Is a telescopic ladder a good choice for getting up to my sprinter roof?

bcolins

bcolins

2004 158" Vista Cruiser
Considering one of the aluminum telescopic ladders as sold on eBay and Amazon for accessing my Sprinter RV rooftop for solar install and routine maintenance. Generally $75-100. Wondering if anyone has tried one and if so, what your experience has been. Would you consider them a safe and stable ladder choice or not?

Brian in San Antonio
 
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JoeyB

Active member
Haven't had any issues with mine, I used it a lot to install my solar. Very handy, not very heavy, takes up little space.
 
bcolins

bcolins

2004 158" Vista Cruiser
JoeyB said:
Haven't had any issues with mine, I used it a lot to install my solar. Very handy, not very heavy, takes up little space.
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Did you somehow secure the top of it or did you simply lean it against the rain gutter? I have some stand up paddle board suction cups,....thinking I might use pipe foam insulation on the part that contacts the rain gutter and then secure the upper portion with my suction cups.

Brian
 
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JoeyB

Active member
bcolins said:
Did you somehow secure the top of it or did you simply lean it against the rain gutter? I have some stand up paddle board suction cups,....thinking I might use pipe foam insulation on the part that contacts the rain gutter and then secure the upper portion with my suction cups.

Brian
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I have just leaned it against the area above the gutter, mine has some plastic spots I put against it. It has rubbed the paint a little but, nothing major, but we are about to repaint the van so I wasn't concerned. Going forward I plan to get some foam inserts that would hook to the sides of the ladder, I'll see if I can find the link -- months ago someone suggested them but I forgot about it.
 
bcolins

bcolins

2004 158" Vista Cruiser
I've been looking at them on Amazon; Seems like there are hundreds of them,....and every one of them has some negative feedback where a step or latch broke after a couple of uses and threw someone on the ground.

I bought one years ago from Home Depot for attic insulation inspections,.....it DID throw me on the ground the first time I used it,.....customer was standing there intrigued by it,....until I started to climb up it,....got to the 3rd or 4th rung when it collapsed enough to drop under the garage ceiling attic opening where the ladder had been supported,.....now no longer supported by anything,....the ladder and I went crashing down on the concrete garage floor landing on my back on top of the ladder and a lawn mower..........nothing broken but my pride,......horribly embarrassing,.....could have been much worse,...potentially could have broken my back. I still love the concept,.....just nervous about them.

Brian
 
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John E

John E

Active member
bcolins said:
I've been looking at them on Amazon; Seems like there are hundreds of them,....and every one of them has some negative feedback where a step or latch broke after a couple of uses and threw someone on the ground.

I bought one years ago from Home Depot for attic insulation inspections,.....it DID throw me on the ground the first time I used it,.....customer was standing there intrigued by it,....until I started to climb up it,....got to the 3rd or 4th rung when it collapsed enough to drop under the garage ceiling attic opening where the ladder had been supported,.....now no longer supported by anything,....the ladder and I went crashing down on the concrete garage floor landing on my back on top of the ladder and a lawn mower..........nothing broken but my pride,......horribly embarrassing,.....could have been much worse,...potentially could have broken my back. I still love the concept,.....just nervous about them.

Brian
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Did the ladder fail, or was it not "locked in" properly? I'm on ladders every day for work, and the chances for incidents like this seem to increase exponentially with my age....
 
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JoeyB

Active member
I have never had a such issue but saw similar reviews. This is partially why I splurged on one that was about $30 more than most the others but had no such reviews. Each rung has a lock on each side and when locked they expose a green arrow. The instructions are very clear about checking each one before using the latter so I always have. Takes less than 10 seconds with the green dots.
It does bow a little but I think with the telescoping parts it can't really be avoided. I try to keep a higher angle as it bows less.

Here is the one I bought
Xtend & Climb 760P Xtend+Climb Telescoping Extension Ladder, 225 Lb, 1-1/2 in in, 10.5 ft, Red https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002WPZRJU/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_i_BMkXDbQMM2NV9

Unfortunately it looks like price has gone up a lot and no longer fulfilled by Amazon.
 
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Fletch9871

Active member
JoeyB said:
I have never had a such issue but saw similar reviews. This is partially why I splurged on one that was about $30 more than most the others but had no such reviews. Each rung has a lock on each side and when locked they expose a green arrow. The instructions are very clear about checking each one before using the latter so I always have. Takes less than 10 seconds with the green dots.
It does bow a little but I think with the telescoping parts it can't really be avoided. I try to keep a higher angle as it bows less.

Here is the one I bought
Xtend & Climb 760P Xtend+Climb Telescoping Extension Ladder, 225 Lb, 1-1/2 in in, 10.5 ft, Red https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002WPZRJU/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_i_BMkXDbQMM2NV9

Unfortunately it looks like price has gone up a lot and no longer fulfilled by Amazon.
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We use the Pro Series version at work for getting on the roof of semi trailers. It’s very stable and has withstood years of weekly use with little regard to care.

Very compact for storage. Pay attention to the shipping weights. They can be a bit hefty.

Go easy the first couple times you use it. It is easy to pinch your hands/fingers until you get the hang of it.

Keep Rolling...Chris


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
bcolins

bcolins

2004 158" Vista Cruiser
Aqua Puttana said:
Off topic.

If weight and storage size isn't a factor, I find that my folding ladder is very handy. It's a bit more versatile than a straight ladder. In scaffold mode I used it to work on the top of the T1N windshield.

A pic is included here.

Windshield Rust Hack Job
https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=36676

:cheers: vic
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I had one and unfortunately, sold it a few years ago. Wishing I had it now,.....except that it would take up a lot of space in the RV.
 
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Robert Foster

Member
I have owned two of the Xtend & Climb Pro-Series for five years now and use them everyday as a professional home inspector. I have never had a problem with either of mine. I do stand back after extending them, prior to climbing them, and confirm that every pin is indeed fully extended in the locked position.
 
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billintomahawk

Guest
FWIW.
I've been really sensitive to fall dangers since I bailed out of the back of my Sprinter van and broke my hip a year ago.
The repair with pins was a success but my head is not in the same place it was.
I have become cautious.

My friend Sue worked with safety issues at our local paper mill.
The tool that caused the most injuries year in and year out according to her was a three foot step ladder.
I worked on and off as a carpenter and a nurse in this life. I thought I knew.

A folding/telescoping ladder makes me nervous.
If you haven't fallen and been hurt you just don't know.

I don't think there is a good way to fall 3 feet.
A six or eight foot fall could paralyze or kill you.

Falling on a hard surface like frozen ground or concrete is really bad news and amplifies the distance fallen significantly.

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/flobi.html

If you are overweight...!

bill in tomahawk
 
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220629

Well-known member
I agree that any ladder can be dangerous.

A properly deployed folding or collapsible ladder can be as stable as a regular straight ladder, but there are more moving parts, etc.

I think that this is good advice when using complex ladders.
Robert Foster said:
I have owned two of the Xtend & Climb Pro-Series for five years now and use them everyday as a professional home inspector. I have never had a problem with either of mine. I do stand back after extending them, prior to climbing them, and confirm that every pin is indeed fully extended in the locked position.
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I have installed slit lengths of heater hose on many of my metal/composite ladder rails. It protects the surface leaned against and helps keep side slip to a minimum.

billintomahawk said:
...

I don't think there is a good way to fall 3 feet.
A six or eight foot fall could paralyze or kill you.

bill in tomahawk
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:thumbup:
OSHA requires fall protection at anything above 6 feet for a reason.

:cheers: vic
 
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richard cabesa

Active member
Love mine, been using it for years. I think it is a great portable choice

I've been in construction and up and down ladders my whole life to the fact that they move around under you doesn't bother me too much.

Make sure you take an honest assessment of your weight and what you might have in your hands when to pick the weight rating, they are not all created equal

I highly recommend this item for the top rung
https://www.amazon.com/Xtend-Climb-...0MM181TWT9X&psc=1&refRID=F9FYVXVQD0MM181TWT9X
Doesn't scratch the paint and keeps is from sliding around somewhat

I like the folding ladder but they just take up too much room for a van/RV

I would never do a fixed ladder. Too limiting. There is so much stuff on the roof there is no place left to walk anyway.

If I need to do more serious work up there, I have bigger guns at home
 
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