It's been years since I stepped on a nail, but it happened again. When I'm working on a project, I never leave boards laying around with nails sticking up. I either remove them, bend them over, or at least stick them in the ground for a brief time. If I have a pile of used naily boards that I intend to reuse, I stuck them out of the way, where I know they wont get under foot, and still try to point the nails downward.
But the problem is that other people leave them in dangerous places. I was recently salvaging some lumber from a demolition. The house had been crushed, and was piled next to a garage which I had permission to salvage the garage lumber. In many places I had to literally walk on the debris from the crushed house, and was very careful to watch my steps for nails. I've done this many times and never stepped on one. But someone had left a board with spikes laying on the lawn, which had not been mowed in months. It could not be seen, and one of those damn spikes went right in my foot, which lead to a severe puncture wound as well as a sprained ankle, because when the nail went in, I fell down.
The foot is healing, although slowly. That's after several visits to the doctor antibiotics, pain pills and an ankle splint, plus several days lost from work and having to use crutches for a few days, not to mention the pain.
I keep thinking that this will be the last time I step on a nail, but I've come to the conclusion that no person can be careful enough, particularly when working away from home where some other idiot left a naily board under lawn grass or a tarp or a million other hidden places.
This got me thinking and asking if there is any sort of shoe insert manufactured that will prevent a nail from going into the foot? I do not know of any shoe or boot sole that is strong enough to prevent a nail from going thru. I guess a sturdy leather is better than tennis shoes or some plastic sole, but still, a nail can and will go thru. Steel toed shoes only protect the toes, and actually a nail in the toe area is far less painful than in the mid-foot or heel. Plus the nail might go between the toes (I was lucky enough to do that once).
Anyhow, unless there is a special shoe made for this purpose which I am not aware of, do they make some sort of steel inserts to put inside of shoes? I'm thinking of cutting some from some heavy gauge steel, putting them in my shoes, and putting a foam pad over them. This is not that difficult to do, but before I "reinvent the wheel", I thought I'd ask if there is something already made for this purpose.
Thanks