How to Put a Ladder on a Sloped Roof [Guideline & Tools]

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How to Put a Ladder on a Sloped Roof [Guideline & Tools] 1Maybe you noticed that the antenna sitting on your rooftop needs some adjustment or shifting. Or perhaps the roof is now in need of some reworking. It could be some other situation as well. But one thing that’s common to see is the need to place a ladder on it.

Simply you should put a roof ladder or multipurpose ladder to do your job. But things can become drastically difficult if you need to place your home use attic ladder or basic extension ladder on a sloppy roof.

And so, it’s very important to know how to put a ladder on a sloped roof so that it does not cause a mishap and everything works out smoothly by the end. Today we are planning to do that for you.

Here’s the Guideline on How to Use a Ladder on a Sloped Roof Safely

From how do you secure a ladder on a sloped roof to ensuring the placement was on the right spot, everything is critical to keep things safe.

The Roof Needs to Be Capable of Bearing Load

First of all, you need to ensure the load is safe to be supported by roof. Is your roof enough strong with solid materials to carry the weight of ladder and you? One thing you can do here is checking the framework that is right beneath your roof. Make sure it is built solid to support any extra load that might come across. Also, keep in mind that a parallelly placed ladder will be able to distribute its own weight evenly on the roof framework.

Check the Duty Rating

The next thing you need to do is checking duty rating sticker available on your ladder. This is to know whether the load weight is safe to go for. Usually, you’ll need to go with at least the type II ladder. It should also include spring-loaded rung locks and real feet. Never risk it all by trusting on a flimsy footed ladder that includes cheap hook rung holders. These are surely very light but also extremely prone to cause a disaster.

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Slippery Roofs

There are certain roofs that are made from slate tile. And so, these are pretty slippery. As a result, you will not be able to get a good stable footing on it with a ladder. If you need to put your ladder on such a sloped roof, then be very careful on the footing.

Also, you should ask for help from a friend or family member who can hold the ladder while you’re on top of it. This will keep things much safer than trying it alone.

Cleaning the Surrounding

Another thing that you should do prior to position a ladder on a sloped roof is making it debris free. Clean the surrounding very well and put every obstacle out of that spot. You also need to ensure it is dry enough.

Inspect Your Ladder

How to Put a Ladder on a Sloped RoofGive your ladder a good check. You need to make sure it comes with a suitable height that can be used for your chore. Make sure that it’s in a good condition. There should not be any broken feet or loose rungs. If it was an old one that comes with such damaged parts then maybe you can use it for other straight surfaces & less height requiring tasks but not in a sloppy roof situation. That’s obviously inviting a big accident to yourself.

In case you are using an extension ladder then make sure the locks are engaging correctly. You should double-check in case of using an old ladder. Since sometimes it seems to engage in the lock but not properly. Leading it to unlock after a while. Make sure the lock engagement is secure before getting on it.

Be Careful of Electrical Wire

Sometimes overhead power lines end up making huge accidents if not taken care of properly earlier to such tasks. So, make sure you check gradually your surrounding and get rid of any electrical wire that can cause trouble.

Side Slop & Back Slant Consideration

You should not place the ladder on a surface that side slope seems to be bigger than 16 degrees. Also, make sure the back slant is no more than 6-degree. In case the manufacturer states this to be safe, then you can proceed.

 You may read: How to Use Ladder Jacks by Minding Safety Concerns 

Tools to Place Ladder Safely on Sloped Roof

There are a few tools that can greatly help you to place your ladder on roof that is sloped. Below we will be talking about the most useful ones.

Ladder Leveler

ladder levelarHow to Put a Ladder on a Sloped Roof [Guideline & Tools] 2A leveler can help in case of placing a ladder on pitched roof or asphalt roof. Since these types of roofs can easily get damaged by a ladder’s weight if used a bit carelessly. You can place some ladder pads as well to reduce such a chance. Also, you should sidestep placing the ladder’s metal sides down on surface of your roof. Especially if you are not taking measurements to save the shingles.

When placing the ladder, you need to utilize 4:1 rue of angle. For every 4 meters up, it needs to maintain 1-meter out. So that the legs of your ladder are creating a clean 75-degree angle along with first story roof. Meanwhile, you also need to ensure that the rungs of ladder are constantly horizontal. And that’s where the leveler can help you to keep the balance right.

Pivot Ladder Tool

How to Put a Ladder on a Sloped Roof [Guideline & Tools] 3Also, you can use a pivot ladder tool. This is perfect for using along with an extension ladder. You can apply it for usage in not only slopes or rooftops but even staircase works as well. The main concept is elevating one of the ladder legs and bring it to same level as other one. And this creates a flat surface for you to get on it. While the ladder can evenly distribute its weight on a surface that is now even not slopped any more thanks to pivot tool.

Using it is relatively simple. Just put the tool right below feet of ladder that is on lower surface. And bring the tool up to a comfortable elevation. And that should do the trick.

Ladder Stabilizer

use a ladder stabilizerTo make things extra safe, you can also use a ladder stabilizer along with the pivot tool. Usually, the stabilizer will fit right inside gutter of your roof. And this way it creates a nice base for supporting your ladder on the roof.

This is also a great concept for those who don’t want to cause any damage to their gutter. There should be a broom handle or pole that helps in positioning the ladder. So that you can mount it onto gutter before using. One of the finest options is Roofers 220539 RT-LM Mount Stabilizer that comes with a gutter docking station to easily hold the ladder in place.

Roof Ladder Hook

Stabilizing the base will not be enough for you to work securely on a ladder over a sloped rooftop. And so, you can use a ladder hook that can secure the top part of ladder. Usually, these come in pairs to fit over both rungs of a ladder. This way you can easily hook over the ladder to roof edge. There should also be provided wing nuts to tightly hold the ladder in its place. These are really helpful for safeguarding an extension or even single ladders on a sloped roof.

Using a Roof Boot

Don’t confuse it with working boots, we are not talking about any footwear here. It’s actually a metal made tool that plays the role of stopper for your ladder’s base. You need to fix it with your roof earlier to place the ladder. Simply drilling it to the roof should be enough.

Start by putting the ladder’s ridge hook on roof’s apex area. Now you want to decide on which point the roof boot should get set. Then use a hammer and long nails to attach your ladder’s bottom part with the roof boot.

Conclusion

And that’s how to put a ladder on a sloped roof. By following the guidelines and using these tools, you should come out of this risky situation safe and sound hopefully. Tackling tasks on such a surface is surely dangerous, so don’t consider all of these as extra hassles. This all steps are critical to make your work safe and keep you away from any drastic consequences.

Also, if you’ve never done such things before then it is best to ask for help. These chores are not for someone who feels their knee-shaking when getting up on a six-foot-long ladder. If the thought makes you quite uncomfortable, don’t take a chance. And if you must, be very cautious and well prepared.

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