Arborists require a variety of climbing equipment, such as harnesses, ropes, carabiners, and lifts. The harnesses provide comfort and support when working at height, while the ropes and carabiners ensure secure connections. Elevators and other mechanical devices allow for smooth, controlled movement within the awning. Your personal protective equipment, an absolute and paramount necessity, is a key starting point.
It's vital to your safety and should be the first thing you should include in your budget. Your harness is one of the most integral and vital parts of your daily work kit. It is your harness that will provide you with protection and safety at height and will facilitate your work performance, so it's worth doing it right. As an arborist, ropes are the basis of all the functions you'll perform as an arborist, so it's important to get a good rope, take care of it and inspect it first of each use.
Most arborologists prefer a string that comes with a factory-made eye, and they usually come in 35 or 45 m reels, with 35 m being the most popular length. If you're working with a limited budget, you can buy a rope by the metre and tie your eye with it. You'll need a means to climb the rope, and there are several ways to do this. Ultimately, you're likely to invest in some type of upward bike (such as a Petzl ZigZag or an ART Lockjack), but for starters you can start with a very simple and cost-effective friction, double tail or prussic hitch kit. Climbing carabiners are essential for attaching to ropes and performing various climbing tasks.
To comply with current regulations, any carabiner you use for mountaineering or personal protective equipment must have a three-way locking gate and a minimum resistance of 23 kN on the main axis. Alloy carabiners are generally preferred for climbing, as they are much lighter than steel, which is used for rigging operations. For a basic climbing kit, you'll most likely need about 4 carabiners. A good idea is to choose from a variety of shapes and sizes, as over time you'll get an idea of what it is the one that best suits each configuration.
Cords are short pieces of arborist rope that you'll use to position yourself in relation to the tree while you work, climb short distances or provide a secondary attachment point for safety reasons, and are necessary pieces of equipment. You'll need an adjustable cord that allows you to move toward the trunk and away from it. The longer the cord, the more versatile it will be, but you must balance this with the additional weight and volume of carrying an additional one-meter cord with you that you will rarely use. If you plan to do your training with an aerial chainsaw, you'll need a chainsaw cord to attach the saw to the harness.
Before buying, especially with equipment such as a harness, which will be attached to you almost permanently, it's best to test them whenever possible before buying. If you can't go to a store, ask your colleagues and see if they can lend you some of their equipment for a climbing test. You can also order 2 to 3 different harnesses online, study them carefully at home, test them so that they fit you well and are comfortable (making sure to keep them in perfect condition and not to remove the labels, etc.), keep your favorite one and return the others to them. Like a chainsaw, arborists can use a hand saw to prune or remove smaller trees.
They are compact and good for precise pruning work. Since arborists need to be able to carry out a tree risk assessment and identify tree diseases, a great deal of practical work also needs to be done.
