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New block walls: the limited access zone

Struck-by 5 min 29 CFR 1926.706

Masonry

Why it matters

A fresh block or brick wall has very little strength until the mortar sets and the wall is tied in. A gust of wind or a bump from a forklift can push it over. Anyone standing on the wrong side can be crushed or buried under it.

The talk

A masonry wall is at its weakest while the mortar is green and the wall stands alone, not tied to anything. Wind is the big enemy. A tall wall acts like a sail. One hard gust can lay a long run of block flat in a second. Other times it is a forklift setting a pallet too hard on the scaffold, or backfill pushed against a wall that is not braced. The people who get hurt are often not masons. They are laborers taking a shortcut, an electrician running conduit, or a supervisor walking the job.

Before the first course goes up, a limited access zone has to be set on the side of the wall with no scaffold. It runs the full length of the wall. It is as wide as the wall will be tall, plus 4 feet. So a 12-foot wall gets a 16-foot zone. Only the masons actually building that wall can go inside it. Everyone else stays out. The zone stays up until the wall is supported so it can't fall over or collapse. If the wall is over 8 feet tall, it has to be braced, and the zone stays until the bracing is in. The bracing stays until the permanent structure holds the wall.

Here is how it goes wrong. The caution tape blows down in the first storm and nobody puts it back. A worker cuts through the zone because it is the quickest way to the porta-john. Someone borrows a brace for another wall. Or the crew keeps laying block on a windy afternoon because they want to finish the course. Walk the zone every morning and put back what is missing. Check that braces are tight and staked. Ask the foreman what the plan is if the wind picks up. And if you are not working on that wall, go around.

Key points

  1. A new masonry wall is weak until the mortar sets and the wall is tied in.
  2. Set the limited access zone before the wall goes up.
  3. The zone is on the side with no scaffold and runs the whole length.
  4. Zone width is the wall height plus 4 feet.
  5. Only the masons building that wall go inside the zone.
  6. Walls over 8 feet tall must be braced.
  7. The bracing stays until the permanent structure holds the wall.

Do this

  • Put up the zone before laying the first course.
  • Walk the zone each morning and fix tape or barricades that are down.
  • Check that braces are tight and anchored.
  • Go around the zone even if it takes longer.
  • Talk about the wind plan before the shift starts.

Do not do this

  • Do not cut through the zone unless you are building that wall.
  • Do not take a brace off one wall to use on another.
  • Do not backfill or stack material against an unbraced wall.
  • Do not set pallets down hard on a scaffold next to green block.
  • Do not keep working a tall wall in strong wind without asking the foreman.

Talk about it

  1. How tall will our walls get this week, and how wide does each zone need to be?
  2. What do we do when the wind picks up in the afternoon?

This is a short crew briefing. It does not replace a competent person, training, or the law.

Training aid only. This talk is not legal advice. It does not replace your company's safety program, a competent person, the equipment maker's instructions, or the OSHA standard itself.

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