Ladder Storage...Slightly Off Topic...

[Derek Arita]

Like with a lot of us, I've got a garage shop that doubles as an actual garage. I also have an extension ladder, an 8' ladder and a 6' ladder and all of them have to be stored in this garage. As wall and floor space are at a premium, I've decided that the ceiling is the only relatively unused space left. I have a typical roll up garage door that may be a limiting factor. Have any of you found good, inexpensive solutions to this issue?

[Mike Henderson]

I used bicycle hooks to hang an extension ladder on the ceiling of my garage. I put the hooks up, two on each end, all four facing the same way, so that they are positioned where two ladder rungs are. To put the extension ladder up, I had to stand on a ladder, lift the extension ladder, align it with the hooks, then slide it forward so the rungs are captured by the hooks. I could put the ladder above the space where the garage door opened to - there was enough space there to do it but getting it down with the center door opener beam was difficult. It's easier to put the ladder in the space behind where the garage door opens.

I finally got rid of my extension ladder so, sorry, no pictures.

Mike

[John Cooper2]

I hang my 3 ladders off the back of the garage (outside). Used shelf brackets, have had no problems.

+1 on the bike hooks in the ceiling if you want to keep them inside.

[Joseph Tarantino]

3/4" black pipe nipples ~2 ' long secured to framing studs with 3/4" flanges. the flanges are screwed to the framing studs as high up on the wall as you want (i placed mine just below the ceiling joists to maximize usable wall space below the ladders) and the ladder rests atop the 2" nipples, occupying only 6-9" of vertical wall space.

[Rick Potter]

I do kinda like John 2. When I built my shop, I ran a 2x8 all the way across the back side (60'), where it doesn't show. On that, I put ladder hooks, shovel and rake hooks, step stool, work platform etc. Sure solved a lot of storage problems. A larger than normal overhang protects it just fine for where I live.

Rick Potter

[lowell holmes]

I did the same thing. The ladder is above the overhead door when it is open.

[Jim Rimmer]

My shop is in the third stall of a 3 car garage. My wife parks in the stall on the opposite end from my shop. (Forgot to mention that it is a detached, uninsulated garage so the studs are exposed). On the wall where she parks is where I hag garden tools. I put my ladders between studs with a bungee cord stretched between tow nails to keeps them from falling.

[scott vroom]

+1 bike hooks

[David Hostetler]

That would all depend on the space you have available and where, but I agree on the bicycle hook from the ceiling thing. I have a different setup. My garage has 2 overhead doors with a 12" space between tracks. I have a 6' and a 10' A frame ladder. No extension ladders mostly because I don't need one...

The ladders are hung from bicycle hooks that are hung just off center, and aimed away from each other . Not sure how else to describe it. Been working fine.

Another option is 2 pairs of bike hooks per ladder, arranged over the garage door so the ladder is up there more or less flat That won't work in my arrangement as I have lighting in the way...

[John Coloccia]

Or you can just leave them outside somewhere, like we used to do. It never seemed to hurt anything....not for 20 years, anyway. Lots of contractors have ladders on their trucks year round and it doesn't seem to break anything there either. Spray down the moving parts with lube every now and then, but outside seems like a great place to store basic ladders. Not sure I'd store one of the fancy shmancy "little giant" ladders like I have oustside, because of all the fiddly moving parts, but a basic extension ladder should be fine.

[Charles Lent]

In my previous garage the ceiling was 11' up and I wanted to hang my ladders from it, but couldn't easily reach them when I needed them. I ended up putting stationary hooks for the top end of the ladder and used some clothes line rope and pulleys to secure the bottom end of the ladder. With the pulleys at key locations and cleats located between the garage doors I was able to store all of my ladders fully up against the ceiling and yet get them down easily when I needed them. It was very easy to hook the top end of the ladder, attach the rope to the bottom end and then pull on the rope until the ladder was in place against the ceiling, then tie it to a cleat on the wall near the door. I would have done the same at this house, but the garage ceiling is only 9' high with too little clearance above the roll up doors. My ladders are hanging outside on the back wall now.

If your ladders will be outside you should use a heavy chain and padlock to secure them. Otherwise, you may be making it very easy for a burglar to gain access to your house through a second story window. My ladders are chained and locked to a welded eye bolt that goes through a 2 X 6 in the wall, with a fender washer and a lock nut on the inside. They may be able to turn it, but they won't be able to unscrew it from the outside.

Charley

[Lee Schierer]

In my previous garage the ceiling was 11' up and I wanted to hang my ladders from it, but couldn't easily reach them when I needed them. I ended up putting stationary hooks for the top end of the ladder and used some clothes line rope and pulleys to secure the bottom end of the ladder. With the pulleys at key locations and cleats located between the garage doors I was able to store all of my ladders fully up against the ceiling and yet get them down easily when I needed them. It was very easy to hook the top end of the ladder, attach the rope to the bottom end and then pull on the rope until the ladder was in place against the ceiling, then tie it to a cleat on the wall near the door. I would have done the same at this house, but the garage ceiling is only 9' high with too little clearance above the roll up doors. My ladders are hanging outside on the back wall now.

If your ladders will be outside you should use a heavy chain and padlock to secure them. Otherwise, you may be making it very easy for a burglar to gain access to your house through a second story window. My ladders are chained and locked to a welded eye bolt that goes through a 2 X 6 in the wall, with a fender washer and a lock nut on the inside. They may be able to turn it, but they won't be able to unscrew it from the outside.

Charley

I did the same thing, bicycle hooks for one end and a hook with rope and pullies for the other end. The only problem with putting them over the door is that you may have to close the door to get them down and then open it again to get out of the garage, repeating the procedure in reverse order to hang them up again.

[Matt Day]

I setup a little pulley system for my extension ladder in the garage (not my shop, but still cramped for space!). I basically have a 2x4 that spans between rafters that has a hook on it that I set one end of the ladder on, while the other end is on the floor. I attach a rope to the end on the floor which has a pulley attached to the ceiling, and pull this end of the ladder up to the ceiling as well. To support this end of the ladder, I have a 2x4 that pivots on one end that I slide over to carry the weight. It's a simple system that works for an extension ladder that's too heavy for one person to put up in a high ceiling.

[Ted Calver]

My ladders are in the crawl space under the house. I put a couple of 3" PVC pipes down on top of the plastic to act as rails and slide the ladders in and out on them. It's worked very well for me.

[Julie Moriarty]

I have 32' and 20' aluminum extension ladders, a 12', 6' and (2) 4' wooden "A" ladders, and an 8' and 6' fiberglass ladders. My garage ceiling is 10'. I use these "L" brackets designed for ladders, mounted to the wall, and can put the ladders two deep on them. The idea of putting them on the ceiling was dropped when I realized I would have to pull out at least one of the cars, lower the garage door, then drop the ladder down off the ceiling, then raise the garage door again to get the ladder out.