The longevity of my bones and joints are my main concern:D
I just saw the IWCA board members truck yesterday and they use red tip ladders on their 16 foot extension ladder. He’s a very sharp guy and I bet that ladder is a lot easier to move around at the end of a long day.
MUCH MUCH SAFER to use when you consider back injuries as part of the liability equation. I have heard that tiered workers have more job related accidents. Is that true?
Red tip Werner ladders? Those are for homeowner use and are not commercial grade (made for everyday use). That sounds dangerous.
Perhaps he’s just a cheap-ass.
I agree or doesnt have the $$ to spring for a better safer ladder.
I wouldn’t use a homeowner grade ladder everyday all day. Maybe if I was 150 lbs or under. We don’t bother having 16 ft ladders on the trucks anymore.
Prepare to be moderated. Tsk, tsk.
They have at least 10 guys working for them and a bunch of trucks, at least four, so the cost of a red tip vs. a yellow tip ladder probably isn’t the reason they bought it.
I like featherweight squeegees so a featherwieght ladder makes sense to me.
Apples and oranges.
Featherweight squeegee – #1 selling benefit = reduce strain on wrist (though I’ve read that many over-compensate and cancel out original intent.) WC’ers use squeegees constantly everyday when busy (even for clearing stuffed-up toilets. :D)
Featherweight ladder – #1 selling benefit is light weight = at the cost of safety. I’m guessing that most ladder users – even WC’ers – do not inspect before and after each use, and do not handle them with care. They are not up to everyday commercial use. For the amount of time a ladder requires moving, it’s just not worth going flimsier (they are lighter for a reason.)
BTW, ewe fergot too edite you’re pöst two fixx an speling errer.
Hey, thought I would re-open this thread as it seems like such an important topic. After tweaking my shoulder lugging around a blue tipped 32 footer last fall I decided to go with green tipped ladders all around.
My 16 footer and 24 footer are green tipped and seem like the perfect weight for window cleaning. As previously mentioned, you only need heavier duty ladders if you are putting ladder jacks on the ladders for construction use… or if you are a really heavy window cleaner.
I wish I didn’t drop $400 on a blue tipped 32 footer and went green from the start. Live and learn 
What are you guys lugging around these days?
Hey Jesse, welcome back!
I have yellow tips on my 28’ louisville, but the label says its a type 1, 250 lb capacity. So it would have the blue tips if it went according to the color code. Its really hard to find some of the lighter duty ladders used, especially in larger sizes. I would love to find a used Type 2 (green tipped) 40 footer. They’re so incredibly heavy in any higher duty rating. I’d even use a Type 3 if I could find one…
Good being back, Alex.
I think Lowes carries a better selection of lighter ladders in the bigger sizes than Home Depot. I looked on the Lowes website and they carry the green tipped (type II) ladders in the 32 loenght but HD doesn’t.
I don’t know much about the yellow tipped ladders. Are they as strong as the blue tipped, but lighter?
Here’s the “color code”. I don’t think louisville uses the color code at all, they simply have the rating on a label on the side of the ladder. So my yellow tips mean nothing, as far as I can tell. Until someone makes a carbon fiber extension ladder, I don’t think anyone is going to be able to build a ladder that is lighter and just as strong. I’m a real lightweight, so I really wouldn’t mind a couple of type 3 ladders, especially for the longer lengths. The flex doesn’t bother me… much.
[COLOR=#ff0000] I’m a real lightweight, so I really wouldn’t mind a couple of type 3 ladders, especially for the longer lengths. The flex doesn’t bother me… much.
[/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]Yeah, if you are 150 lbs, maybe the red tipped ladders would do the trick. Don’t know if you would still want to go with the red tipped babies for 32’ + though. I clock in at 190 lbs and the green tipped ladders seem sufficiently sturdy to me. I read somewhere that ladders are tested to handle 4 times the weight of the maximum weight listed.
I think it’s usually wise to make a practice of using standoffs most of the time. The bigger danger is the ladder sliding sideways when you reach for something. A little flex doesn’t mean the ladder is going to buckle. I only go stand-off free for certain situations where it is easier to squeeze into a corner or get closer to the glass when a standoff would have me too far away.[/COLOR]
I had a red 20 but the leg levelers would break off the bottom rung, so i kept cutting it down and repositioned the leg levelers until it became ridiculously short. But that was my favorite ladder of all time,
blue or black
[B][FONT=impact][SIZE=6][FONT=microsoft sans serif]Sectional ladder[/FONT][/SIZE][FONT=georgia][/FONT][/FONT][FONT=impact][/FONT][/B]
