# Extension Ladder - working alone



## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Cleaning some hard-to-reach gutters today, and working alone. it’s a windy location.
The overhanging roof made it necessary to place the ladder above the roofline.


This year I decided to upgraded the “tube” sand bags to these 40lb exercise sand weight bags. They are easier to lift because of the handles. They should last longer than the tubes, which develop tears and leaks from hard use- these have triple stitching, separate inner liners for the sand, and a durable cordura nylon outer.

*edit - actual weight ended up being over 50lbs.


I have been using these standoffs a few years, and in my opinion they are the best standoffs on the market. Felt a lot safer knowing my ladder wasn’t going to start sliding when ascending or descending. They take less than a minute to install and remove. The lightweight aluminum design keeps the ladder from being top-heavy, and the silicone elbows are extremely grippy.






























update:
Also added these 20lb. “kettlebell” sandbags this year. They are lighter, and easier to move around than the big bag, but still offer additional safety behind the ladder. The crew likes the smaller ones and routinely uses them without prompting.


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## fromthenorthwest (May 2, 2012)

I like that sandbag idea, might incorporate that this season. Every time I've had a ladder incident its been from a slide out. You think I would learn, but I've never liked a steep ladder set, start to get vertigo.


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## Wildbill7145 (Apr 30, 2014)

I replaced my tube standoffs with the Werner quick connect ones last year as my tube ones were getting a little rusty and I was getting to the point where I didn't trust them.

I like the sand bag idea as well, but I have never had to deal with the excitement of riding a ladder down. Yet.


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## slinger58 (Feb 11, 2013)

Wildbill7145 said:


> I replaced my tube standoffs with the Werner quick connect ones last year as my tube ones were getting a little rusty and I was getting to the point where I didn't trust them.
> 
> I like the sand bag idea as well, but I have never had to deal with the excitement of riding a ladder down. Yet.


That’s the kinda thing you want to experience while you’re young, Wildbill. 
Riding one down after you’re past 50 hurts too much. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Wildbill7145 said:


> I replaced my tube standoffs with the Werner quick connect ones last year as my tube ones were getting a little rusty and I was getting to the point where I didn't trust them.
> 
> I like the sand bag idea as well, but I have never had to deal with the excitement of riding a ladder down. Yet.


I had a couple close calls, but all of them ended eith everybody alive and healthy. I’m always surprised how fast it happens...

One moment you’re on a ladder, the very next moment your dangling from a second story gutter because the ladder slid out from under you

Happened many years ago, but makes one thankful to be alive. Good thing I was wearing my brown pants.


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

slinger58 said:


> That’s the kinda thing you want to experience while you’re young, Wildbill.
> Riding one down after you’re past 50 hurts too much.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


truth, but hurts at any age.

My wife started telling me to not take the risky/high jobs this year. Let the younger guys do it, she said.


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## fromthenorthwest (May 2, 2012)

Holland said:


> truth, but hurts at any age.
> 
> My wife started telling me to not take the risky/high jobs this year. Let the younger guys do it, she said.


That's funny, my girlfriend keeps telling me to take on more of those high, risky jobs


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## Joe67 (Aug 12, 2016)

I'm not going to say I've never had to ride a ladder down b/c I'm perfect. But the guys I learned from were paranoid about it, and made me paranoid about it. Any doubts at all and I always do something to make sure that the feet can't go anywhere. It's never as fancy as the sandbag tho!


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

fromthenorthwest said:


> That's funny, my girlfriend keeps telling me to take on more of those high, risky jobs


I was thankful she said that, because it signifies a change. The high/risky jobs are plentiful and pay well, but I’ve reached a point where the risk is starting to outweigh the reward.


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Joe67 said:


> I'm not going to say I've never had to ride a ladder down b/c I'm perfect. But the guys I learned from were paranoid about it, and made me paranoid about it. Any doubts at all and I always do something to make sure that the feet can't go anywhere. It's never as fancy as the sandbag tho!


The sandbag is worth the price!


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

Holland said:


> Cleaning some hard-to-reach gutters today, and working alone. it’s a windy location.
> The overhanging roof made it necessary to place the ladder above the roofline.
> 
> 
> ...


Standoff and sandbag are good things for Solo work, but I haven't done the sandbag. Two people are better obviously, but with the wide open drive. I'd of probably chocked the ladder with the front tire of the van out of laziness of not wanting to load, transport, unload, move, load, transport, unload the sandbag. 

That's a nice looking property. 



slinger58 said:


> That’s the kinda thing you want to experience while you’re young, Wildbill.
> Riding one down after you’re past 50 hurts too much.
> 
> 
> ...


I feel this lol. 



Joe67 said:


> I'm not going to say I've never had to ride a ladder down b/c I'm perfect. But the guys I learned from were paranoid about it, and made me paranoid about it. Any doubts at all and I always do something to make sure that the feet can't go anywhere. It's never as fancy as the sandbag tho!


That's how I am these days. Ladder safety is important and keeping eyes on people that are climbing your ladders is important, and so is making sure you know that they can set up a ladder safely. If they are not comfortable I don't want them doing it. But of course if they are not comfortable with extension ladders then I might not be a good fit depending on the level of behavior. And there might be other sections of the market that are a better fit depending on their other abilities. 

But... One of the two guys that taught me to paint taught me interesting and helpful extension ladder moves. Not all are in use today and I never had his love of walking step ladders. If I see someone walking a step ladder of mine they will hear about it, and be gone if it happens again. 
The other guy was the ying, so two different styles that I was able to take from as I worked with them for years, and they became family over that time.


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Workaholic said:


> Standoff and sandbag are good things for Solo work, but I haven't done the sandbag. Two people are better obviously, but with the wide open drive. I'd of probably chocked the ladder with the front tire of the van out of laziness of not wanting to load, transport, unload, move, load, transport, unload the sandbag.
> 
> That's a nice looking property.
> 
> ...


The van tire chock would work in the driveway side, but the other sides wouldn’t work.

I have painted at this house (and for these clients) for many years, and my mentor painted this house for the previous owner for a couple decades. I know this property well. It’s almost always windy here, coming off the open water. I usually have two people, but didn’t have a second person for it, and it needed to get done.

The shingles overlap the gutters, making it hard to get your hand or anything else inside the gutters. They are only accessible safely from the ladder side. They are usually stuffed full to overflowing with pine needles from a giant pine tree over the opposite side of the house.


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

fromthenorthwest said:


> That's funny, my girlfriend keeps telling me to take on more of those high, risky jobs


lol!

This is one I looked at this week.

It’s built into a bluff, so boom lifts are not an option. It is sloping and uneven almost all the way around the house. The ground that is not limestone rock, is soft pine needles and soil, and gives way when you walk on it. There are also trees that block access to half the building.

The potential-customers are great. I can tell I would like working with them, but when I think about working on this house I get unmotivated.


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## Wildbill7145 (Apr 30, 2014)

You've never had excitement until you've been put in the bucket of a tractor with a light weight 20' aluminum extension ladder while the farmer slowly moves you around the sloped exterior of his house. Moves you up as necessary and changes angles as well. Thankfully that was years ago. Kids around here say that's how their farmer dads used to get them to paint the flag poles at their farm houses minus the extension ladder of course.


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Wildbill7145 said:


> You've never had excitement until you've been put in the bucket of a tractor with a light weight 20' aluminum extension ladder while the farmer slowly moves you around the sloped exterior of his house. Moves you up as necessary and changes angles as well. Thankfully that was years ago. Kids around here say that's how their farmer dads used to get them to paint the flag poles at their farm houses minus the extension ladder of course.


what could possibly go wrong…?


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## Wildbill7145 (Apr 30, 2014)

Holland said:


> what could possibly go wrong…?


Oh lots! For sure. I was trying to build a wooden leveling contraption when that 75 year old came around the corner in his tractor and didn't even blink when he said "jump in Bill, grab your ladder!"

I will say he inspired confidence and work ethic. I'd show up at his place at 7am and he'd be coming down the hill for his morning break as he'd already been at it for hours. Hardest working man I've ever met. Every day when you hopped in your van to leave work there'd be a bag of fresh vegetables on the drivers seat for you.


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

Wildbill7145 said:


> Oh lots! For sure. I was trying to build a wooden leveling contraption when that 75 year old came around the corner in his tractor and didn't even blink when he said "jump in Bill, grab your ladder!"
> 
> I will say he inspired confidence and work ethic. I'd show up at his place at 7am and he'd be coming down the hill for his morning break as he'd already been at it for hours. Hardest working man I've ever met. Every day when you hopped in your van to leave work there'd be a bag of fresh vegetables on the drivers seat for you.
> [/QUOTE


There is a moral in there somewhere.


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

Holland said:


> The van tire chock would work in the driveway side, but the other sides wouldn’t work.
> 
> I have painted at this house (and for these clients) for many years, and my mentor painted this house for the previous owner for a couple decades. I know this property well. It’s almost always windy here, coming off the open water. I usually have two people, but didn’t have a second person for it, and it needed to get done.
> 
> The shingles overlap the gutters, making it hard to get your hand or anything else inside the gutters. They are only accessible safely from the ladder side. They are usually stuffed full to overflowing with pine needles from a giant pine tree over the opposite side of the house.


Makes sense and yeah tire footing is only good for wide drives as front walkways, and back/side patios require a different approach. 
As mentioned I've never done the sandbag, but I filed it in my mind as a potential problem solver. Out here I run into a fair amount of sealed drives, so they can be slick like some hardwood in a two story great room. 

That's cool to have a multi generational of sorts work history on the home. 
I like the house as around here it's so much brick that that style of house is not common. Stucco is the same way. Do them rarely just because it's not a prevalent style of the area. For interior it's rare to do knockdown, but in a region like the southwest it would be rare for them to see smooth finish. There is so much rinse and repeat that anything potentially different in the routine grabs the eye.


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Edit: please delete


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

Holland said:


> lol!
> 
> This is one I looked at this week.
> 
> ...


Solo project or teamwork? I've done a lot of solo jobs so it looks doable, but these days I'd rather keep a guy full time to do all the things I don't want to do like painting around toilets lol. 

Over the last 5 or 6 years the exterior work has taken a backseat to interior work. Last year a dozen exteriors. Not counting fence staining jobs. Have some on the schedule now though but the quantity will likely be on pace as the last few years. 

Finished this one Thursday that was put on the schedule last November. It was my first time working on the home, but my understanding is that they repaint it on average every 5yrs and became unsatisfied with their previous guy, but because of their consistent maintenance minimum caulking required. 

Had a few extras like front patio furniture, decorative vent covers, front light and post, decorative shutter catches, and small side metal roof. Weather was near perfect and as always it was nice to be outside for the first time this year. 

















View attachment 113775


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Workaholic said:


> Solo project or teamwork? I've done a lot of solo jobs so it looks doable, but these days I'd rather keep a guy full time to do all the things I don't want to do like painting around toilets lol.
> 
> Over the last 5 or 6 years the exterior work has taken a backseat to interior work. Last year a dozen exteriors. Not counting fence staining jobs. Have some on the schedule now though but the quantity will likely be on pace as the last few years.
> 
> ...


Looks good ! 
I appreciate seeing what others are working on, wish more people would post pics of their projects.


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## fromthenorthwest (May 2, 2012)

Holland said:


> lol!
> 
> This is one I looked at this week.
> 
> ...





Holland said:


> lol!
> 
> This is one I looked at this week.
> 
> ...


That double whammy with houses on slopes, usually three stories on the back and rarely lift accessible. Sigh...

At least nowadays I tie off when doing these types of jobs. I don't know how I made it through my twenties without harnesses!


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## Diamond Cut (9 mo ago)

Holland said:


> Cleaning some hard-to-reach gutters today, and working alone. it’s a windy location.
> The overhanging roof made it necessary to place the ladder above the roofline.
> 
> 
> ...


What I would do is put the bag under the ladder at the base of the house foundation and tie the ladder down to the bag with a rope or tie down. Another option would be to insert a long thick eye hook screw into the ground and use that to tie down the ladder with a rope. The bag idea looks good but I wonder how secure it is.


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