Bucket trucks are commonly seen on the streets and highways of the United States, but what exactly are these trucks used for? This article looks at some of the common, unusual, and sometimes hilarious uses of these trucks.
Ten Uses for Bucket Trucks
Use Number 1: Maintenance of Telecommunications Lines and Electrical Services
The most obvious use of forklifts is to lift workers onto telecom and electrical utility lines for maintenance. Trucks with special insulation are used for these jobs to protect workers from the dangerous high-voltage cables that the job requires them to work with.
Use number 2: window washing
Since these trucks have arms that can sometimes extend 60′ or more, they can be used to wash exterior windows on mid-size office buildings up to 5 stories. These trucks allow window cleaners to safely reach windows at heights not accessible by ladders.
Use number 3: fruit picking
Cherry pickers were originally designed to pick fruit from orchards (though not just cherry orchards). These trucks are still heavily used by fruit pickers in orchards today.
Use number 4: Animal rescue
Help Wildlife, a site dedicated to showing the devastating effects of fishing line on wildlife, documents a case where a seagull was rescued using a bucket truck. The seagull had a hook and fishing line caught in its wing and became entangled in a 50-foot tall tree. Animal rescuers were able to rescue the bird using a bucket truck.
Use number 5: hanging decorations
From hanging Christmas decorations in your town square to banners on the field of your favorite local team, these trucks are used to hang all kinds of decorations.
Use number 6: tree pruning
Bucket trucks are often seen on city streets after major thunderstorms, when loose and broken tree limbs endanger power lines. Workers trimming trees near power lines use specially insulated bucket trucks to keep them safe from dangerous high-voltage lines that are likely to be nearby in the course of their jobs. Arborists also use bucket trucks to reach the tops of very tall trees that need routine care.
Use number 7: stage performance tools
Michael Jackson has a long history of including cherry pickers in his stage performances and music videos dating back to his 1987 Bad Tour. Most recently, he was seen rehearsing “Beat It” in a cherry picker in the documentary This is It. of Michael Jackson. This was the last known recording of Michael Jackson before his death in 2009.
Use number 8: security detail
Some retail stores have security guards stationed in specially modified trucks that give the guards a panoramic view of the parking lot.
Use number 9: exterior painting
Like window washers, some painters use these trucks to reach high places on the exteriors of the buildings they are painting. These trucks allow painters to safely reach heights of up to 5 stories to safely paint building exteriors.
Use Number 10: Firefighters
Some fire trucks are equipped with a boom and bucket, which technically makes these fire trucks special purpose bucket trucks! These specially designed trucks allow firefighters to reach tall buildings to put out fires and sometimes rescue people from otherwise inaccessible locations.
These trucks are versatile machines that can be used for many things! But the operators of these powerful utility trucks must be properly trained to operate them safely. Before you rent or buy a truck for any of the uses described in this article, take some time to learn about aerial lift safety and invest in a trained and experienced operator for your flatbed truck.