Secondary voltage and leather gloves

[Avid]

How many of you do it? Where I came from they issued low voltage gloves, although if there was primary on the pole, your class 2 rubbers needed to be used.

I just started and they use leather gloves for all secondary voltage, "unless it's wet".

I've been wearing my class 2's more or less because it's habbit for me, and they're fine with that. Just got me wondering how many other places did it.

[Lineman North Florida]

I used to do it all the time in the old days, but got to thinking about it setting a bad example to the younger guys so I stopped, although I never had a problem when using a good dry pair of leather drivers gloves, I could have just been lucky.

[Pootnaigle]

It can sho nuff be done but it sets a poor example for the younguns and cuts your margin of error to the bone. Did I do it? yep...was it ever legal? Nope.Do rubber gloves make ya safer?......... Not if you have yer head up yer azz.
I would say that its good training for young guys to wear rubbers working secondary........ helps em develop the dexterity needed later on. For the older guys that know better shame on ya if sumpin happens cause you aint gotta bitch comin. Least wear yer zeros.

[Avid]

We'd had a guy get killed from open wire secondaries - either he reached through, or around when he was on hooks. It was back in the 70's I guess.

I was just surprised to see it, and it's company policy that leather is okay for secondaries.

Kinda like going from one extreme to the other. But like I said, I'm so used to wearing them, that I don't mind them. Our open wire isn't in the greatest of shape either so I'll take the extra layer.

[CPOPE]

Very old school company policy and with class o gloves available to the industry, should an accident happen, they'll likely be open to a violation of the National Electrical Safety Code by OSHA. Leathers alone simply don't have an insulating value by any industry standards.

441. Energized conductors or parts
Employees shall not approach, or knowingly permit others to approach, any exposed ungrounded part normally energized except as permitted by this rule.
A. Minimum approach distance to live parts

1. General
Employees shall not approach or bring any conductive object within the minimum approach distance listed in Table 441-1 or 441-4 to exposed parts unless one of the following is met:

a. The line or part is de-energized and grounded per Rule 444D.
b. The employee is insulated from the energized line or part. Electrical protective equipment insulated for the voltage involved, such as tools, gloves, rubber gloves, or rubber gloves with sleeves, shall be considered effective insulation for the employee from the energized part being worked on.
c. The energized line or part is insulated from the employee and from any other line or part at a different voltage.
d. The employee is performing barehand live-line work according to Rule 446.

[old lineman]

We used to have a minimum of class 1 on secondary but there were many complaint able dexterity. Lots of violations.
We changed the rule to Class O's are permitted. Good acceptance.
About 10 years ago a journey lineman was transfering a service from the old pole to a new pole and he was wearing leathers. He connected the neutral and one hot legs. Reached for the other hot leg while his hand was in contact with the neutral and he somehow contacted the end of the hot leg from the house. A bridge across the heart and that was a killer.
Amperage kills and there is more than enough in the secondaries.
The Old Lineman

[Edge]

We used to have a minimum of class 1 on secondary but there were many complaint able dexterity. Lots of violations.
We changed the rule to Class O's are permitted. Good acceptance.
About 10 years ago a journey lineman was transfering a service from the old pole to a new pole and he was wearing leathers. He connected the neutral and one hot legs. Reached for the other hot leg while his hand was in contact with the neutral and he somehow contacted the end of the hot leg from the house. A bridge across the heart and that was a killer.
Amperage kills and there is more than enough in the secondaries.
The Old Lineman

good post for a change old saftey man... I get paid to do my work in class 4.. so I so I do it...
get over the silly shit..
yeah leathers will prolly be fine... you wanna trust that.. thats fine too...

does your wife trust it?
do your kids trust it???
do your grand kids trust it???

put your rubber on man or be the victim of another cheap whore...

complacency...

for what it's worth...

Edge

[MI-Lineman]

good post for a change old saftey man... I get paid to do my work in class 4.. so I so I do it...
get over the silly shit..
yeah leathers will prolly be fine... you wanna trust that.. thats fine too...

does your wife trust it?
do your kids trust it???
do your grand kids trust it???

put your rubber on man or be the victim of another cheap whore...

complacency...

for what it's worth...

Edge

Nice Edge! I did that "silly shit" too until I realized it aint just you and your family, but the lineman and his family that TRY TO SAVE YOUR ASS! You wanna be a cowboy, get horses! I did! Line work's for lineman not cowboys(no offense Fiberglass!).

AND IT'S JUST AS IMPORTANT TO TEST'EM TOO AND YOU ALL KNOW IT!!!

[doug]

We are given both hi&low voltage gloves and if has primary on pole you shall wear your hi voltage gloves.Plus it also so the new guys the right way to do it.

[markwho]

We used to use leather gloves all the time. It has now been a few years that we have been issued 1kv rated gloves. I got used to wearing them when was on our service truck for a few years. They are especially nice when working in the hot months when your leathers would normally become damp from perspiration and you really had to watch your hand placement when connecting services. We used to wear our primary gloves when we worked on some 4/0 cu. paralleled alley circuits due to the high amperage, though we all know it only takes a little bit. I do remember on occasion using leathers to transfer 4 kv from a bucket, had only done that a couple of times though.