for stakes, I couldn't figure out what he needed stakes for until I read this post.
> 
> Cut a piece of 1/2" EMT, straight at one end and diagonal at the other, to make a stake. Strap the stake to the work light you use in attics. Chop off the head of the last guy that went through an attic floor, and put it on that stake.


I started reading your post with seriousness (because you are pretty damn smart and knowledgeable) then got to the end and busted out laughing, ... THANKS!


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## NoBot (Oct 12, 2019)

I'm guessing you don't take strips of plywood in that attic with you? 5/8" x 16"x 48" would work, at least two pieces. Kneel on one, move the other. Slows you down but quicker than fixing a ceiling.


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

1. Get a more agile helper.
2. Inform helper he is paying for repairs due to his awkwardness. 
3. Make helper use the planks you have for this purpose.
4. Have you considered the 'stake' idea?


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## Wirenuting (Sep 12, 2010)

splatz said:


> @Southeast Power had a suggestion in another thread about using 1/2" EMT for stakes, I couldn't figure out what he needed stakes for until I read this post.
> 
> Cut a piece of 1/2" EMT, straight at one end and diagonal at the other, to make a stake. Strap the stake to the work light you use in attics. Chop off the head of the last guy that went through an attic floor, and put it on that stake.


We tried that trick.
The headless guy filed for workmans comp. 
Been paying him for years now..


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## Quickservice (Apr 23, 2020)

I stepped through the ceiling at home once, but never on the job.


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

I have had one guy go thru a ceiling in 40+ years of business. I did however, lay my tool pouch that had very few tools in it, on the sheetrock in the attic and an entire 4x8 sheet of sheetrock fell down. No insulation in the attic... 

Homeowner came home and I said you are not going to believe what happened. She laughed when she saw the hole and said, "I was wondering when that piece was going to fall. It had been dry rotted for years."

Apparently she had leaks up there that she never got taken care of so she was cool with it and didn't even try to get us to pay...


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

Dennis Alwon said:


> I have had one guy go thru a ceiling in 40+ years of business. I did however, lay my tool pouch that had very few tools in it, on the sheetrock in the attic and an entire 4x8 sheet of sheetrock fell down. No insulation in the attic...
> 
> Homeowner came home and I said you are not going to believe what happened. She laughed when she saw the hole and said, "I was wondering when that piece was going to fall. It had been dry rotted for years."
> 
> Apparently she had leaks up there that she never got taken care of so she was cool with it and didn't even try to get us to pay...


That sounds crazy that just a pouch would take down a full sheet. 
I can only imagine your cringe factor seeing that one.....


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

Don’t use a big, clumsy oaf for attic work.

I have a big, powerful cordless floodlight that’s good for attic work. Blast it with light so you can see where you’re going. Headlamps suck.


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## FaultCurrent (May 13, 2014)

Some years ago we had a rookie and told him to go up in the ceiling and open a j-box. How were we to know? Simple job. We were working in the electric room. The kid, a little guy mind you, got a ladder and crawled up in the ceiling and was making his way (unknown to us) when we heard a loud yell and a crash. Ran over and saw him laying on a lady's desk. The lady was sitting there shocked. WTF. I was amazed that the guy had made it that far, about 15 feet. Yep, it was a T-bar ceiling. We still kid him today.


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## Rob-Bryant (May 24, 2016)

On the day of my closing, I was doing a final walk through of a co-op I was buying back in 2007. I was checking out the attic and saw a piece of electronic equipment on a small wooden homemade rack. It was off the edge of the main walkway down the center of the attic, which had some scrap pieces of wood covering certain areas. As I stepped to the edge to see what it was, my foot slipped off the main walkway and went through the ceiling. They had that blown in insulation, and I went downstairs to where the dining area was and it looked like someone slaughtered a sheep. I figured no one would see it, I'd just go to the closing, take over the keys, and nobody would have to know. When I told them the oven wasn't working, they sent the woman's son to the apartment with my real estate agent (who was my cousin) to see if it was working or not. It was then I had to tell my cousin to explain what happened before he got there. Needless to say, it was embarrassing. In hindsight, I should have kept my mouth shut and just acted as surprised as them...maybe I could have gotten another discount! 😂


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

MechanicalDVR said:


> That sounds crazy that just a pouch would take down a full sheet.
> I can only imagine your cringe factor seeing that one.....


Believe me I was shocked...I had set my pouch down on hundreds of ceilings from the attic. I am surprised it didn't fall when we walked across the ceiling joist.


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

Dennis Alwon said:


> Believe me I was shocked...I had set my pouch down on hundreds of ceilings from the attic. I am surprised it didn't fall when we walked across the ceiling joist.


Agreed, it sure wasn't holding on by much.


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## Coppersmith (Aug 11, 2017)

This is one of my major concerns when hiring. Is this person smart enough to not fall through the ceiling? Sometimes I'm working on ceilings that are 20 feet above the floor. I really don't want to have to scrape up a dead employee from the floor of someone's house.

I have this recurring fantasy that one day I will have a hiring/training center in a warehouse and it will feature a faux attic built a couple of feet above a floor covered in gym mats. As part of the hiring process, prospective employees will have to enter the "attic" and make it out the other end without falling through the drywall carrying tools, materials, and a flashlight. It will be setup like an obstacle course full of loose fill insulation, tight passages, ducts everywhere, alarm wires strung too tight, and be hot and pitch dark. It will probably be timed. I'm also thinking I'll have infrared cameras in there so I can watch the fun...er....I mean make sure the person is safe.


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## oldsparky52 (Feb 25, 2020)

My helper once put his foot through the decking on a gas station canopy. Scared the crap out of him (14' to the concrete), he did not go down, but his leg below the knee was below the canopy decking.


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

I was doing lighting maintenance once. Swing stage let go and I ended up in a swimming pool. 🤣


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## LARMGUY (Aug 22, 2010)

Coppersmith said:


> This is one of my major concerns when hiring. Is this person smart enough to not fall through the ceiling? Sometimes I'm working on ceilings that are 20 feet above the floor. I really don't want to have to scrape up a dead employee from the floor of someone's house.
> 
> I have this recurring fantasy that one day I will have a hiring/training center in a warehouse and it will feature a faux attic built a couple of feet above a floor covered in gym mats. As part of the hiring process, prospective employees will have to enter the "attic" and make it out the other end without falling through the drywall carrying tools, materials, and a flashlight. It will be setup like an obstacle course full of loose fill insulation, tight passages, ducts everywhere, alarm wires strung too tight, and be hot and pitch dark. It will probably be timed. I'm also thinking I'll have infrared cameras in there so I can watch the fun...er....I mean make sure the person is safe.


Don't forget the **** and mouse poo and boards with nails and sticky sap oozing out.


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## LARMGUY (Aug 22, 2010)

Coppersmith said:


> This is one of my major concerns when hiring. Is this person smart enough to not fall through the ceiling? Sometimes I'm working on ceilings that are 20 feet above the floor. I really don't want to have to scrape up a dead employee from the floor of someone's house.
> 
> I have this recurring fantasy that one day I will have a hiring/training center in a warehouse and it will feature a faux attic built a couple of feet above a floor covered in gym mats. As part of the hiring process, prospective employees will have to enter the "attic" and make it out the other end without falling through the drywall carrying tools, materials, and a flashlight. It will be setup like an obstacle course full of loose fill insulation, tight passages, ducts everywhere, alarm wires strung too tight, and be hot and pitch dark. It will probably be timed. I'm also thinking I'll have infrared cameras in there so I can watch the fun...er....I mean make sure the person is safe.


Don't forget the mouse and **** poo, nails and screws poking up and down, and cellulose / fiberglass insulation with a pound of attic dust on top.

I stepped through my own house bathroom ceiling once. I put in a heat vent light.

Damn this new format is confusing! I cannot tell what is a draft and what has been posted. The edit button is at the top of the post not at the bottom where it should be. This program has to have been written by ex Windows programmers who just cannot leave well enough alone. Windows email used to be easy to work with and had more features and was easier to understand.


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## burn bhad black (Apr 4, 2018)

I stepped through my own house bathroom ceiling once. I put in a heat vent light. 

Yep, I tried that! Haha
Offered to put a light over the hole [emoji23] -it would have lined up with the kitchen light fixture too but she wasn't going for it.
We are a small residential air conditioning company and the guy who went through the roof offered to come and clean the AC system for free next year! She liked that! [emoji106][emoji2]
I changed out a couple of single pole breakers to a quad 30-50-50- 30 breaker. The single poles were working as two pole for the range and water heater - told her that that was dangerous because just one leg could trip off but I think it went straight over the top of her head like I was talking Greek .
I also fixed up a couple of coffee issues of double tapped circuit breakers and put them under a wirenut with one tail going to the breaker ! [emoji12]... Again, Greek lol

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## burn bhad black (Apr 4, 2018)

LARMGUY said:


> Don't forget the **** and mouse poo and boards with nails and sticky sap oozing out.


Or shake shingle rooves with the mails sticking thru the roof waiting to stab you or scrap a 1 inch deep groove into your skull cap....
Below is my ideal attic, haha


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## burn bhad black (Apr 4, 2018)

Ideal attic haha [emoji23]









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## Coppersmith (Aug 11, 2017)

When I drew a design for a home I wanted to build, it had walkways through all portions of the attic, there was sufficient lighting to light the entire attic space, all cables were in cable tray, all ducts were hard (not flexible) and were mounted overhead so I didn't have to trip over them, the roof was foamed so it didn't get hot and no insulation was required on attic floor so all joists were visible. I debated about whether I should have straight walls for the first two feet before the roof so I could drill the top plates of exterior walls to add wiring.


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## VELOCI3 (Aug 15, 2019)

Use snowshoes


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## burn bhad black (Apr 4, 2018)

Coppersmith said:


> When I drew a design for a home I wanted to build, it had walkways through all portions of the attic, there was sufficient lighting to light the entire attic space, all cables were in cable tray, all ducts were hard (not flexible) and were mounted overhead so I didn't have to trip over them, the roof was foamed so it didn't get hot and no insulation was required on attic floor so all joists were visible. I debated about whether I should have straight walls for the first two feet before the roof so I could drill the top plates of exterior walls to add wiring.


Yeah, love it, hang the expense - let's make it easy for the tradesmen coming in later... Haha
















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## Switched (Dec 23, 2012)

I went through one a few years back. I was walking along the 2x8 and stepped on one that rolled. Apparently when the place was framed back in the 60's someone forgot to nail the thing off, and I was the lucky one to find it. 

Problem is I fell backwards, landing squarely between the rafters with my back. My whole body fell through and I ended up catching myself with one arm. But damn did that wrench my shoulder bad.


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