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High-rise unit servicing when the building elevator is down.

Hector V.asked 2 viewsConstruction & Job SitesHigh rise unitService visitTruck accessElevator accessConstruction site

High-rise unit servicing when the building elevator is down.

Our site is a 30-story high-rise, and we have a standard portable toilet on the 25th floor for the concrete crew. The building elevator is scheduled for a full week of maintenance starting Monday. I called the rental company, and they said their driver cannot service a unit that high without elevator access. The driver uses a vacuum truck at ground level, so the unit has to be brought down.

I have a crew of 60 on that floor. They need a toilet. The stairwell is the only way up and down for the week. I cannot ask the crew to carry a 200-pound empty unit down 25 flights and then carry a full one back up. That is not safe.

What are my options here? Do I move the unit to the ground floor for the week and tell the crew to come down? Do I rent a second unit for the ground and keep the high-rise one locked until the elevator is back? Has anyone dealt with this before?

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Tyler R.Columbus, OH

Put temporary units at ground level for the week and lock the 25th-floor unit until the elevator is back. Do not try to haul a standard unit down the stairs.

A vacuum truck services from grade. Without elevator access, that floor-25 unit cannot get a normal https://portapotty.forum/glossary/service-visit/, and carrying a roughly 200 lb unit on stairs is hard on the crew and a tip hazard on landings. OSHA 1926.51 still expects toilet facilities for workers while they are on site, so you need working toilets they can actually reach during the outage.

What I have seen on high-rises: if you still have a window before the elevator goes down, get a last pump on the upper unit, then lock it so nobody keeps filling a tank that cannot be emptied. Stage ground-level units near a clear stair egress so the concrete crew can get to them without blocking exits. Tell the floor crew the upper unit is out of service for the week.

Moving that same unit to ground only works if you have a safe way to get it down, like the elevator, a crane lift, or the rental handling the move themselves. Stairs are not that path. When the elevator returns, unlock and resume service on the https://portapotty.forum/glossary/high-rise-unit/.

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