Tips to choose and use a ladder
In our family, we have a long and storied history with ladders. My grandparents owned a farm and raised dogs for show dogs before they had kids. My father's grandfather is second on the list of the top 10 most-cited authors in physics. Whenever I visit my parents, I'm always amazed at how many ladders are still laying around after 40+ years of use. And yet, despite this history; despite the advice their friends, their partners and their children have given them; whenever they get stuck hiring a ladder or trying to borrow one from someone they end up saying something like ,"I'll just use whatever's lying around. I know how to use a ladder, I'm a physicist." It's one of the ways in which they are basically children. I have less patience for their mistakes, or my father's. You see, he's nearly 60 and he still doesn't know how to use a ladder properly.
I love my father dearly but he will never make it past Nona's gate because of his penchant for using the wrong kind of ladder just because they're convenient and lying around. That is why this post is so late; I've been trying to find him some suitable ladders to borrow so that he can paint his house before the rain comes back and gets everything wet again. Sure, I could have helped him but there's no way I would be able to find the right kind of ladder in the heat of this moment.
In my experience, there are two main kinds of ladders; those that need ropes and ladders that don't. It makes sense right? You'd want to use a ladder that you know how to use, wouldn't you?
Unfortunately for my father and his lack of ladder-knowledge; he is in the latter category. He has never gotten used to using a rope so if he wants to climb something from the top with a rope, he has to borrow someone else's.
There has never been a more convenient time to have a readily available set of ladders in the house than at this moment and if you're going to buy one, you'd be well advised to get one that can work with a rope.
This is where I usually give some kind of a safety lecture but I am sure that these tips apply whether you're using an art ladder or an extension ladder.
1. Before attempting this, make sure you know what kind of ladder your project needs. There are plenty of helpful diagrams on the internet but I want to outline some of the basic differences.
There are three major types of ladders; art ladders, extension ladders and scaffolding ladders.
I don't know why there's so much confusion about that on the internet; it's like writing "4-wheel drive cars" instead of "4 wheel drive vehicles". Even if you don't know what kind of ladder you need (which I hope at this point is not the case) then take a look at these pictures to remind yourself what type your project needs.
Many people think that an art ladder is a kind of scaffolding that can be affixed to walls. This couldn't be further from the truth. Art ladders are made for climbing and so they're more ergonomic than extension ladders. They're also smaller, which means that they can fit in more places; perhaps not in your elevator but at least into your apartment. I recommend getting a smaller art ladder or even a bamboo ladder if you have lots of space and don't plan on using it much.
2. You should never use an art ladder in place of an extension ladder or vice versa but you can use one to get the height you need for the type of project you're doing.
3. I strongly advise against using oil-based paint on wooden ladders because they release toxic fumes when they dry.
4. Some ladders come with a hook to hook your paint bucket onto the ladder while you're at it.
5. It's best to keep your paint bucket farther away from the edge of the ladder than my father does but you should never step on an unstable ladder to move your toolbox closer. You'll just end up spilling paint everywhere and making a mess; that's what I've been doing for a year now because he doesn't use his art ladder like he should have in the first place.
6. If you're painting a straight wall and there's nothing at all in the way, then you can hang your ladder on the wall with a nail. This is what I do to get the angle that I need while painting ceilings.
7. If you're hanging your ladder on a nail, then hang it in such a way that you can just reach around the corner to paint.
8. If you don't have any nails, then use small screws to hold your ladder in place; this is what my father does and it works great for him but if he's hanging his ladder so that he has clear access to paint, I would recommend using nails instead of screws because they're easier to install and take less time.
9. If you don't have screws or nails, then you'd best be leaning it against something.
10. If you're working on a tall ladder, then never stretch your body to reach the bottom of whatever it is that you're painting. That's why I feel like my father will never make it past Nona's gate; he will stretch his body on a tall ladder in order to reach the bottom of an object.
11. It's best to have the paint up high and your brush down low so that gravity can help you with the flow of paint from the container to the surface of your project.
12. Don't paint from the top down. This is a move that I often see and it makes no sense at all. If you're painting a ceiling, then paint on the ceiling and not on your ladder or the wall beside your ladder. You may be tempted to paint up high but keep in mind that gravity will do most of the work for you.
13. There are plenty of different kinds of brushes but it's best to have a brush that's suitable for the kind of paint that you're using. If the bristles are too soft, then your brush will absorb the paint and you'll need to dip it into your paint container a few times before you get a mark on your project. If they're too stiff, then it'll take forever to make any kind of mark and if they're too hard/soft, then they'll splatter all over your project instead of going on smoothly.
14.
Conclusion:
Using a paint brush is a little bit like using a big marker; the bigger the brush, the more paint you can cover. In case you didn't know, it's best to use a soft brush to go over an area that's been covered with a hard brush because the hard bristles will scratch away any soft marks that have been made before.
Using ladders is also a little bit like using stilts; if you don't know what you're doing, then get your parents or an adult to help you...just like I should have helped my father when I saw him struggling down the street. Next time I'll try harder to impart some of my wisdom on him but until then, please take these tips into consideration.