I have a 20' aluminum extension ladder and just bought an 8' Keller Type 1 fiberglass step ladder.

I'm looking for something that will give me indoor access to a 12-15' high window (height from floor) and let me change the light bulbs in a chandelier that is about 17' high.

That says to me "free standing" A-frame ladder.  The thought of putting an extension ladder on porcelin tile and leaning it up against the wall isn't reassuring.  A bonus would be having the ladder convert into a scaffolding.

Any suggestions?

TIA,

Corey

Little Giant = EXCELLENT ladder.


They had one setup as an A-Frame at a tradeshow.


They had another guy and me climb up about 10 feet and try to shake it - we couldn't.   Over 500 lbs on a 300 lb ladder.


I ordered one.  


While the cheap knock-offs look the same, there's a HUGE difference in construction

Little Giant are ok.    The Little Giant Design is of German origin, and aside from Little Giant, a Chinese company brought the rights to make  the same exact ladder under the name Gorilla, sold at Home Depot, etc...

It's about 1/2 price of a Little Giant.  I have one, and it is handy as can be, but heavy.  Heavy duty too.  I weigh around 230lbs, and have no worries about the ladder giving out.

How are the cosco's as a low price knock off alternative for casual use?

M4-AK

Quoted: Little Giant are ok.    The Little Giant Design is of German origin, and aside from Little Giant, a Chinese company brought the rights to make  the same exact ladder under the name Gorilla, sold at Home Depot, etc... It's about 1/2 price of a Little Giant.  I have one, and it is handy as can be, but heavy.  Heavy duty too.  I weigh around 230lbs, and have no worries about the ladder giving out.

What did the Gorilla cost?

M4-AK

I would recommend the Little Giant.  We bought the 24' version.  You can get a lower price if you push for it...they run specials when they go to the state fairs and such.

The only negative is that it's a bit heavy, but then most extension ladders only have a 200 pound weight limit...which wouldn't hold me.  The LG holds me and equipment in its rated capacity just fine.

It's built like a tank.  You can seperate the small A-frame from the two side extensions, and use the two as legs for a scaffolding platform.  There are several other accessories you can get depending on what you want/need.

I don't recall offhand the maximum extension height, but I am able to put our ladder up in an "A" frame configuration and clean the gutters on our house (1.5 story bungalow) or access the roof.  The thing is really sturdy.

It is so far the best 'tool' we've purchased as homeowners...since you already have a couple of other ladders that fit the "light and quick" bill, I don't think you can go wrong with an LG.

Apparently, there's a less-expensive china-made copy, but I don't know what its quality is like.

Jim

Quoted: While the cheap knock-offs look the same, there's a HUGE difference in construction

Uh, wrong. Same ladder. Either the patent ran out or the rights were bought. The Gorilla is the same ladder.

Corey, no matter which one you choose, you will not be able to get at that chandelier. Even with the 21ft version. That is the extended working height, not the A-frame height. For everything else, you should be fine.

Quoted: Quoted: Little Giant are ok.    The Little Giant Design is of German origin, and aside from Little Giant, a Chinese company brought the rights to make  the same exact ladder under the name Gorilla, sold at Home Depot, etc... It's about 1/2 price of a Little Giant.  I have one, and it is handy as can be, but heavy.  Heavy duty too.  I weigh around 230lbs, and have no worries about the ladder giving out. What did the Gorilla cost? M4-AK

I believe I paid $199 for the AL-22 model, which extends to a little over 18 feet.   It meets OSHA standards, and comes with the A frame pieces, allowing you to make it into two smaller ladders for a scaffolding setup.

Quoted: Quoted: While the cheap knock-offs look the same, there's a HUGE difference in construction Uh, wrong. Same ladder. Either the patent ran out or the rights were bought. The Gorilla is the same ladder.

Sorry, look again.


The Gorilla uses stacked steel plates for the hinges, Little Giant uses a one piece metal hinge


Just because they copied it doesn't mean it's the SAME


Aimpoint -vs- Tacpoint

I'm presuming that when you're talking about the LG heights you're all referring to it in A-frame mode, right?

Quoted: Quoted: While the cheap knock-offs look the same, there's a HUGE difference in construction Uh, wrong. Same ladder. Either the patent ran out or the rights were bought. The Gorilla is the same ladder. Corey, no matter which one you choose, you will not be able to get at that chandelier. Even with the 21ft version. That is the extended working height, not the A-frame height. For everything else, you should be fine.

The ceiling is probably only about 18' high.  What would an A-frame configured LG top out at?

Figuring that the chandelier will probably hang 3-4' down from the ceiling and the top of the ladder probably doesn't need to be closer than 4' to the light (my body and arms can make up the difference), I figure the ladder itself only needs to get me safely about 12' in A-frame mode.

Will a LG do that?

Another thing.  I thought I remember in the TV commercials that you could just flatten the top of the LG ladders out and use them as scaffolding.  I didn't recall seeing them mention the accessory scaffolding part.  Is that necessary, or can the ladder do that by itself?

Thanks for all the info everyone.

Corey

Little Giant


Model 26  Max. A-frame height:    11'

Little giants are great, but they are super expensive. I bought a Werner knock-off from Lowes for about $200 and its works just as good.

My only worry about these ladders is that the feet don't dig into the ground like some extension ladders (when used outdoors). This may not be an issue for some, but I kinda make it a priority after took a 20 ft dive when the feet let out on a ladder once.

Quoted: Little Giant Model 26  Max. A-frame height:    11'

Yeah, that might just do the trick.

In a perfect world I'd spend $1K on two of these and the extension to make an 11' high scaffolding.



Corey

Jeez!  I've always wanted one, but I could never justify the price.  I can get an extension ladder and a step ladder for less.

Little Giant ladders are great, we use them on C-130s, C-17s, and most other large frame aircraft for everything from field maintenance to servicing engines.  I get tired of lugging the bulky bastard around sometimes, but they are tough as nails.  I have seen exactly one broken in a decade of using and working around them.  If it has an NSN, you can usually rest assured its a decent product.  

Little Giant ladders are overengineered the way this engineer would design a ladder.


Hence, they are a little heavy - because they are SUPER STURDY.


At the shows, they have cross sections of the cheap knock-offs and their ladders.   No comparison in construction.


It's really the safest ladder I've ever been on