Multi-Position Ladders, ‘greatest thing since sliced bread’

[Walt34]

I'm thinking about a 10 foot reach Warner podium ladder like this one at Home Depot - it's on my wish list there. Just yesterday I had to replace six smoke detectors and I would have liked to have had this ladder instead of the six foot aluminum stepladder I used. That one is sturdy enough but it's 40 years old. Even then I knew enough to spend money on a high-end ladder but they have improved since.

 

[calmloki]

It looks like a very good tool.
Living in a condo I wouldn't need one, but I love the telescoping ladder I bought when we moved here. The guy who did our home inspection had one and I was so impressed I went right out and got one. It has saved the day for me many times in the last few years. Along with a lightweight fiberglass stepladder I'm set.

Xtend-and-Climb-12-5-ft-Telescoping-Aluminum-Extension-Ladder

I used a telescoping ladder like this one for a number of years when actively managing and maintaining 53 rental units. It was great - collapsed it fit upright behind the driver's seat and would lean against a one story gutter. Did have a slight tendency to spin as it didn't have a wide footprint, and after some time and wear and grit it decided that collapsing a rung or two while I was on it was good fun. Only let that happen a couple times. It is out waiting to go to the scrap yard, but I kinda hate to see it leave.

Had a Little Giant also, but as scaffolding.... not a fan:

 

[YakGrl]

About 15 years ago I had a multi-position ladder. I broke a finger while trying to adjust it. I flinch every time I see those types of ladders. Ouch!

 

[Lakewood90712]

Ya, but will it work for this air conditioning repairman ?

Back in the early 1980's I bought a " P.A.L." (professional adjustable ladder) heavy Taiwan made knock off of a werner of the day . Still have it.

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

About 15 years ago I had a multi-position ladder. I broke a finger while trying to adjust it. I flinch every time I see those types of ladders. Ouch!

I currently have 1 Werner and 2 Little Giant multi's (I need 2 of them to put up/take down our fabric awnings on our vacation home).

I try to always use work gloves when taking the ladders down since I find it's easy to pinch fingers as you slide down the rungs. The weight of the sections and gravity make it easy to get caught.

I used to be amazed watching Little Giant ladders being sold on QVC. They had this guy that was sliding them up and down and repositioning them with ease. He must have had a lot of upper body strength since he made it look so easy. Or the demo models were "specially" lubricated to make them slide super easy.

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

This is one of the QVC sales pitches. It's amazing how he's handling them. None of mine adjust that easily.

He starts in at about the 1:00 mark.

 

[ransil]

I got a Werner look alike about 10 years ago on a whim.

Way too heavy. I don't know how much it weighs, but it is almost unusable. It is clearly way more than 40 lbs. But it is very stout!

I also have a Warner and a Gorilla, I agree the Warner is heavy the gorilla is my go to when I need one, the Warner is a little bit taller so I need it some times.

 

[JoeWras]

This is one of the QVC sales pitches. It's amazing how he's handling them. None of mine adjust that easily.

Notice he doesn't let the host touch the adjusting. This guy has the strength and the practice to make it look easy.

 

[Cobra9777]

I might check it out next time I'm at Home Depot. Website says there are 12 in stock, so I assume there's one available to play around with...

Nope. They were all tightly packaged in heavy plastic and cardboard. I asked an employee if they could open one for me to try out. He said no. For safety reasons, customers are not allowed to "operate" ladders on display.

So I left. I'm not going to spend $219 on a ladder that I can't try out before purchasing. Mostly I was just a little miffed at my own mistake of going to Home Depot on a Saturday.

 

[Bamaman]

The Werner brand adjustable ladder has a big weight limit. The Harbor Freight copycat doesn't.

I needed to do some tree cutting at my lake house today, and I though the ladder was out there--not. I ended up standing on the heat pump compressor and reaching up to cut the tree. A bog limb fell on top of my head and about took me off my feet.

Boy do I miss that adjustable ladder. It's also the only way to paint in tall staircases.

 

[Midpack]

Nope. They were all tightly packaged in heavy plastic and cardboard. I asked an employee if they could open one for me to try out. He said no. For safety reasons, customers are not allowed to "operate" ladders on display.

So I left. I'm not going to spend $219 on a ladder that I can't try out before purchasing. Mostly I was just a little miffed at my own mistake of going to Home Depot on a Saturday.

I hear you. I went to Home Depot and looked at the Gorilla Multi Position ladders several times and walked away because of the price vs a standard step ladder. But I had to buy a ladder to reach things in our new house (my old one was far too short, and hard to use anyway), I really wanted one ladder to do everything (storage is at a premium), and I watched several YouTube reviews that made it worth the $ risk to me. All I can say is I think it was more than worth the $219, and I’m glad I bought it. My old ladder is going to AmVets. But if I didn’t really need a new ladder, I probably never would have ponied up $219 either...

Now I’m currently dithering (again) over spending much more than I’d like on an EGo string trimmer and edger. And my Toro leaf blower gave up the ghost tonight too.

 

[6miths]

They are good from a flexibility standpoint. I find them quite heavy though. Especially one that is a practical length for high ceilings etc.

I have one of these at the cottage and find it excellent but yes a bit heavy and more difficult to set up than a simple extension ladder of equal height would be. I also find the locking mechanisms a bit stiff. Really like how stable it is. Got mine at Costco I think.

 

[BeachOrCity]

Have one. Don’t like it and only use it when I have to.

 

[Midpack]

Much to my surprise, a plain Werner 8 foot step ladder with a 375 lb rating weighs 40.5 pounds, essentially the same as my 40 lb Gorilla MPX-22! The Gorilla has more reach and it effectively replaces 2-5 ladders.

OTOH most of us don’t need a 375 lb rating, and step ladders can be had that weigh much less albeit with much lower ratings. No where near as versatile, but for folks with room for several single purpose ladders, lighter less expensive ladders (total cost?) will be preferable.

https://www.wernerco.com/us/products/ladders/step-ladders/T7400Series/T7408

 

[braumeister]

Lots of different models available.
My 8' Werner stepladder (fiberglass) with a 300 lb. capacity weighs 28 lbs.

 

[FlaGman]

Home Depot had the MPX-22 as a deal-of-the-day for $99 a couple months ago so I bought one, really like it a lot. The interesting thing was that you would not have known it was on sale in the store as the only sign was for the regular price over $200. I had an associate scan the barcode to confirm the sale price before I lugged it to the register.

They were also on sale last year during Black Friday, so may be an item to look out for later in the year. I am very happy with mine, it is extremely stable and pretty easy to adjust. I also bought the brackets to convert it to use with a scaffold but have not tried those yet.

 

[Maenad]

Thanks everyone for this discussion! We need a new ladder, so it's good to hear about others' experiences.

 

[zedd]

Just a cautionary note: check the recall notices before buying a "used" extension/multi-purpose ladder or continuing to use an old one. It's amazing how many of these recalled ladders end up on craigslist as supposed great deals

 

[6miths]

Just a cautionary note: check the recall notices before buying a "used" extension/multi-purpose ladder or continuing to use an old one. It's amazing how many of these recalled ladders end up on craigslist as supposed great deals

A couple of years ago, codes for trades here changed to require fiberglass ladders so there were all kinds of great aluminum ladders available for a song. I got a great 14 foot platform ladder which has made my life much easier!

 

[RunningBum]

Just got my ladder out this morning, to replace a high light bulb. Managed to pinch my arm by my elbow raising the height. Pinched my palm lowering it. Struggled to close the ladder because one of the buttons you have to push on each side was sticking. Thankful I'm still young enough to manhandle the ladder up a few steps.

I'm glad I have it because there are a few situations where it's really useful, and the versatility is handy, but I use it only as a last option because it's so hard to deal with. I suppose if I used it regularly I'd learn the tricks and get more adept at it, but there's still the weight and clumsiness of lugging it around.

 

[Midpack]

Still loving our Gorilla MPX-22! We're in a new house, so I have used it almost daily over the past few weeks. Changed 2 dead smoke/CO detectors Friday, 12 feet up. At 40 lbs the ladder isn't light, but it's certainly manageable. Our old folding Werner went to AmVets on Friday, good riddance - hated that earlier multi purpose ladder. The Gorilla is better and way more user friendly and versatile in every way.

 

[Music Lover]

Much to my surprise, a plain Werner 8 foot step ladder with a 375 lb rating weighs 40.5 pounds, essentially the same as my 40 lb Gorilla MPX-22! The Gorilla has more reach and it effectively replaces 2-5 ladders.

OTOH most of us don’t need a 375 lb rating, and step ladders can be had that weigh much less albeit with much lower ratings. No where near as versatile, but for folks with room for several single purpose ladders, lighter less expensive ladders (total cost?) will be preferable.

https://www.wernerco.com/us/products/ladders/step-ladders/T7400Series/T7408

I bought my World's Greatest Ladder for the versatility and because it fits in the trunk of my car where obviously a regular step ladder or extension ladder won't fit.

The weight isn't an issue for me. But when it gets too heavy to lift maybe that's also an indication that I shouldn't be going on a ladder any more.

 

[Midpack]

The weight isn't an issue for me. But when it gets too heavy to lift maybe that's also an indication that I shouldn't be going on a ladder any more.

+1, my conclusion too.

 

[zinger1457]

Struggled to close the ladder because one of the buttons you have to push on each side was sticking.

I would suggest given all the moveable parts on the ladder a good spray from a can of silicone lubricant, may need to repeat once a year or so.

 

[JoeWras]

I would suggest given all the moveable parts on the ladder a good spray from a can of silicone lubricant, may need to repeat once a year or so.

Be careful to not spray anywhere you step or grab though.