Tool Belt Loadout

Written for Canada. Plans are metric, but many crews and suppliers work in feet and inches, so this site gives both: millimetres and metres, with feet and inches beside them. Codes are the National Building Code of Canada 2020 (NBC 2020) Part 9 as your province adopts it. A number marked Confirm has not been checked against every province, so check it with your own authority before you act on it.

Reviewed by a working tradesman with 17+ years in the field.

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What to carry on your belt for forming, rebar, finishing and waterproofing, and how to carry it safely.

The big idea

Concrete and forming are hard on tools. Wet concrete, form oil, mud, tie wire and sharp edges ruin gear fast. A good belt keeps the tools you need close, protected and organised, so you work faster and safer. This is a gear list, not a code topic: the concrete and forming work you do with the tools follows the building code and CSA A23.1, and PPE and safe work rules come from provincial OHS law.

Belt types

• Heavy-duty forming belt: thick leather or ballistic nylon, oil-resistant, strong hammer loop, large fastener bags, a speed-square slot, a tape holster and a tie wire pouch.
• Concrete finisher belt: light, waterproof and minimal, holding only finishing tools.
• Rebar belt: tie wire pouch, plier holster, a place for the tie tool and a cut-resistant sleeve setup, and little fastener storage.

Those are the purpose-built belts. Many carpenters never switch: they run one carpenter's belt for framing, forming and concrete all day. See the next section. A plain framing belt left unprotected will not last through slurry and oil, so look after it.

One belt for everything

On most crews the carpenter wears one belt from layout to strip. Changing belts costs time, so build one that works across framing, forming and concrete, and add or drop a few items for the day. This is common trade practice, not a standard.

• Keep: the core tools that earn their place on every task. Move the rest to a bucket or pouch you can drop at the work area.
• Protect it: wipe concrete and form oil off the belt and tools before they cure, and oil pliers and hardware tools. A belt that stays wet with slurry rots and rusts.
• Swap only when you must: a separate belt or bucket makes sense for long days of rebar tying, finishing in slurry, or waterproofing chemicals, where the gear itself gets wrecked or contaminated.
• Weight: adding items for each task is how a belt gets too heavy. Take items back out when the task changes, and use suspenders.

Core tools

• Hammer, typically 20 to 22 oz (570 to 620 g): nails, form adjustment and stakes.
• Flat bar and small pry bar: pull nails, adjust forms, lift boards.
• Speed square: marks cuts and checks corners.
• Tape, 8 m (25 ft): a dual metric and imperial tape is handy in Canada, since plans may use either. A 30 m (100 ft) tape for walls, slabs and driveways.
• Retractable utility knife: string, poly, foam and membranes. Use a fresh blade.
• String line and pins for layout of footings, walls and bolt lines; a small plumb bob for vertical alignment.

Example (numbers made up). A tape reads 3,658 mm. 3,658 ÷ 25.4 = 144 in, which is 12 ft 0 in. Read both faces of a dual tape so the units match the plans.

Drivers, pliers and hardware

• Drivers: impact driver in a holster, bit set (Phillips, square, hex), nut drivers, ratchet with sockets for form hardware, adjustable wrench.
• Pliers: rebar pliers twist and cut tie wire; linesman pliers for heavy wire and pulling nails; mini bolt cutters for heavy wire and light bars; needle-nose pliers for tight spaces. Buy pliers that take rust and slurry, and oil them after use.
• Fasteners: duplex and common nails, 50 mm and 75 mm (2 in and 3 in), construction screws, tie wire, washers and nuts.
• Concrete-specific: crayon and lumber marker, fine marker, torpedo level, chalk line, marking spray, rebar tie tool, headlamp for inside forms, putty knife, form oil rag.

Loadouts by task

Arm protection: Kevlar, HPPE or steel-fibre sleeves and forearm guards for rebar, tie wire and sharp hardware.

Working at height and seasons

• Dropped tools: use lanyards or tethers when working above others, with rated lanyards and double-locking carabiners. Trade safety leaders put it simply: if you need to be tied off, so do your tools.
• Keep tools secured at the edge of a platform and sharp tools sheathed or capped. Do not carry more than you can climb with.
• Hot: lighter belt, ventilated gloves. Cold: gloves that let you work and a belt that fits over heavy clothing. Wet: waterproof belt and gloves. Snow and ice: traction cleats, and care with cold metal on bare skin.
• Ergonomics: a heavy belt strains your back. Use suspenders, balance the load and take tools off when you do not need them. Clean and oil tools daily.

Example (numbers made up). A belt weighing 6.5 kg (14 lb 5 oz) with 1.5 kg (3 lb 5 oz) of tools you never use drops to 5.0 kg (11 lb) when you take them off.

Common mistakes

• Overloading the belt
• Letting a belt sit in slurry and oil
• Swapping belts when you did not need to, or never cleaning the one you have
• Cheap pliers that rust
• No mini bolt cutters
• No tie wire pouch
• No marker or crayon
• No string line or pins
• No flashlight for forms
• Tools left in the slurry