Mobile scaffold hire with 12 metres working height

With the platform at around 10 metres your hands reach roughly 12 metres. That is exactly the range you need for the fourth floor of a house, for the cornice of a tall town house or for the gutter and fascia boards of an apartment block. Think of painting the top window frames, repointing brickwork, replacing a section of gutter or inspecting the facade from close up before you ask anyone for a quote.

Look closely at the facade itself before you order. Tall older buildings often have a projecting cornice, shutters or a hoisting beam in the way, and on the fourth level the window sills stick out further than they appear from the pavement. So measure not only the height, but also how far the tower has to stay away from the wall. The narrow RS51 at 75 centimetres fits along a tight path, while the RS52 at 135 centimetres gives you more room on the platform.

The tower arrives as a complete set of parts, so you build it yourself with the manual and the video at hand. For this height expect a serious number of frame sections, diagonal braces and platforms, all of which have to go up in the right order. Do not start on your own: someone on the ground who hands parts up and keeps the set sorted saves more time than you would think and keeps the whole build calm.

Plan the build for the start of the day, not as something you squeeze in between other jobs. Lay all the parts out on the ground first, check what you have received, and then work upwards layer by layer, fitting the guard rails before you stand on a new platform. Extend the stabilisers early, before the tower gets tall, rather than once it already moves. Allow time for taking the tower down again at the end of the job as well.

At this height, popping down for something is no longer a small matter. A climb down and back up costs you several minutes and it breaks your concentration each time. So before you start, make a list of everything that has to go up: tools, fixings, cloths, a rubbish bag and enough to drink. Take a little too much rather than too little, and keep the tools you reach for most often at the top of your box.

Hoist heavier items up the outside with a bucket and a rope instead of carrying them up in one hand. Load class 3 means 200 kilos per square metre, but spread that weight across the platform instead of putting it all in one spot. Never leave anything resting loose against the guard rail: from 10 metres a falling spanner is a serious risk to everyone below. Close off the area underneath your work position.