PSA: Check your anti-two block sensor before the rain hits

Got caught in a real mess yesterday morning on a site near the riverfront. The rain was coming down hard, and my anti-two block alarm just started screaming for no clear reason. I was maybe 30 feet up, trying to set a concrete panel, and the thing would not stop. I had to shut the whole lift down and climb out in the downpour. Turns out, water had gotten into the sensor housing on the boom tip. The seal looked fine from the ground, but it was cracked. I dried it out with my shirt and some compressed air from the service truck, and it calmed down after about twenty minutes. Lost a good chunk of the morning, but at least it failed safe. Anyone have a favorite brand for those sensor seals that actually holds up in bad weather?

2 comments

2 Comments

garcia.miles1mo ago

Ever have one of those sensors fail at the absolute worst time? My old man always said my luck with gear was so bad, I could get a waterproof watch to leak in a desert. Last year, a similar thing happened with a limit switch in just a light drizzle. The housing looked sealed tight, but moisture still found a way in. I spent an hour up there with a rag and a hairdryer I borrowed from the site office. Felt like a real genius.

jessica_jenkins11mo ago

Moisture in a limit switch is the worst. Try putting a little dielectric grease on the gasket before you seal it up next time. That extra layer can really block water from creeping in. A hairdryer is a solid fix in a pinch, but stopping it before it starts is way better. Your old man might be onto something about that luck.