Ladders for Tree Work and Arborist Crews

Ladders for Tree Work and Arborist Crews

Every tree job starts with the same question: how does the climber get to the first workable limb. On a lot of DFW properties that answer is a ladder, and the ladder is where the day's risk actually concentrates because the ground under a tree is never flat and the thing at the top is round.

A Ladder Is Access, Not a Climbing Structure

Ladders get a climber to the first limb or to a rigging point, and that is where their job ends. Above that height, spikes, rope and harness take over, or a lift does.

For most live oaks, pecans and elms in North Texas, a 24 foot extension ladder reaches the lower scaffold limbs and a 28 foot covers taller canopies and the rare roof-adjacent tree. Our Werner 7120-2 Type IAA fiberglass extension ladder at $424 is the 28 foot ladder crews standardize on because it stays stiff when fully extended.

Fiberglass also keeps a crew out of trouble near service drops, which are common on the same residential lots where trees grow.

Footing on Roots, Mulch and Slopes

Tree work puts ladder feet on the worst possible surface: root flare, landscape mulch, uneven turf and the occasional paver edge. A foot that sinks on one side turns the proper angle into a steeper, less stable one without anybody noticing.

Set both feet on a plywood pad, or on bare compacted ground away from the mulch ring. A leveler with a lock on each leg handles the slope, and never pack a low side with a brick or a chunk of firewood.

Check the base again after the first ten minutes. Ground that holds when a ladder is set can creep once a climber's weight is on it.

Kick-Out Is the Real Risk

The top of a ladder set against a trunk or a limb has two point contacts on a round surface, and a round surface does not resist a sideways load. The ladder kicks out when the climber shifts weight or a limb moves, and that is the fall these jobs produce.

Tie the top off to the trunk with a rope or a strap around both rails, at a height that keeps the ladder from sliding sideways. Do not rely on a standoff on a tree; standoffs are built for flat walls and gutters.

Keep the ladder below the first major crotch where possible and climb from there, rather than extending it into a fork where the rails cannot sit flat.

Saws, Rigs and One-Handed Climbing

A chainsaw or a rigging bag goes up on a rope, not in a hand. Ladder climbing needs three points of contact, and a saw in one hand removes one of them at the exact moment a climber is leaning around a limb.

Stage the saw on a sling at the top of the ladder only after the climber is tied in, and keep the ground crew clear of the drop zone before anything is started.

Orchard, Landscape and Low Work

Nursery and landscape crews spend more time at six to ten feet than at thirty, and there a step stool or a specialty ladder beats dragging an extension around all day. Our Werner Type IA fiberglass step stool at $97 handles hedge tops, low limbs and loading docks.

Keep one 24 foot extension on the truck for the properties with mature trees, and stop guessing the length from the street.

The First Ten Feet

Tree work is a climbing trade, but almost every climb begins on a ladder. A fiberglass extension in the right length, a pad for the roots and a rope for the top cover the part of the job a ladder is actually for.

Tell us the tree height and the ground around it and we will size the ladder and the footing gear.

Everything ships from 5030 Dexham Rd. Ste. 103 in Rowlett, TX, and local crews can pick up the same day. Call 972-331-1090 and we will tell you what is on the floor right now.