The bottom section of my 3 section loft ladder does not slide smoothly.
The middle section slides up against the fixed section a treat but the bottom section seems to have two or three points where it binds and I can't work out why or how to fix it.
I've tried some silicone spray but the runners are clean anyway.
The ladder is a Youngman New Easyway (sticker says manufactured Week
23/00) similar to
But mine is 100Kg limit.
Aluminium? My late mother's loft ladder is aluminium. Installed 56 years ago. It became very stiff to operate. I tried silicone; made no difference. PTFE spray; no difference; 3-in-1 spray, glides better that I've ever known it. Oil the sliding surfaces, and the hinges at the top. The only disadvantage is that being aluminium, the sliding surfaces eventually produce a sort of black paste that gets on your hands and anything that comes into contact with it when maneuvering items up into the loft. Needs regular wiping to keep it clean.
Graphite powder.
Yes aluminium with some sort of black plastic block between the two sliding sections. I do wonder if it is part by design to stop the bottom section crashing down once the catch is released. It all must be very fine tolerances as I can't see anything that should cause binding. I might just try some WD40 before taking on your suggestion, or graphite as suggested by Chris.
Try using some Vaseline where it sticks. And, I'm not being funny.
Just idly found the above on google, so could be irrelevant...
Or, could also be galvanic corrosion between steel and aluminium. A friend had a particular struggle with that on the aluminium seat post stuck on his steel bicycle frame. Freed using some ammonia, though that also corrodes aluminium.
Are you sure there is no dust and dirt in the runners? Its always dirty in lofts. Brian
I took the ladder outside and steam cleaned it (one of those household handheld units). But it wasn't particularly dirty and is pretty clean and the binding is quite firm. The loft has been boarded and is not dirty though obviously there will be bits of crud. I wish I could take the two bits apart but can't see how, and the locking pin mechanism is rivetted in which makes it awkward if I wanted to get that out.
On one hand, but if he tried to use the other hand he'd fall over.
nah talc is best
Just to add to the many suggestions - lithium grease.
The Wiki link is not a bad article. Galvanic corrosion tends to show up where clearances are very small and the environment is wet, so that bicycle case is an ideal example. But there's much more clearance in a ladder, and it is dry, and it is not likely to be steel on aluminium.
In the ladder, you probably have aluminium sliding on itself. Buildup of dirt, wear debris, corrosion products, or galling type damage might reduce the clearance. I would say the best option would be something containing mineral oil, so WD40, vaseline, or lithium grease would all meet the requirement. *Personally* I would go for something in the WD40 family. If it turns out that there are plastic "bearings" between the two metal parts then silicone or PTFE spray might be better.
PTFE sprays might or might not work well if you have metal to metal rubbing. It's certainly potentially cleaner. I've heard good reports of the "WD40" PTFE spray and recently bought a can, but have not tried it yet.
The problem with graphite is getting it to stick to the right places without using a large amount, and creating a lot of mess. Lock geometries are much more favourable. *If* you can actually identify the binding points, you might try a Moly Disulphide spray or grease.
Seems to be working well so far on uPVC multi-point locking, but don't get it on your hands ... it stinks like a mouldy old flannel.
I wouldn't use a spray at all. As muck gets embedded in it it's going to be even worse, probabl sieze solid. The parts were assembled after manufactur e so I'd look to disassemble them & sort the problem. Filling tight gaps wi th grease/oil/dirt/debris is not sorting it.
And WD40 is mostly white spirit. At an unnecessary price.
NT
replying to ARW, philip Lane wrote: My dad has a very old alum loft ladder. _*Worse*_ thing we ever did was to use Molyslip grease on it! The graphite dries out and is black and gets into all the grooves, clothes and hands and takes many goes with Polyclens,rags and brush to clean it off. WD40 works magic for a while then runs down ladder on to carpet!! And then dries sticky. After a proper clean try cold candle rub or a FEW drops of 3in1 oil. If you overdo it you will regret it. We have sea air here now that corrodes the metal quickly. Ladder is in use most days however. That pays off but the wax helps.Tip: any work on ladder put a sheet down first or better still taken ladder off (we can, easily) and take into garden on a nice sunny warmish day.
Useful to know. A lot of people have that website blocked, you're better off coming here (news:uk.d-i-y) via google groups or a newsreader.
NT
My aluminium loft ladder dates from 1960. Also close to the sea, but corrosion not a problem. The sliding parts get lubricated every year or so with 3-in-1 spray. Yes, there's a danger of it running down onto the carpet, but I put a mat down (a carpet off-cut), so that the carpet itself doesn't get marked.
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