Safety alert
We judge 13 ladders ‘Not acceptable’
RAPID DESCENT Telescoping models from Telesteps include lowering instructions on the ladder. But users might not follow those instructions,
subjecting themselves to substantial risk.
Some tall multiuse and telescoping extension ladders can escalate your risk of injury as they extend your reach aloft.
In our single-person use tests, several problems prompted us to judge seven 22- to 26-foot multiuse models from Cosco, Little
Giant, and Werner Not Acceptable. In our tests, we found it extremely difficult for one person to safely lift, maneuver, and
fully extend those ladders. All of those multiuse models also posed a crushing hazard to hands and fingers between the ladders’
upper and lower sections as we attempted to extend them and then collapsed them for storage.
We believe that you’re better off choosing a conventional, Type IA extension ladder for taller around-the-house projects that
are 17 feet high or higher above the ground.
We also judged six 12 1⁄2-foot telescoping extension ladders Not Acceptable. Five Telesteps models include instructions for
slowing their descent when you collapse them. But it’s all too easy to allow all sections to collapse quickly, posing a crushing
risk to hands and fingers. Our tests of the Xtend & Climb 770 show that the ladder feet could easily slide out from under
you on smooth surfaces. A secondary concern: We found it difficult to tell whether sections were locked.
Discontinued but may still be available
Within types, in alphabetical order.
Discontinued but may still be available
