Week Beginning 9 March 2026
A Week in the Life of the Cherry Picker Man
Some weeks in this job are fairly predictable. A bit of chimney work here, a roof repair there, maybe a survey or two.
And then there are weeks like this one where tyres explode, storms shut down the cherry picker, you end up driving the length of the country, and somewhere in between you find yourself operating the largest spider cherry picker in the world.
Let’s get into it.
Monday – Trailer Tyre Drama in Mansfield
The week started with a trip over to Mickleover in Derbyshire to drop a chimney liner for a stove installation company I’ve worked with for a while.
This will actually be the last liner drop I do for them. Nothing dramatic it’s purely a business decision. Most of their work is around Derby, and by the time I’ve driven there, unloaded the machine and completed the job, half the day has disappeared. At the usual rate I charge for liner drops, it simply doesn’t make financial sense anymore.
So I’ve arranged for a more local cherry picker operator to take over those jobs in future.
Anyway, off I trundled down the road… until just outside Mansfield when a car behind me started flashing its headlights like mad.
I pulled over thinking something was wrong.
Turns out something was wrong.
One of the trailer tyres had completely shredded itself and I was effectively running on a bare metal wheel.
Out came the cones and hazard lights and it was time for a roadside tyre change.
Once the spare wheel was fitted, I discovered another problem the spare tyre was almost flat, with only 13 PSI in it. Not ideal.
After limping to the nearest petrol station and sorting that out, I eventually arrived in Mickleover about half an hour late, but thankfully the lads were still waiting.
Machine off the trailer, boom up, liner dropped.
While I was up there the customer also asked if I could remove two old TV aerials that had been rattling in the wind and making noise inside the house.
So the final tally for the stop:
- Chimney liner installed
- Two aerials removed
- Job done.
After that it was on to several drone roof surveys, including one in Mansfield where a quick aerial inspection revealed that a lot of the lead flashing had fallen out around the chimney. That will be going into a report along with recommendations for some chimney maintenance work.
More surveys followed in Ravenshead, Nottinghamshire, Nottingham and Wollerton, with the drone getting plenty of flying time while inspecting chimneys and investigating leaks.
Before finishing for the day I also stopped at HTV Vehicle Solutions in Halloughton to drop off my spare wheels for new tyres after the morning’s excitement it seemed wise to make sure my trailer spares were properly sorted.
Sadly the day ended on a very emotional note.
Our faithful springer spaniel Hector, who had been struggling with weakness in his back legs, went to the vet with Hannah and my sister-in-law. Hector was 12 years old, and sadly he didn’t return home.
It was a tough evening for the whole family. The one consolation was that Hector only grew old in the last 4 days of his life. Before he was unable to get up he was as enthusiastic about everything as he was when he was only 6 months old.
Hector the bum inspector, lived long and died fast, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
Later that night we held the first Zoom meeting of a new mastermind group Hannah and I have created for people looking to start their own cherry picker businesses. Over the past year I’ve had a huge number of messages asking for advice about machines, insurance and how to get started in the industry, so we’ve created a group where people can learn and share experiences together.
The first meeting went brilliantly.
But by the end of it, after everything that had happened that day, I was more than ready for bed.
Tuesday – Ridge Tile Wrestling Match
Tuesday was a proper hard day on the roof.
I met Tomek at DJI HQ at 7:30am, sent him off to MKM to collect materials, and we headed out to tackle a 15-metre ridge tile replacement.
As anyone who’s done ridge work will know, some ridge tiles lift off easily…
…and others appear to have been installed using something stronger than CT1 Super Grab.
Eventually persistence won and all the old ridges came off.
Using my ridge alignment tool to keep everything straight and prevent mortar running down the roof, I re-bedded the new ridge tiles while Tomek kept the mortar mixers going all day.
By the time we finished we had:
- Replaced 15 metres of ridge tiles
- Rebuilt the chimney flaunching
- Installed a new chimney cowl
- Cleaned everything down.
A solid day of roof repair work and very satisfying to see the finished ridge line looking neat and straight.
Wednesday – Meeting the World’s Biggest Spider Lift
Wednesday was something completely different.
I had been invited down to Paramount Platforms in Billericay to see their specialist spider lift fleet.
The journey took about three hours, but it was absolutely worth it.
Paramount operate some incredible machines including the Platform Basket 54T, currently the largest spider cherry picker in the world.
Even better, I was given the chance to operate the machine myself.
While I was there I also met Mr MEWP, who in my opinion is probably one of the most skilled spider lift operators in the country.
The team showed me around their fleet and the type of complex access work they carry out. The places they can reach using specialist cherry picker access equipment are genuinely impressive.
A brilliant day and a big thank you to everyone at Paramount for making me feel so welcome.
Thursday – Storms, Video Editing and a Surprise Invitation
Thursday brought 50-mph winds and torrential rain, so Mrs Cherry Picker made the executive decision that I wasn’t going anywhere near the cherry picker that day.
Fair enough.
Instead, I spent the day editing the huge amount of footage I’d filmed at Paramount, turning it into videos for my social media channels.
The day was briefly interrupted when my daughter’s brand new moped decided to stop behaving itself.
The problem?
It was meant to be serviced at 600 miles.
It was now on 1,300 miles.
And it hadn’t been serviced.
Thankfully there’s a great motorcycle mechanic in the village who’s now trying to diagnose the problem which is intermittent, meaning it probably won’t go wrong when he wants it to.
Later in the afternoon I took my youngest daughter to indoor football practice, which thankfully meant I could sit in a warm waiting room instead of freezing on a windswept pitch.
The day ended with a very exciting message.
Platform Basket themselves had seen a short video I posted about the 54T and invited me to visit their factory in Italy.
That could make for some very interesting content.
Watch this space.
Friday – Machines, Miles and Logistics
Friday was a logistics day.
I drove up to Promax in Barnsley to drop off my spider lift for some long-overdue repairs and a lola test.
Because Promax needed the machine for several days, I had already arranged to collect a temporary replacement spider lift from Welshpol to keep the business running.
Before leaving Promax I had a great chat with Sean about my visit to Paramount and the experience of operating the 54T.
If you put two cherry picker operators in a room together, conversation inevitably turns into machine specs and boom geometry.
The rest of the day involved a lot of driving up and down the country collecting the replacement machine and bringing it home.
No roofs fixed that day just a lot of miles covered.
Running a business sometimes involves more planning and logistics than people realise.
Saturday – Chimney Work in Immingham
Saturday saw me heading over to Immingham near the Humber for a job that had originally been planned for Friday.
The task was to re-flaunch four chimneys, removing the old failing mortar around the pots and rebuilding the flaunching properly so the chimney tops are sealed against the weather.
This also served as the first real test for the replacement Platform Basket 1890 Pro I collected the day before.
Thankfully the machine performed perfectly and the job went smoothly.
Four chimneys repaired, site tidied, and I was home in decent time.
With enough time left in the day for something truly exciting…
A trip to Tesco.
The glamorous life of the Cherry Picker Man continues.
A Week of Highs, Lows and Cherry Pickers
From shredded tyres and stormy weather to operating the largest spider lift in the world, this week definitely kept things interesting.
That’s the nature of running a high-access business no two weeks are ever quite the same.
And next week?
Well… if that Italian factory visit happens, things could get even more interesting.
Keep Up With Dan the Cherry Picker Man
🌐 Website: www.dji-uk.co.uk
🎥 YouTube: @dan_cherrypicker_man
🎵 TikTok: @dan_cherrypicker_man
📸 Instagram: @dan_cherrypicker_man
👍 Facebook: Dan the Cherry Picker Man
Google Business page: dji high access services – Google Search
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About the Author
Danny Iwanejko is the founder of DJI High Access Services Ltd and is widely known online as Dan the Cherry Picker Man. Based in Nottinghamshire near Sherwood Forest, Danny specialises in high-access roof and chimney work using a tracked spider cherry picker, allowing him to safely reach areas that would otherwise require extensive scaffolding.
With years of experience working at height, Danny carries out a wide range of work including chimney repairs, roof inspections, gutter clearance, and specialist access jobs. His approach combines practical problem-solving with modern tools such as drones and access platforms, enabling him to diagnose and repair issues efficiently while minimising disruption to homeowners.
Alongside running his business, Danny documents his work through social media and his YouTube channel, where he shares real-world roofing jobs, cherry picker operations, equipment reviews, and insights into running a high-access maintenance business. His goal is to give people an honest look at the day-to-day life of a working tradesman and the realities of operating machinery at height.
Danny lives with his wife Hannah and their children, balancing family life with the challenges of running a growing business. Through his blog “Roof Tops and Pit Stops”, he shares a light-hearted weekly diary of the jobs, journeys, and occasional mishaps that come with life as the Cherry Picker Man.
