Ignoring safety warnings and bypassing safety devices

[Milton Burro]

OK, so you bypass all the safety interlocks. Now someone that is not aware of the bypasses runs your tractor and does something stupid that an interlock would not have permitted. Who is on the hook?

Hmmmm,, lemme call my lawyer.

 

[Don87]

Several posters seem to harbour the misapprehension that safety warnings are for owners. While safety warnings may occasionally help inform a naive user, they are actually primarily for the benefit of the manufacturer/seller. After all, if you do something a bit careless with your machine and suffer an injury, you can't say its the fault of the maker if their owner's manual says don't do that!
A history of litigation has driven an explosion of (sometimes laughable) warnings...corporate lawyers trying to cover all possible bases. However, there is nothing so foolproof that a sufficiently ingenious fool can't circumvent it.
BOB

I think my toaster came with some sort of warning about...........using it to heat the bathwater...........or was that..............don't heat the bathwater..............or...........don't inset fingers into slot while in the bathtub.............or maybe.......don't eat the toaster?:laughing::laughing::laughing:

Heck.............I gotta do some reading..............be back soon.:laughing::thumbsup::laughing:

 

[BethesdaEC]

Several posters seem to harbour the misapprehension that safety warnings are for owners. While safety warnings may occasionally help inform a naive user, they are actually primarily for the benefit of the manufacturer/seller. After all, if you do something a bit careless with your machine and suffer an injury, you can't say its the fault of the maker if their owner's manual says don't do that!
A history of litigation has driven an explosion of (sometimes laughable) warnings...corporate lawyers trying to cover all possible bases. However, there is nothing so foolproof that a sufficiently ingenious fool can't circumvent it.
BOB

If you build an idiot proof system, someone will invent a better idiot.

 

[robs660]

Maybe next when a child is born the nurse will cover them in warning stickers like a tractor. Warning may projectile vomit always point in a safe direction, or warning may result in loss of sleep use caution when driving after handling.

 

[logdog]

Maybe next when a child is born the nurse will cover them in warning stickers like a tractor. Warning may projectile vomit always point in a safe direction, or warning may result in loss of sleep use caution when driving after handling.

Imagine the economic impact that printing warning labels for teenagers would have! The sticker presses couldnt keep up even if they ran 3 shifts 7 days a week!:laughing:

 

[looknlearn]

I think the real problem is that people don't want to own up the the fact that it was their fault. We make a mistake and immediately find someone to blame. We can be careful and but humans make mistakes... I think that is what has changed in the last 60 years which forces the companies to put all the dumb and obvious warnings on everything. (i.e. I stub my toe on a stool and blame someone for not putting it away before I walked by. It was my fault that I wan't looking where I was going not the person who didn't know they had to carefully clear the way for me)

Our equipment in our garage has no safety devices cause my tractor is 60 years old, the lawn tractor is well beaten and has most of the wiring disconnected and the rototiller has had all safety devices removed cause it is now a pull-start (no electric).

I have done dumb things like using the foot operated starter button to move the tractor in the barn and when I need to stop, my foot pushes harder cause it thinks it's the clutch ( as I crush a chair into a cabinet in the back of the garage.)

 

[bstrom]

If you are a manufacturer and make a product that could cause injury then you are open to litigation by lawyers and their sometimes upset and desperate clients. Thus the principle reason for safety devices. I know a lot of guys on here probably don't believe this but they were not actually invented by liberals and government people. I personally think they are there mostly for manufacturers to protect themselves from litigation. Some of them actually work and are a good thing and protect people from accidents, others are just awkward and don't work that well. For instance I didn't know of any professional carpenters that used a table saw blade guard on the job site for years because they were just to awkward for the things you have to do. Every one just takes them off. I think they have since gotten better but in my sphere anyway no one still uses them. I heard about a recent large lawsuit involving a table saw and inexperienced cheap labor so I may be seeing it soon.

I was going to bypass my HST pedal switch but I just spent time and adjusted it and it works now. With tractors on hills and rough ground there is just a lot to go wrong so I personally feel better with the safety stuff as long it is working ok.

 

[HiTechTed]

How many out there, like me, don't follow all the safety rules?

I don't believe that I am reckless, and I don't do things just to stick it to the man, but I do think that some safety devices/practices/rules are not for me. I consider the risk, and in some cases come to the conclusion that I am smart enough and mature enough to handle the risks. There's a good chance of me getting injured while on a leisurely motorcycle ride but I keep on riding.

I think that a lot of safety devices/rules/warnings are there because someone was dumb. I figure that I'm not the type of guy to toast an english muffin while taking a bubble bath, so the six warning labels in three languages on everything that plugs in annoys me.

I don't think the things I do are dumb. I pay attention. I am careful. I think about where I am, what I'm doing, and what's going on around me. There's no beer consumed until after the day's work is done and the machine is parked in the garage. I think some people need to be protected from themselves, but I don't believe that I am one of them.

Am I alone? Does anybody else feel and act this way? Do some like to think that they follow all the rules all the time, but sneak an infraction every now and then when no one is looking and not admit to it?

I'm not saying that I am right or saying that safety is silly, I'm just saying what I do. I'm not asking permission, and not trying to convince anyone to engage in what might be considered foolish behavior.


Things I've done (and in most cases probably will continue to do) and my justification for not following the warnings:

I don't use the chains that come with PTO shaft safety covers. They just seem to come loose, flail around, and eat the paint off of things.

I have bypassed the seat switch on my tractor. Trying to do the Houdini quick flip between the drivers seat and the backhoe seat without having to restart the machine is a pain in the posterior.

I've been known to step off the tractor while the MMM blades are still spinning. Only on the non discharge side, and only when the deck is lowered so it won't kick something at me and I can't get a toe under there.

I have no reservations welding on my ROPS. I've done a fair amount of welding and have yet to see a length of box tube fail because I welded on it. I don't think that welding on a few brackets to mount lights will alter the performance of the ROPS. I think the manufacturer will advise against it because it makes their life easier if they need to litigate in a lawsuit involving a rollover accident.

I take my toddler for rides around the yard on the tractor. Low throttle, no blades spinning or implements engaged, just a slow tour of the perimeter of the property. She sits on my left leg and I don't need my left foot or left hand to operate the machine. Throttle, brakes, and hydrostatic controls are all on the right side, so my left arm is dedicated to holding her on my lap.

I also occasionally swim just minutes after eating a sandwich, sit very close to the television, and read in poorly lit rooms.

I do always put the toilet seat back down. I'm no dummy.



And go.

I think everybody does SOMETHING that would be considered by some to be risky. I also take my boys for rides around the property, the same way you do. They know to sit still and behave and we only ride on the smooth paths. On the other hand I would never let them ride in the bucket for any reason. I cringe when I see people on riding mowers, blades engaged, with a kid on their lap. Wait until after you are done mowing to give the kids a ride...it's not worth the potential risk of them being maimed or even killed.

I'm going to agree that a lot of warnings and safety features are a means for companies to "cover their arse," so to speak. And I personally don't mind having the warning labels and all that. I will say that I hate the reverse PTO button on my Deere riding mower and have considered disabling it simply because it's stupid. It's supposed to prevent you from backing over something or someone while the blades are engaged by killing the engine, but if you just look behind you before backing up then it's not an issue. I can push that button WITHOUT looking behind me, which makes it worthless as a safety device in my opinion.

All I can say is that everybody has their own way to do things and I'm sure all of us have "cheated" on the safety issues. My only suggestion would be to maintain your awareness of your surroundings and have respect for all machinery and tools. And above all, keep those kids out of harm's way.

 

[glinke]

Seems like we only need one warning label to cover all situations: "Don't do anything stupid while using this device."

 

[Lightnsound]

Seems like we only need one warning label to cover all situations: "Don't do anything stupid while using this device."

I've removed the warning decals from my machine, but I think might print this one up and stick it on.