In this episode, “Training To Perform Under Pressure” instructor, Adam Ritsch provides insight for knowing what angles ladders can be utilized and how to best utilize them as a tool to help you, not hurt you.

VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION:

 What about ladder angles? What angle do we typically want to throw our ground ladders up against the building? So usually one fourth, the distance out from the building gives, gives us our angle. But what’s that? That angle? So 75 is what they recommend, right? 75 degrees. That’s the, the proper climbing angle.

So it gives us our, our best rating. And, um, it’s the easiest to climb because it’s your arm straight out, right? So it’s an easy climb for us and it also helps keep the, the bottom from wanting to kick out the lower our angle. What’s that bottom tend to want to do, kick out, not the end of the world.

Because if I’m in, especially on a day like today in grass, I can jump on that bottom rung and push that thing in and I don’t have to worry about it kicking out or. I can tie it off or I can have someone foot it and it doesn’t, that I negate those issues. Right. But victim rescues or if it’s like a, um, a firefighter emergency egress, a ladder bail or something like that, you guys have probably done it.

Do you want to do that at 75 degrees? I, I don’t, not ideally I will if I have to. But that’s a 75 degrees is a pretty steep angle to try to, to do a ladder bail on or that the less of my angle. Is it more weight or less weight for me to carry a victim down? Less weight. That’s the less my angle is the more that ladder is gonna carry the weight of the victim.

Perfect. I may have had to search for the victim to get to get to them, right. Or drag them to the window. Or do a window lift. I’m not the biggest dude in the world. Y’all have been on some calls. There’s, there’s some big people in this world, right? And it ain’t me. So it might be a little guy versus a not so little guy.

I want that to carry the weight for me if I can. The only thing I have to worry about is that kicking out, but I just gave you three things we can do to keep that from happening, right? So 90% of the time I throw my ladders at about 60 degrees because I’m either throwing it to rescue somebody or to get out quickly.

And both of those, I want to be at a lower angle, right? 75 maybe if I’m throwing it to the roof to get up onto the roof to check an HVAC or something, or, or ventilation. But typically 60 degrees all day long. Right.

* The training views expressed in this video are those of the training instructors, and not Fire Spotlight. The actions in this video are inherently dangerous and could result in death; should the viewers choose to adopt any views expressed in this video, he/she is doing so at his/her own risk. Fire Spotlight encourages viewers to review his/her department’s Standard Operating Procedures when adopting any new training views.