Which telescopic ladder to buy ?

Talay · 19 Oct 2014

I want a telescopic ladder, largely due to space when stored but around the 4m range, they go from about £50 up to £250 plus.

Not needing the very best is fine if the ones you get are safe but there are horror stories out there and a lot of the cheap end ones seem potentially suspect.

So who are the go to names for telescopic ladders and who should be avoided ?

crank39 · 19 Oct 2014

There's only one name you need to know.......TELESTEPS!

I've had my own personal set for probably coming up to 15 years and they are still going strong, admittedly they do need new rubber feet/bungs as these do wear very quickly, the weight of you on the ladders cuts through the rubber

Ignore the cheap ones, they might look the same and do the same job but they won't last 6 months......I speak from experience

cajar · 20 Oct 2014

have used telescopic ladders before on a site and found any dirt on the poles interferes with the telescoping bit. much prefer little giant ladders, as they do everything that does and more, although they are about £150

ladylola · 20 Oct 2014

Agreed with the problem of dirt on them, they cause the ladders movement to stick and then someone is tempted to give it a little tap with a hammer to shift it

crank39 · 20 Oct 2014

Telesteps recommend silicone spray as opposed to wd40 for exactly this reason, I lent mine to a few friends one of whom lubed it with wd which eventually gummed it up, water also gums them up when it rains but a wipe dry and spray with silicone spray releases everything and they're as good as new, like I said I've had mine for years and they've often become sticky but once cleaned and sprayed then its back to normal, in fact all I have to do is pull the second of the 2 ring pulls under the bottom rung and the ladders just collapse on their own with gravity with no help from me

ladylola · 20 Oct 2014

I think you've also hit on the other important aspect crank and that is to not lend them out. I've never owned a set but had access to a company one which of course was used by all and sundry as and when .

crank39 · 20 Oct 2014

Mine were £330 over ten years ago but they have come down a fair bit, they are one of the best things I've bought and have followed me from company to company. They are so 'worn in' that stiles (tubes) are polished now, can't remember if they were anodised or not but they still work a treat but admittedly they could do with a service which I do believe Telesteps offer, I saw on their website once that they'll come and pick them up (via courier I presume), full strip and refurb and post them back and the prices for commonly replaced parts were very keen too

Talay · 21 Oct 2014

cajar said:
have used telescopic ladders before on a site and found any dirt on the poles interferes with the telescoping bit. much prefer little giant ladders, as they do everything that does and more, although they are about £150

I saw these when Googling around for telescopic ladders and was quite impressed.

Would you say that they are a better long term bet, what with the greater use they can be put to and the trade off in terms of size and space saving ?

cajar · 22 Oct 2014

definitely. have had mine a few months of trade use and they are very robust not to mention the most stable ladder I have ever used.

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Which telescopic ladder to buy ?

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