This New Forest family home features an impressive double-height landing space. A small hatch positioned 2.65m above the floor-level provides access to the loft space, which offers useful storage and contains the boiler. The homeowners wanted easy access to the loft. An easy-to-use wall access loft ladder from Premier Loft Ladders provided the perfect solution.
Right – ‘Supreme Vertical’ loft ladder in double-height landing.
‘Supreme Vertical’ loft ladder in double-height landing.
The challenge…
Jeremy contacted Premier Loft Ladders looking for a wall access loft ladder. He already had an aperture in the wall of his double-height landing, as seen in the photos below. It measured 1120mm high by 625mm wide, although it could be altered if necessary. Furthermore, the aperture was located 2.65m from the floor level.
Wall aperture before installation of vertical loft ladder
Landing where wall access loft ladder will be located
The loft space had been boarded for use as storage. It was also home to the boiler. As such, an easy-to-use wall access loft ladder was needed. Originally, Jeremy was looking for an electrically operated ladder. However, it is very challenging to achieve electric operation for a wall access loft ladder due to the range of motion involved. The only motorised solutions available are custom-made, very expensive and quite bulky.
Other important requirements were wide treads (at least 300mm wide) and two handrails. These features were necessary to ensure Jeremy and his wife could access the loft safely.
Supreme Vertical being operated. View from above.
The Solution…
Premier Loft Ladder’s Technical Sales Manager, Henry Patterson, called Jeremy to discuss the project and the options available. Although unable to offer an electrically operated wall access loft ladder, Henry suggested the Supreme Vertical concertina ladder. Firstly, despite it being manually operated, it is very easy to operate due to counter-balance springs and gas-strut mechanism. Furthermore, the Supreme Vertical is offered with a made-to-measure insulated hatch, which avoids having to have a separate (independently operated) door. In addition, the heavy-duty construction makes it ideal for regular use and long-term durability.
A specific request from Jeremy was for 300mm wide treads. However, the existing aperture width of 620mm only allowed for a tread width of 200mm. As such, the opening would need to be increased to at least 705mm. Fortunately that was not a problem, and Jeremy arranged for his carpenter to increase the aperture to 720mm.
Another important requirement was for two handrails. The Supreme Vertical comes with one as standard (subject to a minimum aperture height of 1000mm), which can be fitted to either the left or right of the ladder. A second telescopic handrail can be fitted on the opposite side very easily. Therefore, it was no problem to accommodate this requirement.
The results…
The Supreme Vertical was manufactured to Jeremy’s precise dimensions and delivered in 4 weeks. Not long after, it was fitted by a carpenter and Jeremy and his wife were delighted with their new loft ladder.
“It’s every bit as good as we’d hoped for.”
Some useful tips for anyone considering a wall access loft ladder…
Jeremy also provided some useful feedback for others to consider. The first is that the initial opening of the hatch requires slightly more effort. Similarly, when closing the hatch, it may try to slam shut at the very end. The engineers at the factory do their best to balance the springs as best they can, but it is difficult to fully overcome due to the ladder passing through the centre of gravity. You also need a tight seal on the hatch to prevent cold draughts and heat loss.
The other useful piece of feedback was for other customers to order as tall a hatch as possible for the most comfortable entry and exit through the aperture. This will have the added benefit of allowing larger items to be passed through the hatch.
Case study photo gallery
(click on an image to see it full-size)
Other easy-to-use wall access loft ladders
In addition to the Supreme Vertical, Premier loft ladders offer two other retractable loft ladders for vertical wall access. Therefore, please explore the rest of our product range or contact us to discuss your project.
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