Tell me about ladders.

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LittleBrownFrog
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Tell me about ladders.

Post by LittleBrownFrog »

Please could one of you lovely people help me choose a ladder?
Ladder-climbing is a definite pink job in our house, as dh is petrified of heights & goes a bit funny just changing a light-bulb :?
I need to buy an extending ladder. In the short term, I need to clean the house gutters, but just want a good general-purpose ladder really.
I've no idea what to look for, how much I should expect to pay etc, so would appreciate any thoughts or advice :-D
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder..." Thoreau.
Totally Scrambled
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Totally Scrambled »

Morning LBF,
I too am looking at a new ladder and found This Site which seems helpful and the prices aren't bad either. Might be worth a look )t'
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LittleBrownFrog
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by LittleBrownFrog »

Thank you )t'
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder..." Thoreau.
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Mo
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Mo »

We used to have a pair of wooden ladders. We have replaced them with aluminium, much lighter and easier to handle. Ladders upright are OK, both if they go slightly off vertical while you are carrying them they can soon be out of control.

I am the up-ladder decorator too, but OH was needed at hand for every shift of the ladder, when we had wooden ones.
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Sara
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Sara »

I have a ladder :-D

It folds out so that it can be used like a high bench sort of thing to stand on, or half height or full height.... You sort of do something to the articulations and it opens and closes.... )t'

No idea what its called though.... >dum<

Im not sure it would reach gutter height, ive never tried >dum<


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zedhead
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by zedhead »

My advice would be to buy the best sturdiest aluminum ladder you can afford, you will feel more comfortable on a sturdy (albeit heavy) one, the ones that fold into a trestle (I have two of them) are not that good for general purpose use but handy if storage space is limited, my favorite ladder an ex gpo treble 4m which extends to about 10m is so sturdy but very heavy.
Get one that extends at least 1m past your gutter.
After using ladders professionally for 35 yrs I fell off one for the first time this year (so what do I know ha ha)
Barry.

I had the day off when we did English at school, so apologize for my spelling and punctuation.
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LittleBrownFrog
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by LittleBrownFrog »

Thanks Barry. Storage is no problem :-D dh tells me that I will also need to find someone other than him to hold the ladder, since he doesn't think he can manage that either!
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder..." Thoreau.
zedhead
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by zedhead »

i use bags of sand to hold the bottom of the ladder these days (don't tell HSE) ...... I had nothing at the bottom when I fell, my own silly fault I do know better.
Your ladder should not flex too much when you climb it or you will not feel comfortable.... but I would add that I haven't a clue how you would go about trying them out. I think it is a case of you get what you pay for BUT if you only need one for a one off job a hire shop would have good quality ladders (we hope !)
Barry.

I had the day off when we did English at school, so apologize for my spelling and punctuation.
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Annie
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Annie »

Good job you have some handy types here to answer you query LBH, the only thing I know about ladders is - if you are quick enough a dab of clear nail varnish will stop them running any more +f+ +f+ +f+
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Steve valentine
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Steve valentine »

As said, make sure the ladder extends 1m past the gutter, and always have it at the correct angle, for every 4 feet up, the ladder should be 1 foot out, the 4 to 1 rule.

Also, I'd get a longer ladder than you need, after all, a long ladder can do a short job, but a short ladder can't do a long job )t'
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Mo
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Mo »

hmmm....a long ladder that's hard to manage will cause a job to be put off, where a shorter ladder that is easy to move without help and the job is done as soon as you think about it (speaking as a week and feeble female)

We actually have 3 pairs - a short wooden pair that we got 2nd hand from the local paper 40 yrs ago when we lived in a bungalow. A longer aluminium pair and an extra long pair. A long ladder doesn't really do a short job - you want it resting on the wall at the right height and the right angle to feel comfortable.
That middle sized pair is very useful - I can't manage the long ones alone.
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silverback
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by silverback »

Firstly, decide how high you need to safely go!, as previously mentioned, buy the best you can afford, and don't over extend!. If you are clearing the guttering, don't rest the ladder on or against the gutter!, chances are you will pop the gutter out of the clips, or worse, the ladder could slip! {warn} then you have a bigger problem on your hands!!. To extend beyond the gutter safely, you would need a stand off or ladder stay, these are accessories and can be purchased seperately, take a look at the link below, but above all stay SAFE!!..

http://www.ladders-999.co.uk/ladder-acc ... ?limit=all
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Mo
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Mo »

Mo wrote: (speaking as a week and feeble female)


I spy a spelling mistake.
should it be
weak and feable female?
meek and weeble womble?
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LittleBrownFrog
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by LittleBrownFrog »

I'm definitely a meek and weeble womble {rofwl} {rofwl}
Thank you for the link SB
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder..." Thoreau.
Steve valentine
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Re: Tell me about ladders.

Post by Steve valentine »

Mo wrote:hmmm....a long ladder that's hard to manage will cause a job to be put off, where a shorter ladder that is easy to move without help and the job is done as soon as you think about it (speaking as a week and feeble female)

We actually have 3 pairs - a short wooden pair that we got 2nd hand from the local paper 40 yrs ago when we lived in a bungalow. A longer aluminium pair and an extra long pair. A long ladder doesn't really do a short job - you want it resting on the wall at the right height and the right angle to feel comfortable.
That middle sized pair is very useful - I can't manage the long ones alone.


That's where a triple extending ladder comes in handy, extend from 3 to 8 meters (model dependant)
Some days you're the pigeon, some days you're the statue.
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