Aluminium ladders

[Matthew Ames]

Any recommendations for websites for purchasing a 2 or 3 section ladder from? Ideally I am going to need something around the 8-9m length, so I am guessing it is really going to have to be 3 section.

I have found prices ranging from £140 (domestic use) up to £185 (industrial), with a trade grade in the middle. all inc vat & delivery

Ideally I don't want a really flexiable ladder where I feel unsafe, but I also don't want to shell out loads of cash for something that I won't use too often. But I am only 5ft8 so I still need to be able to handle/control the ladder and not end up smashing my windows! Unfortunately my mates with ladders all own houses that are less tall and therefore borrowing one has so far been unsucessful :-(

Cheers, Matt

[A.Lee]

These are pretty good:

got my scaffold tower off of them, and a roofing company manager I know also buys all of their ladders from them. Alan.

[Matthew Ames]

Thanks!

Is there a recommended angle that a ladder should be set to? that way I can actually work out the lenght I require!

[geoff]

In message , Matthew Ames writes

I bought a good one last year for £127

no website - just a hardware store 10 minutes walk away

(St Albans Road, Watford) - they delivered

[John Rumm]

I would steer clear of the domestic ones, they are usually too flimsy unless you are a fly weight. Trade or industrial to BS EN 131 will feel far more stable and secure.

I have had a couple from Screwfix and have been pleased with them. Not the cheapest you will find but well made and solid.

The angle to use is about 75 degrees, or 1 unit out for every 4 up. So for the ladder top to reach 9m, the base would be 2.25 from the wall, so a ladder length of 10m would do it. If you want to climb onto a surface at that height, then you need a ladder that will reach at least a meter past the surface level.

[gna03633]

delivery and tidy price, gave me a refund for a bracket I bought which seemed poorly made.

[The Medway Handyman]

Whatever you do, buy one of these

such a difference to the stability of the ladder and avoids those 'brown trouser' feelings.

[nightjar]

How heavy are you? Domestic ladders have a duty rating of 95kgs and maximum static load of 125kgs. Industrial ladders have a duty rating of 130kgs /static load 175kgs. As they now meet EU specifications, trade ladders no longer have a duty rating, but their static load rating is 150kgs. IMO domestic ladders are too flimsy to be considered.

Colin Bignell

[tony sayer]

In article , nightjar scribeth thus

The domestic ladder is OK for very low heights but one thing overlooked is the spacing between rungs, these can be further apart on some cheap ladders which makes them more awkward to use.....

[matthew.larkin]

Odd isn't it that ladders which high street stores are allowed to sell to people who are less likely to be experienced at climbing ladders, let alone reviewing duty rating measurements etc, are the lowest rated and therefore the most dangerous (potentially). I know they don't have to stand up to the same battering that trade / industrial ones are likely to receive, but 95kg isn't a particularly heavy chap (in this day and age), so the amount of domestic ones which are being used outside of their safe operating range must be large!

Matt

[Matthew Ames]

"nightjar .uk.com>" How heavy are you?

69.4kg at the mo, but need to loose a few kg of beer from my belly... :-)

[geoff]

In message , Matthew Ames writes

You'd blow away in the wind, you would

(110 kg)