Buying a ladder for a weekend project is easy. put down the coffee pot
us. Go to the nearest hardware store. Get a ladder that fits
the height required for the job. Carry the ladder in the back.
of the SUV. Back home.
Nope!
My local hardware store has a courtesy questionnaire that you
must complete before you can purchase a ladder. Then there’s the
release form if you don’t watch the security video.
“What is this?” I asked the clerk. It looks like my local hardware
the store owner had been sued on two separate occasions for selling
unsafe team. This owner took no chances with the customer
the injuries return to haunt him.
There may be some support to your requirement. More than 160,000 people
are injured in ladder-related injuries each year. If you do not know
how to choose a ladder for work or try using a ladder
that is not safety inspected, the chances of injury are high.
I signed all the forms and sat down to watch a thirty minute video.
entitled “Safety on the stairs”. The video was not interesting but the
The silly things people do on stairs made me laugh.
Then I saw a video clip that applied to me. The person was in a
ladder cleaning gutters. Suddenly, the extension ladder collapsed.
The video showed the ambulance. The person in the video could not
Activate the locks on your extension ladder.
The employee stopped the video to remind the group “Do not USE
a METAL LADDER IN A LIGHTNING STORM” (There were 10
bored owners watching this video). All we needed was the
employee to comment. But we had to listen to everything because
We wanted our stairs. The employee reminded us of a basic security
important. “If you’re working outside during a thunderstorm,
get off a metal ladder.” Store the metal ladder in your garage.
Don’t leave a metal ladder leaning against your house for a
storm”.
We all chuckled and thought “DUH!”.
The employee returned the video. There on the screen we saw
three electrical incidents with metal ladders. I thought
everyone knew that metal stairs conduct electricity.
So stay away from power lines and lightning and get out of the rain. Everyone doesn’t know this, so I paid more attention. I was glad
to find out that I could buy a ladder made of fiberglass.
The clerk showed us how to check the maximum load of a ladder. When you check the maximum weight that the ladder supports
you must add your weight plus whatever material you are carrying
Go up the ladder. No way. I will only buy a tall cargo weight for
my ladder because I don’t ask any of the females in my house
to calculate your weight plus anything.
Fortunately for the hardware store I ended up with all the
Requirements to push a ladder. he knew he needed
select the right ladder for the right job. the store had
A large selection of stairs made of various types of material.
They also stocked various styles of stairs.
Unfortunately for me, I needed to purchase multiple ladders.
to meet the requirements of the jobs he did around the house.
I chose my stairs carefully. I didn’t want a ladder made of
metal for obvious reasons. For mundane jobs outdoors,
the metal ladder was the least expensive.
The clerk then pointed out that the cheap metal ladder
did not have non-slip material on the bottom
I had to spend extra money to get that feature.
Since stairs are so common, we tend to use a ladder
for granted. We forget about the dangers associated with this
household tool. Being safe on a ladder is so important
like being safe in your home or car.
