Fiberglass ladder care

[chester215]

We have both gorilla & little giant, We like gorilla better. Lighter and larger hardware.

 

[netsol]

The polyurethane youre thinking of wont even last that long sitting on the roof of your truck. A good automotive clear would be about it or go to a canvas shop and have covers made.

you used to paint your corvette with imron, i believe it was.
the sales rep had the best demo i ever saw
he had a large piece of aluminum foil, painted with imron
he would crumble it up, throw it on the ground, then pick it up flatten it out & the paint was still perfectly adhered
very handy for you race car, that might get a scuff or two on a bad day

if it is still available you need to have a respirator to wear during the painting process

 

[Notarealsignguy]

you used to paint your corvette with imron, i believe it was.
the sales rep had the best demo i ever saw
he had a large piece of aluminum foil, painted with imron
he would crumble it up, throw it on the ground, then pick it up flatten it out & the paint was still perfectly adhered
very handy for you race car, that might get a scuff or two on a bad day

if it is still available you need to have a respirator to wear during the painting process

We shoot about 20-30 gals a week of Imron 3.5 and have a mixing bank for it. It's good stuff but formulations have changed over time. Now it probably isn't any more hazardous than any other catalyzed paint but back in the day the stuff was known to be some bad stuff.

 

[Evan Gillette]

You will probably never regret buying the double-sided fiberglass step ladders, we have an 8, two 6s, and a 4. I have been meaning to get a gorilla or similar but haven't had a good excuse yet. It would be nice to have a taller option that can fit in the delivery hatchback. We have gotten a few of ours from auctions where people don't realize they are double-sided, typically electricians going out of business auctions.

Werner 8 ft. Fiberglass Twin Step Ladder with 375 lb. Load Capacity Type IAA Duty Rating T7408 - The Home Depot

Built for convenience and versatility, the 8 ft. Fiberglass Twin Step Ladder boasts a duty rating of 375 lbs. per side, ideal for both 1- and 2-person jobs. Rugged and sturdy, the ladder includes a heavy-gauge

www.homedepot.com

 

[gnubler]

Can you elaborate on the benefit of having it double sided? What situations would you have two people on the ladder, or climb up one side and down the other?

I need a ladder I can easily move around by myself. Rented a 12-ft step once and it took two people just to load it into my van, and two people to move it around the job site.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

double sided is good when you have two people or want to jump on the other side quickly.

 

[JBurton]

Or when you realize your hands are full and you need something still on the ground, a minion can hoof it up the other side without getting too personal with ya. I want to say my gorilla is 37lbs, pretty manageable.
You may or may not be able to stand on the top two rungs depending on your boot size, balance, presence of osha, and a host of other factors. Aside from 'never stand on the top run of a ladder', especially never stand on one with a plastic top (most fiberglass). The way the hinges are situated, you often shift the set of legs you didn't climb up when you put weight up there. Gorilla and little giants have one pair of hinges up top, and as long as you spread the legs prior to climbing and are on solid floor/ground, they won't shift.
Also you can totally use one to straddle a fence! Second only to using a bucket truck to hop a fence. Far better than the carpet you have to haul around for barbed wire.

 

[gnubler]

Good to know, next time I find myself trespassing or starting a revolution.

With the two people deal, I can't picture an install where you'd need 2 people in such close proximity. Whenever I've had 2 people on a job site it's for bigger signs and the ladders are spaced apart to the sign width.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Good to know, next time I find myself trespassing or starting a revolution.

With the two people deal, I can't picture an install where you'd need 2 people in such close proximity. Whenever I've had 2 people on a job site it's for bigger signs and the ladders are spaced apart to the sign width.

putting up vinyl on a wall and having two step ladders might make them too far apart because of the foot spread.

 

[JBurton]

Or needing a hand to hold some weight while you get the first screw tight.
It's a lot easier to get on top of the ladder and have a guy lift and pass a panel up rather than holding it while climbing.
Again, sometimes you need that one tool and can't come to ground, pulled all the backer loose before you realized your squeegee is on the floor.

 

[Boudica]

Tex ?

 

[Notarealsignguy]

Tex ?
View attachment 164888

Ain't nothing wrong with that, there's a guy holding it.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

You can walk up both sides of a ladder, if you're fat, spread your stance out. That's a lot of $$ for that fancy double sided thing.

 

[netsol]

Tex ?
View attachment 164888

i have watched maintenance guys change light bulbs in stairways using that very technique at one of my united ways.
i didn't realize it was an industry standard practice.

i have to admit, you really are here for educational purposes

 

[GAC05]

Ain't nothing wrong with that, there's a guy holding it.

There is an extension ladder laying on the floor. If it was too short they could have laid it on top of the railing angled across the corner and used it as a plank.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

There is an extension ladder laying on the floor. If it was too short they could have laid it on top of the railing angled across the corner and used it as a plank.

I mean, that's what OSHA would suggest but the real question is why didn't they just load up their brush and fling paint until the white was covered.

 

[Johnny Best]

Tex needs to bulk up and get a little giant ladder. More versatile than a fiberglass step ladder, plus no worry about the fiberglass deteriorating.
I have a Werner 16’ Trestle extension ladder that I need to replace. Got use to these ladders back when I painted wall signs by using two ladders with a plank. Never felt safe with ladder jacks with straight ladders. Back then they were wooden and we soaked them with linseed oil to keep them longer.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Tex ?
View attachment 164888

Nope. What I did was run an extension ladder from the ledge and spanned it to the top of stairs. I secured it to the posts so it wouldn't move.

 

[Johnny Best]

Hey Tex, do you balance on the ladder rungs, I use drugs so that would be to dangerous for me. One false step and your gelded.

 

[GAC05]

Nope. What I did was run an extension ladder from the ledge and spanned it to the top of stairs. I secured it to the posts so it wouldn't move.

View attachment 164891

Good to see you used OSHA-approved blue painter's tape.