When you are undertaking crane rigging, you need to use fiber rope. You can use the rope in different applications such as:
- Slings and lifting materials
- Handlines for hoisting light loads
- Taglines for guiding and controlling heavy loads
Types of fiber ropes
There are many types of these ropes that you can use. The most common ones being:
Polypropylene: They are the most commonly used in rigging. The ropes have a number of characteristics that make them an ideal choice for your rigging needs. They are light thus float but don’t absorb water. They tend to stretch much better than the other synthetic fibers in the market such as nylon.
While they are tough and an ideal choice for your rigging needs, they are greatly affected by ultraviolet rays of the sunlight. This means that when you leave them outside for a long time, they are bound to get destroyed.
The ropes are also affected by heat; therefore, you should avoid using them in areas where they will be exposed to a lot of heat for a long time.
Nylon: This rope is known for its strength. While the fiber rope is tough, many people avoid using it in rigging as it stretches. The rope is also much expensive to buy. When you expose it to wetness, the rope loses strength. It has also been shown to have low resistant to acids; therefore, when working in acidic areas, you should avoid using it.
Polyester: Polyester ropes are stronger than polypropylene ropes and have good resistance to alkalis, acids, and abrasion. Compared to nylon, they don’t stretch as much. They aren’t affected by ultraviolet rays thus you can use them outdoors for a long time without worrying about them getting damaged.
Regardless of the rope that you choose, ensure that you buy a high-quality one. Before you use any of the rope, carefully inspect it for issues it might be having. Check whether the rope has any visible signs of wear and cuts. Also, be on the lookout for size variations, shape of strands, elasticity issues, and discoloration problems.
Untwist the strands without distorting them. The insides of the rope should be straight and clean. Check for broken yarns, accumulation of powdery dust, and excessively loose strands and yarns. If your ropes have any of these signs, it means that they have been excessively worn out internally and it’s time to replace them.
Is the rope dirty? Have the strands began to unlay? Has the rope lost its life and elasticity? Avoid using it in your rigging project.
How do you take care of the rope?
For the ropes to last for a long time and give you a great service, you should take good care of them.
One of the things you should do is to be cautious of how you unwind a new coil of the rope. To do so, you need to lay the rope flat with the inside end close to the floor. Carefully, pull the inside end of the rope through the coil and unwind in an anticlockwise direction.
Once you are done with the lifting, recoil the rope clockwise. Keep looping the rope over your arm until you are left with only 15 feet. You should then make a few loops and a few half-hitches that will prevent the loops from uncoiling.
Are there kinks in your rope? Carefully remove them. Avoid pulling them straight as doing so will severely damage the rope and reduce its strength in the process.
Proper use of the fiber rope
How you use the rope also greatly affects how long the rope lasts. As rule of thumb, never overload the rope. You also should avoid dragging the rope along the ground. This is to prevent the rope from wearing out or getting cut.
You should only make straight line pulls with the fiber rope. Avoid bends as they interfere with stress distribution in the fibers. If you pull the rope wrongly, you risk damaging it.
When it comes to the rope eyes, always use thimbles. Rigging services DC providers observe that thimbles cut down on the wearing out of the rope. It also puts little stress on the fiber rope.
