When choosing a bespoke library ladder, whether it’s a hook-on ladder or a rolling ladder, there are a few important things to keep in mind. First, make sure the style, materials and finish suit your room’s décor. Just as important is ensuring the ladder is made to the right measurements, so it’s both safe and comfortable to use.
The length of the ladder affects the angle and how steep it will be for anyone going up and down. Getting the angle right can mean the difference between a comfortable, safe climb and one that’s too steep or awkward, which could be dangerous.
We always follow the ‘Four-in-One’ rule, an industry architects’ standard for safe and comfortable ladder inclines. Put simply (as shown in the diagram below), we use two measurements to work out the overall ladder length: first, the height of the ladder rail from the floor—called ‘X’. Then we take ‘X’ and divide it by four to find how far the ladder should be placed from the wall or bookshelf. With these two figures, we can determine the correct ladder length.
It’s not always possible to follow the ‘Four in One’ rule. Sometimes, other furniture or features of the room may prevent leaving enough space. When this happens, we do our best to work around the issues with our clients, but 4-in-1 remains our goal. For particularly tricky projects, we recommend our 3D visualisation service to help you understand the available space and dimensions. For more information, please contact us.
If you have a bespoke bookcase with ladder project and would like to talk through your requirements, please get in touch, we love a challenge! To view a selection of our standard library ladder hardware components, please visit our “Shop-Ladders” page.
