Any Little Giant Ladder Owners Out There?

[Mike Goetzke]

Thanks for all the experienced replies.

I will keep the 22' one I have.

 

[wopchop]

I have the LG Velocity 17. It weighs 30 lbs. I almost got the 22, which I think is about 10lbs more, but this size works well most of the time for me. I like that it stows away to just under 5' tall.

I also have a telescopic plank for it, which extends from 6' to 9'.

 

[smorgasbord]

I'm probably going to sell my 30 year old M26 aluminum Little Giant. It's just too darn heavy. I end up moving it around in pieces, although I can drag it across the floor if the floor is tough enough to take it (stone, not wood).

I did just order a Louisville FXS1412HD 12' fiberglass step ladder. I have a sloped ceiling that reaches like 18' at one end. I won't be able to reach quite that high with this ladder, but couldn't with the Little Giant anyway. Although they do make the "skyscraper" series that goes way tall, but it's a two-man operation to take them down - literally sideways if you have the room. With the M26, I was able to lift each side up independently a rung at a time, and then down the same way.

I also tried a LadderRail, pretty cool thing. Basically a extending handrail so that you can use the top rung (not the ladder top) safely - gets you another foot. Even on the usual next to top rung, it gives you something to quasi-lean against for stability. I put it on my 8' fiberglass ladder and will get one for this new 12 footer.

 

[PaulMarcel]

I have the Werner Multi-Max Pro 24' ladder. Folded up, it stands about 7' tall. I added 2 eyelets on the side and use a shoulder strap to carry it. To slide it into the back of the car, I modified a floor slider used for gymnastics: added a simple slot in the rubber top so the edge of the ladder's foot fits in it and a small strap to attach it there. Really fast to put in and out of the SUV. I used to have to carry it pretty far once a month for rigging a show. It's heavy, but the shoulder strap makes it pretty easy to deal with.

 

[cpw]

I have a Gorilla 26'. It has wheels, which can be nice on pavement to avoid all the weight. They are heavy, but I find it more convenient than the 24' extension ladder, easily just fits in the bed of my truck without having to tie it down or anything.

My 24' extension ladder does reach the gutters on one of my houses, where the 26' gorilla does not. The 26' is maximum reach, not actually the size of the ladder.

I did have one start showing a crack at the pivot point; and Gorilla replaced it with a picture of the crack and then once the warranty replacement was confirmed with another picture of the ladder damaged beyond use.

 

[PaulMarcel]

My 24' extension ladder does reach the gutters on one of my houses, where the 26' gorilla does not. The 26' is maximum reach, not actually the size of the ladder.

This was a frustration of mine when comparing different ladders. I want the actual height it reaches when deployed not when standing dead vertical or your reach assuming you're on the top safe rung with a 7' reach... all marketing for the bigger number

 

[smorgasbord]

The standard for step ladders is to measure the length of the ladder when folded for storage. Typically, the top "safe" step is about 2.5' below that. So, for a 10' ladder, you're down 2 steps (the top and the last rung are not safe) which is about 2' and then another half foot due to the angle of the ladder when deployed, so the highest safe step is 7.5'. Then for "reach" they add about 6.5' so you can reach 14' with a 10' ladder. I'm not sure on extension ladders, but I assume it's pretty similar.

Got my Louisville FXS1412HD today. Pretty good from Home Depot - ordered on Sunday arrived Wed morning. I climbed it today and it's quite stable compared to other 12' ladders I've climbed. I did install the LadderRail and will try that out tomorrow to see if I can reach the skylights to clean/change out the screens. I think rather than try to sell my Little Giant M26, I'll just deploy it as an extension ladder on the side of one of my water tanks, replacing a redwood ladder I built over a decade ago. It's overkill for that, but I suspect selling my M26 probably won't net me much.

The Louisville I just got is their "Cross-Step" design, which is OSHA approved to be used as a leaning ladder due to the rear legs being hinged differently, the top piece having rubber to increase friction, and the bottom feet designed slightly differently. As a regular step ladder, it gets you closer over the top, which is cool, and reduces the spread, which for a big ladder like mine is really helpful indoors.

 

[smorgasbord]

FWIW, here's my new ladder in the house:


With the LadderRail the topmost usable step is about 10.5' high. For reference, that balcony's floor is 11'.

 

[luvmytoolz]

@smorgasbord Man I love the Craftsmen style, absolutely beautiful!

I'm actually rewatching the Flash series at the moment, and I'm just entranced by the Craftsmen style decor in it!