U. S. Department of Labor

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Directorate of Science, Technology & Medicine

Office of Science and Technology Assessment

SHIB 11-17-2005

Safety and Health Information Bulletin

Hazards of Manually Lifting Balloon Framed Walls

Purpose

This Safety and Health Information Bulletin

alerts employers and employees that manually raised

balloon framed walls could become too heavy for

employees to hold and could collapse back onto the

employees. From July 1999 through July 2004, 22

balloon framed wall collapses were reported. Four of

these accidents occurred in the Chicago area. In one

of these accidents, in August 2003, eight employees

were sent to local hospitals; two of them suffered

broken feet and vertebrae. Six other employees

suffered back, shoulder and neck strains. This bulletin

will summarize:

• How balloon framed walls can collapse onto

the employees raising them; and

• Methods to prevent accidental collapse of

balloon framed walls while they are being

raised.

Background

The Occupational Safety and Health

Administration’s (OSHA’s) Calumet City Area Office

investigated an accident where the weight of a balloon

framed wall became too heavy for the employees

raising the wall, and the wall collapsed back onto the

employees. OSHA’s Integrated Management

Information System (IMIS) data from July 1999

through July 2004 recorded 21 additional incidents

involving the collapse of balloon framed walls. As a

result of these 22 incidents, five employees died and

28 employees were injured, 16 of whom required

hospitalization.

Balloon Framing

Balloon framing involves the placement of

framed walls (generally over 10 feet in height) that run

the entire vertical length from the structure’s floor sill

plate to the roof. Balloon framed walls have been

raised for years using manual labor. However, over

the years framed walls have become heavier due to

contemporary construction designs. Many

contractors have developed guidelines for employees

raising such walls. However, these guidelines are not

consistent and often rely heavily on the foreman

This Safety and Health Information Bulletin is not a

standard or regulation, and it creates no new legal

obligations. The Bulletin is advisory in nature, informational in content, and is intended to assist employers in providing a safe and healthful workplace.

Pursuant to the Occupational Safety and Health

Act, employers must comply with hazard-specific

safety and health standards promulgated by OSHA or

by a state with an OSHA-approved state plan. In

addition, pursuant to Section 5(a)(1), the General

Duty Clause of the Act, employers must provide their

employees with a workplace free from recognized

hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

Employers can be cited for violating the General Duty

Clause if there is a recognized hazard and they do not

take reasonable steps to prevent or abate the hazard.

However, failure to implement any recommendations

in this Safety and Health Information Bulletin is not, in

itself, a violation of the General Duty Clause. Citations can only be based on standards, regulations, and

the General Duty Clause.
2

 Pre-plan the job;

 Determine the weight of the walls;

 Conduct “pre-lift” meetings to discuss the

safest methods for raising these walls;

 Use a competent person to consider and

supervise all aspects of the lifting operation;

 Use cranes with appropriate and approved

attachments to assist in raising and placing

balloon framed walls;

Example of carpenters manually raising a balloon framed wall

with a chimney chase attached. As the photo depicts, more

than 10 workers are exposed to being struck by the wall if it

collapses onto them.

Safe Lifting Methods

Employers may use a combination of the

following methods to protect employees from the

potential collapse of balloon framed walls:

guessing the weight of the wall and estimating the

number of employees necessary to perform the lift.

Accident Description

The accident near the Calumet City Area

Office occurred on a site where a contractor was

building new homes. The wall involved in the incident

was 22 feet, 10 inches in width and 18 feet in height,

with a 30-foot chimney chase attached. The wall

weighed approximately 2,300 pounds, and 15

employees were raising it by hand.

The wall was built on the deck (first floor) of

the house. Fifteen carpenters spread out along the top

plate of the wall and began to lift it. The carpenters

lifted the wall to approximately waist height, placed it

on saw horses, and then attached braces. The

carpenters then continued to lift the wall. Three

carpenters dropped back to help push up the wall

using the braces. The additional weight distributed to

the remaining carpenters overwhelmed the 12

carpenters who remained at the top plate.

The carpenters interviewed stated that the wall

was at an angle of approximately 30 degrees when it

fell back onto the workers. The carpenters attempted

to “back down” the wall, but it fell onto them. Several

employees were able to step into window openings,

avoiding the falling wall, while several others were

unable to avoid the falling wall, including two

employees who were pinned under the wall. These

two employees were freed by the other carpenters,

but they suffered broken feet and vertebrae. Six other

carpenters were treated at local hospitals and released

with strains and sprains of their backs, shoulders and

necks.

 Use either forklifts of adequate size and

capacity for lifting balloon framed walls or

rough terrain forklifts (Figure 1) with

appropriate and approved attachments in

placing balloon framed walls;

 

Figure 1
3

 Prior to the lifting of the wall, establish a

limited access zone whenever a balloon

framed wall is being raised;

The limited access zone should be equal to

the height of the wall plus four feet and

should run the entire length of the wall;

The limited access zone should be restricted

to entry by employees actively engaged in

lifting the wall and no other workers be

allowed to enter the zone;

The limited access zone should remain in

place until the wall is adequately supported

and braced to prevent accidental collapse;

 Secure bottom plates with adequate sized

metal bands (at least a one-inch band nailed

to the floor joists) located at each end of the

wall and spaced not more than 6 feet apart

(Figure 2 ) or other adequate feasible means

of securing the bottom plate.

 Figure 2

 Use either manual or mechanical/electrical

wall jacks (Figures 3 & 4) to assist with the

lifting and placing balloon framed walls;

 

 Figure 4

 If the manual lifting method is chosen and a

determination is made that a method exists

to safely lift these walls, assure that a

sufficient number of workers are continually

assisting while each wall is being raised to

prevent the wall from falling back onto them

and to prevent overexertion by workers

lifting each wall; and

 Require employees to use the proper

procedures for engaging load-handling

attachments onto forklifts or cranes. Make

these safe lifting procedures part of the

company’s safety and health program.

 

 Figure 3