Raising with a crane

[walexander]

Every frame I've raised up until now has been by hand or with forks. Now I'm working on a frame that must be raised by crane. Is anyone doing a crane raising in the next few months that I could come and be a fly on the wall for? I'm in Alabama, but will travel.

-Will

[Don P]

It might be worth calling whoever you'll be using and hitting some local construction jobs with them. It will give you a good bit of the basics. They might welcome some help with setup and pack up in exchange. I doubt you should do any rigging on someone else's job but you can learn by watching. If you don't know your hand signals google and learn those and understand what parts of the crane and the motions it will perform as you signal are.

[flyingparks]

I have one coming up in early January. Not sure of the exact date. You're welcome although I'm a long way from Alabama. If you've raised a frame by hand or with forks, raising with a crane should be pretty straight forward. It goes without saying that communication with the crane operator will need to be on point. Be sure to know the limits of the frame. You don't want to put too much stress on a spline or a peg. Bracing may be necessary. Since cranes are not cheap it helps to have a lull on site. They come in handy for putting in connecting girts and moving any material. A raising schedule is invaluable. PM me if coming to Colorado is something you would consider. Get familiar with rigging and hand signals. 

[walexander]

So far I've only had responses from Colorado and Canada so Colorado is a real option right now!

[WV Sawmiller]

   I'm no timber framer or a crane operator but I worked a lot of construction projects all over the world where we used cranes for heavy lifts. My suggestion is hire a good, experienced crane operator with an experienced helper, show them what you want lifted and where you want it then stay out of their way.

   BTW - which part of N. Ala are you from? My wife was raised out near Cullman. A big old War Eagle to you.

[Ariverrunsthru]

I second the opinions of hiring an experienced operator, and listening to what they have to say. Depending on where you're willing to travel to, I've got a raising scheduled for next week in Northeast Ohio.

[walexander]

I'm raising this frame right next to Cullman. I drive through there every day. Small world. Mostly around here we get a lot of "Roll Tide" but I am an Auburn alum.War Eagle!

[walexander]

thanks for the advice. I need to start calling around and see which crane operators fit the bill.

[Cosmo52]

Review the access to the work area for the crane.  The more restricted you are means possibly farther lifts for the crane which reduces capacity.  Long reaches usually mean bigger crane - more $/hr.  Make sure components are identified and organized so that the rigging and lifting are not held up by rearranging parts.  Measure the setup area to the center point (balance point) for the lifts for calculating lift capacity.  Estimate (conservatively) weights of assembled units for calculating crane capacity.  Have adequate step ladders on site to unhook rigging.

 

[WV Sawmiller]

   Good points from Cosmos. Any unlevel ground for the crane creates serious problems as well as any power or utility lines. A small crane can lift a lot if it does not have to move it far. A huge crane can turn over with just the weight of the boom if the ground is unlevel or soft if you boom out too far. We lost a 65 ton crane in Haiti when the operator swung the untelescoped boom around without putting out his landing gear first.

    My wife was actually raised there at Vinemont and went school over at West Point. We were back last summer for her 45th HS class reunion.