Brush cutters can be dangerous, and if not taken caring while using them, they may cause serious accidents. There are several risks involved in using a brush cutter. The noise of it could cause permanent hearing loss and vibrations could damage your hands, it flings objects such as sticks and stones at high speed that could injure both the operator and anyone close by, and the rotating blade can also cause serious injuries to your face, feet, hands, or legs. In addition, fuel spillage, hot sparks, or smoke might result in fire hazards. So, it is inevitable for you to use the brush cutter cautiously. Read below to learn what the safe use of a brush cutter is and how can you avoid accidents.
Personal safety measures
- Read the manual guide: Before using the brush cutter, take some time to go through its manual guide that helps to make your working with the equipment safe.
- Protect ears: Use some good hearing protection devices to reduce noise.
- Use gloves: Wearing high-quality and heavy-duty gloves while operating the machine, protects your hands from vibrations.
- Protect face and eyes: Use a face shield and good quality goggles to protect against flying objects and sawdust.
- Along with these, wearing a safety helmet and steel-capped safety boots is quite essential. In addition, keep your first aid kit always ready with you.
Working with the brush cutter
- Before you start working with the equipment, do warm-up exercises and take regular rest breaks.
- Be very careful while working with the brush cutter. Have a firm grip on the machine with both hands and keep the blade or cutting cord at a distance from your body. Make sure that your posture is well balanced and don’t cut above shoulder level.
- Don’t use the brush cutter at a high speed as it may pose danger.
- Take special care when there is overgrown terrain or slippery wet conditions. Watch out for tree stumps, roots, ditches, stones, and other objects that may cause accidents.
- Never use electric trimmers in the rain or in damp conditions as they may cause electric shock.
Precautionary steps
- Don’t let your hands get loose of the handles of the tool before the engine completely stops after it has been turned off.
- The cutting tool must be kept close to the ground, else there is a risk that objects to be cut and particles may get hurled sideways.
- Misuse of a brush cutter may cause severe injuries and damage to the tool.
Prevent fire due to brush cutter
Careless handling of the cutting tool might lead to a fire. You can avoid this by taking a few precautionary steps.
- Avoid smoking in the work areas.
- Let your tool completely cool down before refueling it.
- Refuel in a clear area and avoid spilling fuel.
- Make sure to be at a distance of three meters from the fueling area before you restart the cutting tool.
- Avoid using the brush cutter that is backfiring, missing, or damaged.
- Fuel must be kept in a cool place and a suitable container.
- A fire extinguisher, a piece of canvas, a rake, or a shovel should be kept handy.
Get yourself trained
If you’re going to start working with a brush cutter, make sure to get trained with it. You must learn about its safe working technique and the operating conditions. Get yourself informed with the basics of the brush cutter such as its controls, attachments, components, design, capacity, stability, and limitations. Learn about its starting and stopping technique as well as its cleaning and servicing. Get trained on how to adjust the harness and handles. You must gain the knowledge of using the first aid and fire extinguisher.
Conclusion
Now having gone through the blog, you are aware of the hazards that a brush cutter can cause and how to prevent those dangerous situations. So if you’re planning to buy one, you can easily get it from Padgilwar Corporation based in Pune, which is one of the best manufacturers of agricultural tools and equipment. We offer strong and durable products at an affordable rate. We have a nationwide network of dealers and distributors and also offer online buying facilities. For more details, contact us.
