Ankalad and microlite

Hi everyone

@Smurf

I have been using my ankalad for first time this last weekend on some guttering jobs.

First off its a great bit of kit and without it and my ultimate stand off I couldn't have done these as safely.

One question what is your full method of assembling ladders stand off and ankalad. And also disassembling afterwards.

Please be as detailed as possible as I feel I'm making life hard for myself.

I get lader off racks extend top section and put stand off on top 2 rungs, then I stand ladder up where it needs to be and extend top section to arms length and lock in place.

Next I extend next section to required height and get stay on roof tiles.

Then I'll run back and see that my wheels are square on tiles and not uneven.

Then I extend ankalad legs, put on support brace and tighten strap.

On disassembly I lower both lengths of ladder then flip ladder over on to ground, take off stay off and fold up ankalad legs.

This is abit of a pain in small areas around bushes etc.

All help and general mocking welcome lol

Merry Christmas to all and a very happy new year [emoji3]

Hi @ash brown merry christmas to you too.

First of all I don't tend to use that extra support brace when clearing gutters. Reason being the ankalad stabiliser legs can be put in any position you want them in then around none removable obstacles etc. Also using that design of standoff on roof tiles gives added safety for sideways slip too as long as the ladder is levelled properly. You will soon figure out what way to set the stabiliser legs best to stop the ladder kicking backwards on each ladder set you do. Ideally the legs should be set correctly so the brace would fit especially on slippery surfaces so you can set the ladder in a good place & use a pole & pro gutter tool instead of having to keep moving the ladder every metre or so.

If I need to move the ladder along the roof a bit I and have clear access I just collapse the top ankalad legs in only and use the black strap to hold them in to the ladder. Then move the ladder a bit at a time across the roof still fully extended with the standoff on the roof tiles. The bps ladders I have are fitted with a wide stabiliser bar at the bottom of the ladder so I find it easier just to tilt it (use a rocking motion) to move it across. Then once moved just set the ladder & check it's level and adjust the ankalad legs where I want them. It's always a good idea to check also where the standoff d wheels are on the tiles also. If I also wanted to move the ladder about collapsed with clear access then would do the same to the top ankalad legs or if access was poor fold the ankalad legs completely in to the stiles.

Regarding collapsing the ladder to pack away I find it easier to fold in the ankalad to the stiles first. Then bring the ladder sections down so the ladder is fully collapsed. Again is made easier with the wide stabiliser bar at the bottom of the bps ladder as normal ones tend to want to twist when doing so.

You can keep that type of standoff on the ladders when transporting about if you want to but I like to take it off and put it inside the van. On some jobs I remove it before taking the ladders back to the van as where it sticks out can easily catch on things like sat dishes etc if not careful.

So in conclusion no matter what ladder safety devices you may want to use if you are unhappy and feel a ladder set is unsafe then don't do it as no job is worth your life.

@Smurf thanks that has helped alot, just couldn't get my head round it!

No probs Ash :thumbsup:

If the ground is level when i am doing gutter work i leave the ankalad set and pull ladder away from roof and move the whole thing

Gotta be strong with 3 section 12 rungs to do that but smurf has the best method

I can do that too but is a bit risky to do if a gust of wind catches the ladder so I either walk it along the roof or bring down the top section first if not moving the ladder very far.

If the ground is level when i am doing gutter work i leave the ankalad set and pull ladder away from roof and move the whole thingGotta be strong with 3 section 12 rungs to do that but smurf has the best method

Click to expand...

Anyone know if the microlite isn't pulled off roof when used with ankalad stabiliser. I had this problem with normal standoffs