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Shoutout to the old-timer who showed me how to read wind on a jobsite

This guy, must have been 70, walked up to me on a high rise job in downtown Austin and pointed out how the flags on the buildings below were all leaning different directions. He said always look at what's at ground level, not just the anemometer up top. Saved me from a sketchy swing that day, anyone else have a mentor like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

parkera2215d ago

That low level wind is no joke. Had a similar thing happen on a project near the coast where the top was calm but the ground was whipping dust around. Learned to check the trees and water too, they never lie. Always trust what you see moving at your feet before you trust what some gauge says 40 stories up. That old guy knew his stuff.

kim81915d ago

The trees and water trick is solid but I gotta push back a little on the gauge part. Those wind gauges at height are actually pretty reliable if they're maintained right. The problem is that wind can act completely different at different heights especially near the coast where you get that sea breeze layer sitting on top of the surface flow. So both things can be true at the same time the gauge says one thing and your eyes say another. The real trick is learning to read BOTH and understand why they're not matching up. That old guy probably knew the gauge was right for the top but the ground was telling him a different story about what he needed to watch out for.

averywilliams15d ago

Gotta push back a little on the trees and water thing. Trees and water do lie sometimes, especially if you're near a big building or a canyon. I had a job where the trees at ground level were bent hard one way but the wind at 30 feet was totally different because of how the buildings channeled it. The old timer's real trick was knowing when to trust your gut and when to check the gauge a second time. Both can be wrong if you don't read the whole picture.