Loft Ladders

Zorba

Hi all,

I'm thinking of putting one of these ladders in myself:

http://www.woodiesdiy.com/productdetail.aspx?pid=1876&loc=P&catid=11.6.1

but i was wondering seen as i'm reasonably handy with diy would it be an easy enough job to do myself rather than paying double the price to get someone else to do it.

Also do u nail, screw it or whatever it is to the existing frame or do u have to take the existing frame out and put the new ladder in ?

Thanks in advance

Saruman

I too was wondering the same... any time i see them they look more rectangular than the usual square attic openings.. so would some of the ceiling need to be cut away i wonder.

Mellor

It depends. The usual opening is not square. Yours may be, but rectangular is more common.
They need to be fixed into the joists. So an existing frame may need to come out, or the joists may be the existing frame. The ope might need to be made longer.

The most important thing is to check the centres of your joists and endure and ladder you but fits.

Zorba

Was actually thinking after i posted that i'd have to measure the opening which is ectangular in my case and then go to the shop and measure the ladder and work from there. Will measure up and have a look and see what i'll do

johnny_adidas

worst case you have to cut out some of the ceiling plasterboard, ceiling joists and reframe with suitably sized timbers to the correct ope size. have fitted one myself. best done with someone there to help as they can be quite heavy and awkward.

best bet would be to screw it in as hammering nails could cause you to crack plasterboard joints etc in the ceiling.

AckwelFoley

Worst case senario is that you do it yourself and the loft ladder collapses when u use it, leaving you paralised from the lower back down, for life, which happened to my sister in law.

This is one of those jobs you need to get a carpenter to do.

Its not difficult and can be done in a few hours, but needs to be done properly and safely

ttm

Zorba wrote: »

http://www.woodiesdiy.com/productdetail.aspx?pid=1876&loc=P&catid=11.6.1

Keep an eye on this one in Woodies especially if your in no rush as I seem to remember that this has been on special offer for under 100euro. Also check any other DIY and builders merchants as I have seen what seems to be the same product at may different prices some sub 100euro.

Xcellor

snyper wrote: »

Worst case senario is that you do it yourself and the loft ladder collapses when u use it, leaving you paralised from the lower back down, for life, which happened to my sister in law.

This is one of those jobs you need to get a carpenter to do.

Its not difficult and can be done in a few hours, but needs to be done properly and safely

Tend to agree with this. I've considered doing this but looks way too difficult for someone without experience to do well. I bet I could botch it in there somehow but if it fell on my head then whats the point. Only got one head.


X

johnny_adidas

snyper wrote: »

Worst case senario is that you do it yourself and the loft ladder collapses when u use it, leaving you paralised from the lower back down, for life, which happened to my sister in law.

This is one of those jobs you need to get a carpenter to do.

Its not difficult and can be done in a few hours, but needs to be done properly and safely

in a way i dont get your point. if a carpenter or a diyer does it wrong, then someone may get hurt, so do it right. OP asked whether it would be handy for a DIYer, and in answer yes.

wasim21k

i was thinking to about this but i have opening is square and little bit small so i have to manage it and it think with bit DIY experience and job done perfectely,
ooh yes about professionals:mad:
i think you get it what i want to say about professionals:rolleyes:

AckwelFoley

Look lads, dont get me wrong...

Im not a qualified anything.. but i dug out and poured the foundation, layed all the blocks, cut and fit a hipped roof for the house, plastered it, skimmed it.. hung the doors, fitted the kitchen for the house i lived in.. i never served a day in my life with any professionals except my father.. who was handy like myself...

Fitting a roof ladder is childs play in comparison to cuting out a hip on a roof, or properly hanging a door, but its easy for me or others to say easy.. when we know how...

I know professionals that do terrible work, so i use the term professional with reservation.

My simple point about the loft ladder is that while simple in theory, its very important its done correctly.. purly for safety reasons.. if my reservations were purely for fear of cosmetic errors i wouldnt mention it..

eamon234

You're right Snyper however handy I am around the house I draw the line at messing with ceiling joists - you need someone who knows what they're doing for that one.

babybuilder

Hi
Just wondering if its possible to get a trap door (not loft ladder) which can be sealed airtight using a locking mechanism. I've put in an airtight intello membrane inside the house which will be interrupted by this trap door to the attic. I need access to the attic because I've got a HRV unit up there. I wont be accessing the attic space or if so very rarely. There is no storage potential as I've blown in cellulose.
Would appreciate any help
thanks

Zorba

Thanks for all the replies and help i measured the space yesterday and i'm gonna have a look at them today to see if they are the same size, if they are i might go ahead with it if not i'll have to think about it, seen as i don't use the attic very often and it's only for storage anyway. Good news is the ceiling joists run along both sides of the door that's there at the moment so here's hoping it's the same size as the ladder itself.

AckwelFoley

I'l put a tenner on it, that they are not the same sizr!

youtheman

I consider myself to be a competent DIYer and I put one of these in, no problem.

1. as mentioned before you need to check the distance between the joists. In my case the unit I bought was obviously designed for the standard joist width (can't remember what that was).

2. you also need to check that the pair of joists you pick have a clear area underneath. My upstairs hall landing is quite narrorw but I was lucky.

3. if your joists are too narrow, or running at right angles to the way you want to orientate the unit, then you'll have to do some significant carpentry work in modifying the joists. Try avoid this if at all possible.

4. I bought a saw specially designed for cutting plsaterboard. I also installed some 1" wooden arcatrave around the unit (to hide the cut in the plasterboard).

5. I presume you have checked the ceiling height verus the unit dimensions. Chances are it will be 'overlength' and will have to be cut. Again I was lucky in that the cut I had to make did not clash with one of the steps on the ladder (majot bugger if it did).