Power Planers

Handheld planers trim doors, beams and framing; benchtop thickness planers size lumber; jointers flatten edges. All of them spin sharp knives at high speed, throw chips, and are loud and dusty.

• Construction
• Woodworking

Hazards

• Contact with the spinning cutterhead, especially when setting the tool down or reaching into a machine
• Kickback: boards thrown back toward the operator
• Flying chips, knots and broken knives
• Noise, often above 100 dBA on thickness planers
• Wood dust, which can cause asthma and nasal cancer. See Wood Dust

Handheld planers

• Clamp the work and hold the planer with both hands.
• Set a shallow depth of cut and make several passes.
• Start the planer before it touches the work, with the front shoe flat on the surface.
• Push steadily, putting pressure on the front at the start and on the back at the end.
• Point the chip chute away from you and others, or use dust collection.
• Let the planer stop completely and rest it on its side or on the kickstand before setting it down.
• Check for nails, screws and grit before planing used or reclaimed lumber.

Benchtop thickness planers

• Never reach into the infeed or outfeed while the cutterhead is turning.
• Don’t plane boards shorter than the manufacturer’s minimum length; short pieces can be thrown or shattered.
• Feed one board at a time unless the machine is designed for more.
• Stand to the side, not directly behind the board, in case of kickback.
• Support long boards on both ends.
• Take light cuts on hard or figured wood.
• If a board jams, turn off the machine and wait for it to stop before clearing it.

Jointers

• Keep the blade guard in place; it should cover the cutterhead not in use.
• Use push blocks for face jointing and for any board too short to hold safely.
• Keep hands from passing directly over the cutterhead.

Before you start

• Knives sharp, matched and installed per the manual
• Guards and kickstand working
• Depth set; work clamped or supported
• Nails and metal removed from the board
• Safety glasses, hearing protection and dust collection ready

Last updated: October 2, 2026