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Ladders are universally understood.  Used in every country around the world they transcend culture, class or tradition, and they're used in the same way – or are they?  We wondered whether ladder safety advice was the same across different countries, or whether some places have particular concerns about safe ladder use.  We looked at advice from the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and India and compared the guidance each country prioritises.   Three Points Of Contact This was common across all five territories.  This advice is to stop people taking unnecessary risks with carrying items up ladders, or doing lots of manual work while at the top.  The UK guidance states that users must “maintain three points of contact when climbing and wherever possible at the work position... Where you cannot..

A while ago we took a look at the ladders and height access equipment you might need to undertake a DIY home renovation project.  A stepladder and combination ladder seemed ideal for covering most tasks, with the combination ladder able to tackle stairways and places where steps up or down make using a standard ladder impossible.  This came to a minimum of £256 and provided two ladders with which two people could work simultaneously, getting through the workload more quickly than a single person would.   If you're one person doing the majority of the renovations alone, or you're the only one who will use a ladder then the Werner Pro-Deck 5-way scaffold and ladder system is your ideal partner.  This versatile piece of kit is certified to BS EN131, making it perfect for DIYers and professi..

We love the Henchman tripod ladders and we're proud to carry their excellent ladders through the Midland Ladder brand, so we were delighted to see their first ever TV advert go live.  Created in partnership with Sky, the advert sees a gardener, David, faced with the task of trimming an unruly evergreen hedge.  First he tries an extension ladder leant against the hedge, but it falls sideways.  Then he tries a conventional stepladder, but the four feet can't get a steady base on the ground and it too falls over.    David takes a break and has a cuppa and a brainwave – he needs the Henchman Pro fully adjustable garden tripod ladder!  With this bit of kit allowing David to set each of the three legs at just the right height for the ground to create a level ladder, and the claw feet getting ..

Ladder guards are one of the most useful ladder accessories you can get for when you're not using a ladder!  Most ladder safety accessories are designed for actually using the ladder – things like leg levellers, stoppers, stand offs and work platforms; they are all extras for making ladder use safer.  Ladder guards are for making ladders safer when they're not being used.   Building sites, home DIY projects and other spaces where ladders may be semi-permanently fixed for the duration of a project pose a risk to unauthorised visitors, and it is the site owner's responsibility to ensure that ladder access is restricted only to those who should be using them, and not to thrill-seeking teens, for example.  Enabling unauthorised access to scaffolds, roofs and other high up areas where safety ..

As ladder safety enthusiasts we're always saddened to see reports of peril on the roads due to improperly secured ladders endangering motorists.  To us it seems so obvious that transporting ladders requires care and attention, that it's shocking to learn that not everyone takes the proper precautions.   A driver on the M58 was incredibly lucky not to have been injured when a set of ladders came loose from the roof rack of a Citroen van and smashed through the windscreen.  The pictures are the stuff of nightmares, with the whole pane shattered and pushed into the drivers’ area.  If the driver had been leaning forward, or perhaps reaching over to the centre console, there's a real chance they could have been struck by the feet of the ladder crashing through the windscreen.   The speed at..

MPs will be thinking hard about whether they're on the rise or destined for a fall from height in the next General Election, but whatever happens at the polls, the government will still have a cross-party working group focused on safety with ladders and other height access methods.   The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Working at Height is made up of MPs and members of the House of Lords and has no political affiliation.  It is a group of people who share a common interest in working at height safety issues, and who meet a few times throughout the year to discuss what they can do to further these issues.   The APPG supports the No Falls Foundation, a charity set up to raise awareness of the risks and dangers of a fall from height and to support people affected by the consequenc..

Henchman is a byword for quality in the garden ladder market.  The family-owned firm was founded in 1994, from a collaboration between father and son Mike and Tom Kitching.  The idea arose from a near-miss fall from the stepladder, and the need for a GCSE design project, and Henchman have been dominating the market ever since.   Mike Kitching was working in the garden at their home using a stepladder, which aren't stable on soft ground and don't cope well with uneven levels, when he nearly toppled from the ladder.  These were the days before telescopic ladder technology, and there was no suitable alternative for outdoor use.  Tripod ladders had long been used for orchard maintenance and fruit picking, but these were very niche and often made from wood, therefore not adjustable.   Out o..

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) bought three of the longest turntable ladders ever built, two years ago; They have a maximum reach of 64 metres (just under 210 feet), equating to 23 stories.  These mammoth ladders, based at Dagenham, Old Kent Road and Wimbledon, are capable of evacuating multiple casualties using lifts on the ladder, with stretchers fixable to these lifts for rescuing seriously injured people.   At fire scenes that are under 23 stories high, these huge ladders can also be used as water towers, so they are versatile pieces of kit that will be well used in the skyscraper-packed streets of London.  In addition to these mega ladders, which are twice the height of the previous tallest ones, the LFB has also invested in drones, fire escape hoods for the public and more breathing..

  Ladders don't come with a best before date as a general rule.  If your ladder is 10 years old it may be ready to replace, or it may be serviceable for another 10 years with proper maintenance and storage.  That said, 10 years is a good point at which to take stock and decide whether your ladder is still in safe working order.   A wooden ladder, with proper care and storage, can last between 5 and 10 years comfortably, especially if it's a domestic one used infrequently.  A wooden ladder that is used every day ought to be replaced after 5 years or thereabouts, as the small cracks in the rungs that will develop with regular use, over time won't be visible until they're past the point of being dangerous.  If you use your wooden ladder a few times a year and store it out of the weather in..

With the double Bank Holiday coming up on-call emergency doctors across the UK will be bracing for some ladder-related cases coming through the doors of A&E.  Figures for domestic ladder accidents suggest that 48,000 people present at hospital following a fall from a ladder in or around the home.  Most of these ladders will be stepladders and extension ladders, as they're the most commonly found pieces of height access equipment in the average home – more specialist ladders like garden tripods or combination ladders tend to be used by professionals and very keen DIYers.   Familiarity with ladders, as well as formal training, is one of the advantages that professional ladder users have over domestic ones.  Access to the right ladders for the job is the other major factor in the discrepanc..