How to Repair an Old Wooden Attic Ladder in 2 Minutes!
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- Опубліковано 23 січ 2023
- Old wooden attic ladders often get rickety over time. Here we show you one of the main reasons why and the best way to fix it. Every one of Insulwise's trucks carries a basic nut, bolt, and washer kit costing about $10 that allows us to quickly strengthen and reinforce these old ladders. The main thing is that the bolts going through them never had washers installed on them before the nuts were added. On this ladder we replaced several bolts and nuts that had fallen out, and then removed every nut and added a washer to the bolt before replacing it. The result was a MUCH sturdier attic ladder that will be far safer and steadier to use for years!
- Фільми й анімація
Im gonna check my ladder. TY for video. Something I have over looked untill running across your video.
Thanks! The sheet metal bolt, nut, and washer kit at the big box stores is about $10 I think, and you can retrofit nearly all of the mechanical connections on these ladders with one. From start to finish you'll have a near neck breaking experience transition to a sturdy climb. Thanks for the comments!
Andy
You. Are. A. Legend.
Thank you Michael, we always try here.
Andy
Many thank! Your ladder looks like it came from of same factory as mine, so I faced the same problems and came up with a similar fix. I also strengthened the steps by drilling and placing screws on each side to strengthen that long rod. One of the long black hinges with springs near the top had gotten misaligned and was jamming when I retracted the ladder. I used a rubber bungee cord to make it behave. I've yet to come up with a fix for the soft, cheap wood these ladders are made of. I'll just have to be gentle.
Hey nice work! If you're in the Pittsburgh area and looking for a job you sound like our kind of person! ; ). The wood that they use is certainly on the soft side. But we've found that adding washers and then methodically tightening all of the screws and their nuts can in many cases really turn these things around. When we change out the old ones with new ones we now use only the aluminum ladders, they're MUCH sturdier. Good luck with your ladder!
Andy
I have seen replacement springs available online from several dealers.
Great video. Learned a lot. Thank you!
Thank you, I hope that it helped!
Andy
My house was built in 1953, and the stairs slide. The rope broke many years ago. I'd love to see how to fix that type! Have a blessed day.
Thank you, we still see those stairs from time to time. We typically recommend to the homeowner that we remove them and install a new pull down aluminum ladder. They're almost impossible to effectively air seal and insulate is the primary reason. Otherwise they're actually kind of cool. I've found them where the steel hardware was actually made in Pittsburgh, lol. They're typically very sturdy.
On the top sides of my ladder the wood where the bolt goes through rotted away so the two top parts are boltless. Anyway tor repair?
I would say that if either the frame of the ladder itself, or the floor joists of the attic have rotted away, that you are structurally skating on thin ice. I would look into replacing the ladder at that point. However, I would also look to see why the ladder rotted. That indicates that you have another issue there.
Have a 1969 ladder and this is a great video. Was looking to replace entire thing but now will get my handyman out. What about the squeaking. How do I know if the top brackets that let it down are still good? Someone did replace a step.
Thanks! The squeaking may be tough, often it's the springs themselves that make the sound. If you think it's the springs or brackets I'd try a shot of WD-40 and see how that works. If that knocks it down than maybe some actual grease could be in order for those areas. The brackets should be good so long as they're not bent. Once they start to bend I've had some luck bending them back so that they're straight, but at that point you may be looking more toward an actual replacement.
Andy
On the bottom stair what is that bracket called. The bracket on the inside where you putting on the washer. I'm missing one of those on my stairs
Hi Elcyon, I took a quick online to see whether I could find those brackets sold separately but I could not. The solution that I have here works best when the existing ladder and hardware are largely still intact. It's always easy to replace the screws, add washers, and then tighten everything down. That'll make a wobbly old ladder feel brand new again. But if you're missing the actual bracket pieces and the ladder still feels unsteady, you may want to consider getting a replacement ladder.
Andy
Stumbled across this video I’m hoping you could inform me of the metal piece that the spring clips this ladder looks very much like the one I have. The spring broke the metal piece that was twisted around the bolt/bracket.
@@johnjarvis5502
Hi John, thanks for checking out my video. I don't know specifically which part you are referring to, but if you do a google search for attic ladder parts (I just did), a bunch of the most commonly broken parts show up that you can re-order. I think you'll find what you're looking for if you do this, good luck!
Andy
Andy, do you happen to know who manufactured the ladder in this video?
Hi there, it's either Werner or Louisville. Those for the most part are 99% of the attic ladders that we see installed here. I don't recall which one.
Andy
Hi, how to know who manufactured it
There's usually a little metal plate or tag that has the manufacturer name on it. But they're almost always Werner or Louisville. And the two designs are very similiar.
Andy
Have you ever heard of a wrench? Not taking advice from someone who uses vice grips like this.
Kerplunk, yes I have. Have you ever heard of being on a jobsite or other situation and not having the exact tool that you'd prefer? That was this situation so I improvised. The end result was the same and that's what is import, sorry the style points of repairing an attic ladder weren't there for you.
@@insulwiseenergycomfortsolu3293
Apology accepted