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A ladder or a scaffold?


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Hi All,
I have to replace the glass units in my 1st floor windows and because it's the old school, the beads are outside. I have to get to the window from the outside.
I think the ladder is to risky to work on, I think I buy this tower scaffolding. I have seen some scaffolding made of aluminium and also a scaffold on wheels.
If I get the guys to do it it will cost me £600 to replace 4 units (or more!) while if I do it myself it will be £300 for the scaffolding + cost of the units + my time of course.

What do you think?

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I bought a cheap (£600) scaffold tower, makes doing anything outside easy.  Takes me an hour to put it up, half that to take it down, fits in the car and I store it under the stairs in a self made box.

 

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2 hours ago, SteamyTea said:

I bought a cheap (£600) scaffold tower, makes doing anything outside easy.  Takes me an hour to put it up, half that to take it down, fits in the car and I store it under the stairs in a self made box.

 

is this something like this? I mean you paid twice as much so it must be a different scaffold

Screenshot_2024-08-20_08-55-30.jpg

Screenshot_2024-08-20_08-55-54.jpg

Screenshot_2024-08-20_08-56-13.jpg

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I had a tower like that for years and very handy for a great number of jobs, however it’s safer to use a ladder as well to climb it.

Edited by joe90
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All scaffold will wobble and risk falling over if you push it to extremes.

 

I bought a load of Kwikstage when building my house, and when I sold it, I kept enough to scaffold one wall of my house.  the scaffold lives on a rack in my garden and the boards are stored dry in a custom made enclosure under a raised decking area outside the back door.  Much more heavy and needs 2 to assemble it compared to a lightweight tower.

 

But even that needs some bracing at height. You can see in this picture scaffold up the gable wall and the square frame sticking out towards you in this photograph exists just to give it some more bracing.

 

 

render_8.thumb.jpg.2adb6ee289c20254e68c1a9adccd8ff0.jpg

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9 hours ago, JohnBishop said:

I also come across this aluminium one but I reckon this one is more likely to topple.

 

 

Screenshot_2024-08-20_09-56-12.jpg

Screenshot_2024-08-20_09-56-29.jpg

Screenshot_2024-08-20_09-56-47.jpg

We have this one it is fine just get a couple of out riggers which I think the tall ones come with.

Even at nearly 5m it is fairly stable and simple to put together.

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Hi All,

 

Very new to the forums so a warm hello to all. I've been thinking of buying scaffolding as well to install solar panels. My main thought, train yourself well in putting them up securely, and using them safely. DIY is fun, at height, it's automatically dangerous.

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4 minutes ago, LowCarbonLiving said:

Hi All,

 

Very new to the forums so a warm hello to all. I've been thinking of buying scaffolding as well to install solar panels. My main thought, train yourself well in putting them up securely, and using them safely. DIY is fun, at height, it's automatically dangerous.

Buy a system scaffold like Kwikstage, Cuplock or I am sure there are a few others which are really a scaffold tower system with infinite possibilities from a single tower to a long run of scaffold.  I would not for DIY buy conventional plain tubes and clamps.

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On 20/08/2024 at 12:17, JohnBishop said:

when it topples

It is easy to fix an anchor into the wall.

I like the ones which are a threaded fixing left in the wall, and a screwed-in eye. You shouldn't need it if the feet are on a solid base, but it stops any wobble and adds confidence.

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1 minute ago, ToughButterCup said:

And you'll sell it for what you paid .... if you can bear to part with it. I can't. Yet.

I sold some, but kept enough to scaffold one wall of the house.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 20/08/2024 at 16:21, SteamyTea said:

I am looking into these aluminium 5m high scaffold towers and I cannot decide between Master DIY
https://www.laddersandscaffoldtowers.co.uk/scaffold-towers/diy-scaffold-towers/home-master-diy-scaffold-tower
and Premium
https://www.laddersandscaffoldtowers.co.uk/scaffold-towers/diy-scaffold-towers/premium-diy-scaffold-towers
There is about £80 difference in price. I reckon the difference is the Premium has this quick assembly with no tools needed.

The area I have available I am not sure these square scaffold towers are practical but definitely more stable.

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4 hours ago, Bonner said:

I bought a second hand MiTower (5m, 2 person) on FB, very solid and stable. Not cheap but should get back what I paid for it.

right, I broke my back in the past and I am a bit hesitant to work from a platform that is not stable. This aluminium has certain advantages e.g. it's lightweight, does not rust but the whole scaffold is only 25kg.
I am going to use it to remove the glass units from windows at about 4m so it's not like wall painting at a height.

I am looking for some scaffold towers on Facebook Marketplace in the area but I don't see anything interesting apart from a bunch of scaffold hires and the guy selling these square steel scaffold towers for £285 but I need to get the boards on top of that and this also needs a ladder to climb it.

Ideally I would want to climb one before I buy it.

Edited by JohnBishop
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Remember the difference between height of platform and working height. 

 

Some access is described as being 3m platform, but gives you a realistic reach of 4.5m. 

 

I see lots of people paying for towers and plant that's way bigger than needed. 

Edited by FuerteStu
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9 minutes ago, FuerteStu said:

Remember the difference between height of platform and working height. 

 

Some access is described as being 3m platform, but gives you a realistic reach of 4.5m. 

 

I see lots of people paying for towers and plant that's way bigger than needed. 

Master DIY and Premium 5m ones have a platform at 3m, working height is 4.7-5m and this is within the height I need.

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