Every ladder ever sold has a warning that says "Do Not Step on Top Step."
Well, if they dont want anyone to step on the top, why the hell do they put that top step on the ladder. And why do they call it a "step", if you cant STEP on it....
I vote to remove the top step from all ladders. Having to read all those warnings everytime I go up a ladder is distracting and one of these days I am going to fall off the ladder while reading those damn warnings.
Jack
Jack: If they remove the top step, then the next step becomes the next step (the new top step). Since you can't use that one either, that would have to be removed. Then the 3rd step becomes the top step.... so on and so forth.... Pretty soon you have 2 sides with no steps... :-)
snipped-for-privacy@myback.com wrote:
top step can be useful for hanging a paint can, part of a ladder window stabilizer etc etc.
Stop! Please don't get rid of that top step. It is the only one from which I do most of my work.
I consider that top step to be an evolutionary accelerator: If you are both reasonably overweight plus not bright enough to stay off of that top step, then the Darwinian process may want to prune your genes from the pool.
Piffle. Top step is perfectly saf f f f f f f f
I bought one of those little alluminum 2 step ladders to keep in the back of my truck, top step says not a step, although I bought it knowing I was going to use that step all the time, why would anyone buy one if they were'nt going to use it, a step ladder that only gets you 6" off the grond is called a book.
Those warnings are written by lawyers and serve only to protect the liability of the ladder manufacturers like warning you that your coffee is hot. Of coure most people will use the top step if they need it.
But very useful for climbing into excavations ;)
Harry K
If you followed this idea to conclusion eventually your ladder will have NO steps.
I would personally have them add an extra top step then you could safely use the current top step.
Ladder and step stool manufacturers have it rough. They're bound by load rating requirements (a good thing), have to plaster the ladder with a term paper's worth of instructions, warnings and other stickers that no one reads, and they must get sued a hundred times a year. Not an enviable place to be.
The loss of that one step can be very significant. An extension ladder losing a step might only mean a 5% reduction in reach. A two stepper losing a step is a 50% loss! You're paying _twice_ as much for that one step. That's highway robbery. The manufacturers no doubt see it as a...damn - a good pun would be really nice here, but I can't think of one!
My previous two-stepper was a wooden reject - or should have been. The spreader/leg locking bar was riveted in upside down - in other words, gravity would let the "lock" fall down/open. Used it like that for years even though I knew better. Never had a problem, maybe because I knew the ladder was a little defective.
A friend was moving and tossed some stuff my way and a nice stout aluminum two-stepper was in the mix. Out with the old, in with the newer design/stupidity mix. The aluminum stepper folded in the middle of the top. The top step was extra large and obviously too inviting to be anything other than a shoe sole resting place. After I flew off the ladder in a fall that stunned me (stunned me that I didn't do any serious damage), I examined the stool a little more closely. Unless weight was distributed more or less perfectly between the four legs, and the legs were all fully spread apart and sitting firmly on the floor, the more slender rear legs, supported by thin flexy aluminum pieces acting as braces (tension and compression), would creep inwards, the top would start to fold, and as you balanced to compensate for the movement it would continue inching inwards until all stability was lost.
It's the safer things that are dangerous.
R
If you look again I think you will find it says do not stand or sit on top step. Mine all have the top two steps labeled for no standing. The idea is that you can use them to climb to a higher standing level on something else but you shouldn't try to stand on the two top steps as your more likely to loose your balance. Were step ladders are being used as work platforms the proper ladder to use is a platform ladder rather than a step ladder. This link will take you to a picture of a platform ladder. .
Notice that the standing level has a larger area so that your entire foot can stand flat and that it has a knee bar to help you maintain orientation and balance. The obvious draw back is that you have to know what height you will need to work at in advance. I have seen a combination step and platform ladder were the unused steps could be lifted out of the way but they are hard to find, heavy, and expensive. My favorite type of ladder is an eight by sixteen combination step extension. It nicely bridges the gap between a six foot step ladder and the twenty four feet and longer extension ladders. You can't beat it for versatility.
When you do that, when you're going down, do you have to put the ladder in upside down?
I think the little trailers that Harbor Freight sells have instructions to check that the bolts are tight and the wheels are tight every 100 miles.
You are supposed to check if the lights work every 200 miles.
I guess they don't want to get sued.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.