Guys,
We've all seen the pictures of people using ladders in a stupid position, but I would just like to ask you people this:
How often are your ladders inspected thoroughly and repaired where this is required?.
I was in charge of ladders as a Career Fire-fighter at Timaru Fire Station and our pre-dominantly wooden ladders needed constant attention.
We have a problem with rivets breaking on our Aluminium ladders at work, these days and these are normally replaced with stainless rivets.
But, this wouldn't be happening unless my Boss was told about the need for Ladder maintenance, some of our pole ladders, didn't even have rubber feet on them!.
I spent 3 days repairing ladders at work, I wasn't impressed!. , considering that they were still in use.

Would just like to add this statement:
A ladder is only as good as the person using it!.

Trumpy,I'd say that I'm pretty slack on repairing or checking my ladders.

They are sort of like your feet,you don't pay much attention to them until there's something wrong.

Russell

the wooden ladders i had weathered away, despite the linseed oil and routine tightening.

the aluminum ones , wellllll......not a very good option for this trade....

the fiberglass ones hold up fairly well, i give them the once over now & then.

what sort of maintenance should apply to fiberglass ??

Hi Steve!,
Yeah, I've only ever used Aluminium ladders and wooden ones, just means that you have to be just that more careful when working around o/head wires.
BTW, which type do you guys feel safer on?.
Wooden ladders have a lot of flexing in them when they are extended, Fibreglass is my choice, but have you seen the price of the darned things?.

Sorry Steve I missed your last question regarding F/Glass ladders.
F/glass is good because it does not soak up moisture from the surrounding air.
Maintenance wise, I would recommend that you just keep an eye on all the bindings, ropes and the pawls.
Having said that, regularly check that there is NO splintering of any of the glass fibres, fibreglass ladders have a habit of snapping all of a sudden, when the strings start to splinter, believe me guys, I've got the ruptured discs in my back to prove this!.

Here's a standard Ladder Maintenance Schedule, courtesy of NZ Fire Service.

• Every Month-
  Check all rounds(rungs) for damage and looseness.
  Check for any splintering in the strings of the Ladder, serious splintering will evict any ladder from use.
  Check the lines(ropes) that enable the Ladder to be raised, if there is any signs of damage, these shall be replaced.
  Give Ladder a coat of Linseed Oil.
• 3 monthly- Check tightness of Toggle Nuts, any Ladder that is out of straight according to the NZFS tolerance, shall be removed from service.(This has to be within a 2mm tolerance)
  Do all of the checks included in the monthly checks.
• Aluminium Ladders- 2-15metres hieght-
  Make sure that all rivets are in place and hold well and that all rounds are secure.
• 15m-32m- Make sure that stays are well secured and that there is no free play in joints.

Ah Yes, Sparky,
The Pawls!.
I was always taught, never to reach through an upright ladder, in case the pawls failed while there was someone standing on it.
When I was at Fire College (FF 101), a guy lost his lower arm, by doing this.
Pretty stupid thing to do really.

Just as a small note there Guys,
If you are erecting a tall extension ladder, just make sure that the first person that climbs the thing ties it off to something, whatever it is!.
This may seem like a given statement, but there was a Fire Brigade in the North Island of NZ that "lost" a 30metre ladder and a FF when he turned the branch of the High Pressure Hose Reel that he was holding to one side and it was a situation of what goes up, must come down.
The Hose Reel was running at 3MPa, this would have been a very quick accident.

For those outside the FF biz, most American Fire Service (Al) ladders are rated to hold a work load of 600 pounds - the "equivalent" of 2 FF's in full gear. They're heavy, but there's not a lot of flex.

Kinda puts that IAA rating (375 Lbs) to shame, doesn't it?

BTW, I'd forgotten how flimsy most "homeowner" grade ladders really are, until I collapsed one I found left on a site by some painters. Luckily, the builder had been kind enough to install a garage door track for me to grab onto on my way down.

I don't allow "homeowner" grade ladders even in my home. Man, just one little slip or fall could cost you a ton more than a lifetime of buying quality ladders. I was helping out my father-in-law recently and I think I may bring my own ladders next time.

As a cable tv installer, I own 2 fiberglass ladders. 1 28ft type 1A, and a 12ft extension. I have had the 12 footer for 5 years, and I believe it may be a few years older. It is still in good shape. I am on my 4th 28ft. The first one I sold, as I thought I was getting out of the buisness. Some of my buddys decieded to use the second one as a ladder into the salt water canal in Key West, FL. It seemed to corrode the protective layer and was rough and itchy on the skin. I fell a tree on the 3rd. I have had this one for a couple of years, and still works great. Some may frown on the dents in some of the rungs, but at $375, It works fine to me.

Doug,
Yes, we have the same load rating for our ladders, but I think that ours may be a tad higher, us FF's are a wee bit fatter over here!.
Big Jim,
I really hate them homeowner-grade ladders, the ones we have here are really flimsy and twist like you wouldn't believe.
You'd never see me on one of them ladders.
Regardless of what I said above about Fibreglass extension ladders, I find these ladders to be the safest ladders to work off, provided that they are looked after.
For a given length, they offer better stability and they don't (obviously) conduct electricity, although the aluminium rungs do.
I use fibreglass ladders for Faults work and with the addition of a head chain and rope, these are the best sorts of ladders for this sort of work.
And they are light enough to carry on your own, unlike wooden extension ladders of the same hieght.
Would you believe that we still use aluminium ladders for Substation work, but even so, only the most experienced of Staff are allowed inside the Station itself.
It's just a matter of watching what you are doing.

Trumpy are you using aluminum ladders for electric work or just for fire service?

The company I work for has strict safety policies.

A damaged ladder is never to be repaired, they literally get cut up with a sawzall and tossed in the dumpster.

The construction sites get wood ladders and those of us with vans get fiberglass ladders.


That is scary that the ladder was in service, we would toss a fiberglass ladder long before it got that bad.

Heres some photos I took on the way to work.

In God they trust.







[This message has been edited by iwire (edited 11-29-2003).]

Gidday there Bob!,
We use Aluminium ladders both in the Fire Service and for Electrical work.
Although there is a trend towards Fibreglass in the Utility companies here,
before Fibreglass we used wooden extension ladders for climbing poles and so forth, but they don't last too well after being stored on the trucks and our predominantly damp air here and the problems with splinters from them, thankfully rules their use out!.
We saw our damaged ladders up too, repairs are only done on minor damage (like popped rivets) anything worse, the ladder is trashed.
Wooden ladders are never repaired where the strings or rungs are damaged.
Hey, thanks for the great (if not very worrying ) pics, Bob, I'm not scared of hieghts at all, but I can feel my knees getting weak just looking at them photo's!.
BTW, Bob, is that lower extension ladder actually sitting on the roof?.
Wouldn't a cherry-picker be safer?.
{Message edited to add last questions }

[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 11-29-2003).]

Iwire (Bob),
Would you please consider posting these photo's over in the "Photo's Submitted For Discussion" Forum?.
Just a note, mate.