Don’t Let Cold Gloves Keep You From Doing Your Job: 5 Tips From a Seasoned Lineman
By Uncle Beau
We’ve all been there: out in the field, practically frozen solid, snow coming down in sheets—and those rubber gloves go completely stiff.
Those gloves can be bulky and cumbersome even in the best conditions, but when the temperature drops and the rubber stiffens up, it’s hard to maintain control of a grip—not to mention trying to shove that fat rubber thumb in the same hole as a hoist hook. When those gloves get cold and stiff, my hands become pretty much useless.
But hey, that’s the job, right? We’ve got people counting on us—we can’t get tripped up every time our gloves get a little frosty.
Here are five ways I’ve found that can help you keep working, even when it’s so cold your gloves become glove-sicles.
1. Two is better than one
Working in cold, stiff gloves is no way to live—especially when you’ve been working for 24 hours and you just have to make up a few jumpers to finish the job.
Having a couple sets of gloves can be an awesome addition to your tool arsenal.
A set of gloves in the cab of the truck, staying warm while you’re working, can be a life-saver. And when the ones you’re wearing get either too wet or too cold, switch them out for the other pair. This can be a simple fix to a major problem.
2. Throw your gloves on the heater in the cab
If you can’t be someplace warmer, you might at least be able to get your gloves someplace warmer.
Try this kicka** hack: toss your gloves on the defroster in the cab of the truck to soften them back up, and then get back out there and finish the job.
Keep in mind that you may need to repeat this a couple times if your gloves freeze up again. (Another reason to pick up an extra set of gloves!)
3. Stock up on hand warmers
If cold hands and stiff gloves are going to be a regular issue on your job site, it might make sense to look into a more portable solution.
Single-use hand warmers can be a great way to get some quick warmth to your hands and your gloves. Just shake the warmer according to the directions and stick it in your glove. Boom!
These can take a little while to warm up, but they can last a pretty long time—sometimes 10 hours or more. It may be a little harder to get the glove fingers to warm up as much as the palm, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction.
4. Wear a set of thin cotton gloves under your rubber gloves
Wearing a set of thin cotton gloves under your rubbers can help keep your fingers warmer in those frigid environments while still keeping the mobility in your hands to get the job done.
This extra layer can make a surprising difference. Because let’s face it: our hands get pretty beat up, and if we can have a little comfort and a little extra warmth on a tough day—well, it makes life a lot easier.
It’s a good idea to keep several sets of the cotton gloves on hand to change out in case you get a hole in one. (Or if they start to get a little nasty.)
5. Switch to a better grip
If you can’t change your gloves—change what your gloves are grabbing.
Sometimes you just need a grip that’s easier to work with. Bull Bite Grips are my grip of choice for solving this problem because of their extra rigging eye and the extra long han-dle.
Since my hands have more space to grab the grip, I’m able to keep a firm grasp and apply the grip, even when the weather isn’t on my side.
Keep it safe
The most important thing on any job site is safety, and safety comes when you can trust in the folks around you and in the quality of your tools.
And when the weather conditions aren’t the best, that’s when safety and trust become even more crucial.
Whether you try one of these tips or a combination of a few, I hope you always remember that as linemen, we don’t let anything hold us back from getting the job done. That’s how it is, and that’s how it ought to be.
Do the work and keep it safe.
Uncle Beau
AF FINAL TEXT 12/7/20