Telescopic loft ladders mean easy loft access whatever the space in Warwickshire

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

There is a loft ladder for nearly every home and a telescopic ladder is perfect if space is tight. The clever telescopic design means that it will fit even where the hatch size is small or where there is minimal space for stowing the ladder in the loft itself.

Some customers have concerns that a telescopic ladder may not be as sturdy as the alternatives. Stu’s Loft Ladders only buys from trusted trade suppliers and our loft ladders are of the highest quality. With an automatic locking system, extra-wide treads and rubber feet, the ladders are safe and easy-to-use. To position the ladder, you simply use the pole provided to open the hatch door and pull on the strap to glide it into place.

Telescopic ladders are often the perfect option for customers in period properties where the angles in the loft do not allow for a folding ladder. In some of the older cottages in Warwickshire and Worcestershire where we work, a telescopic ladder is the only option as there is not sufficient space for a larger loft opening in the chosen location.

The photo below shows a telescopic ladder that we fitted this January for a customer in Welford on Avon, just outside of Stratford in Warwickshire.

The customer includes more photos in their review on our Facebook page.

To find out more, email us at stuart@stusloftladders.co.uk

House figures boost confidence in loft improvements in the West Midlands

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

It’s a great time to invest in your home through loft boarding or fixed ladder fitting

Our homes are our castles, or so the saying goes, and during the past two years our homes have felt like fortresses at times.  Over 2021, the housing market reflected the renewed status of our homes by defying predictions and remaining buoyant.

According to figures from the Office for National Statistics, the average house price in the UK increased by 10% in the 12 months leading up to November 2021.

With properties in high demand, people are feeling confident about making improvements that they can enjoy and which will also add value to their homes.

Our own experience backs up this picture of confidence amongst customers investing in their home. Since lockdowns ended, we are as busy, if not busier, than in pre-pandemic times.

Creating storage in the loft is a relatively low-cost option. For an average cost of £35 per square metre, you can organise your home by decluttering the areas you use most or clearing space to create new zones for work or leisure. Add in a fixed ladder, and the storage becomes conveniently and safely accessed.

Whilst we are yet to see what the trend for property prices will be during 2022, investing in the home you love still looks like a sensible option. We might not face more lockdowns, but the way we use our homes has changed with many people looking a balance between home and office working. The widespread use of virtual platforms now means that we can participate in many activities without leaving our own living room.

To find out more take a look at our services page.

Top tips for protecting pipes in the loft for our customers in Warwickshire and Worcestershire

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

As the weather turns colder, you may be concerned about pipes freezing in your loft.

As people who spend a lot of time in lofts, boarding them and fitting ladders, we have picked up a few tips over the years for protecting your home from burst pipes up there.

  • Get up to the loft and check the pipes. Look for any drips at the joins to spot a burst or leak before the water does any damage.
  • Make sure that any pipes in the loft are lagged. Circular pipe lagging is easy to fit – the foam sleeves can be bought at the right diameter and simply slipped over pipes. Many even feature an adhesive strip so that they self-seal once in position. Your local DIY store or plumbing merchant will be able to advise.
  • You will also need to insulate the top and sides of any water tanks. However, think twice about insulating the bottom of a tank, as you don’t want to prevent the warming action of hot air from the heated rooms below.
  • Finally, when the temperature really drops outside, opening your loft hatch can help heat to circulate around any pipes located above.

Stu’s Loft Ladders are experienced in fitting loft ladders and boarding lofts. We have an excellent local reputation and work in a radius of approximately 20 miles from our base near Studley in Warwickshire. Email us now at stuart@stusloftladders.co.uk or take a look at our Facebook page for examples of work and customer recommendations.

Why put up with a loft opening in the wrong place? We move loft hatches for homeowners in Worcestershire and Warwickshire

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

There are enough annoying things to put up with in life, so why add one more to the list? If going up to the loft is a hassle due to the loft opening being in an inconvenient place, it is a problem that can be easily sorted by moving the loft hatch all together.

What can seem like a big job as a DIY project is actually something that Stu’s Loft Ladders undertakes regularly for customers when installing a loft ladder or boarding a loft.

Moving a loft hatch can be a relatively simple job and, when our team does it, there is no mess. In fact, before leaving we will paint around a loft opening, so that in many cases, you cannot tell that it was not there all along.

Maybe the options for relocating your loft hatch are limited and it needs to stay where it is. We can extend the opening to make it easier to use, or change its orientation so that the ladders descends in a more convenient spot.

Every home is different and we are more than happy to visit to advise on relocating a loft hatch or enlarging it. Give us a call on 07712 327889 or email stuart@stusloftladders.co.uk

Happy New Year to all our loft boarding and loft ladder customers in Warwickshire and Worcestershire

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

What a year! From lockdown straight after last Christmas into the new normal, we have carried on working in line with government guidance.

Despite the ongoing pandemic, we have boarded hundreds of lofts and fitted many loft ladders during 2021.

Throughout it all, it has been our customers who have kept us going. From making us cups of tea whilst we work, to leaving us rave reviews on Facebook and this website, our customers throughout Warwickshire and Worcestershire always astonish us with their friendliness.

So, whatever 2022 holds for you, we wish you a happy and prosperous new year!

To book a no-obligation consultation with our experienced team, contact us now.

For Warwickshire homeowners we talk protecting your boarded loft from dust

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

Once your loft is boarded, you may want to maintain it as a clean environment so that your belongings remain in top condition.

If this is the case, there are several options:

  • The most effective method is to install a breathable lining. This will stop the grit and dust that can fall from roof spaces and prevent it from spoiling items in storage. The important word is “breathable.” Lofts are unheated and there is generally quite a lot of moisture that needs to escape to prevent mould and mildew build-up.
  • The next level up would be to line the roof completely with plywood. This gives a neat, attractive finish, but for most is not a viable option due to the amount expense involved.
  • Ensure everything is under cover. It won’t stop the dust entering your loft space, but it will ensure that it doesn’t damage your belongings. Store smaller items in boxes with lids and cover larger items with dust sheets.
  • Take your vacuum cleaner up there! This is probably the least practical option – although we do have customers who hoover their lofts from time to time to keep on top of dust. It depends how important maintaining a clear loft space is to you. Our main piece of advice, other than being extremely careful in carrying up a bulky vacuum cleaner, is to wear a mask. As people who regularly work in loft spaces, we can testify to the importance of mask wearing when spending a longer than usual time in an area containing fibrous insulation.

If you would like some advice on improving your loft, then get in touch with our team.

Customers in Evesham choose loft boarding to free up space for Christmas guests

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

At this time of year, with a few improvements, our lofts can become an extremely useful area of our homes.

Even during this week, in the final run-up to Christmas Eve on Friday, the team at Stu’s Loft Ladders is busy helping customers to make improvements to their home that will change the way they use it.

Loft boarding and a fixed ladder can change the way you use your home

Some of our pre-Christmas customers are expecting guests for the festivities. Having their loft boarded and a fixed ladder fitted provides a last-minute solution to locating belongings that are not needed every day, to stream-line their home. 

For some, needing to clear space in spare rooms and offices to accommodate guest beds, means that easy storage in the loft is a way to quickly make room by moving items for the duration of their guests’ stay. By making it a doddle to get up and down to the loft, the usual order of things can be swiftly restored when guests leave.

Whilst we are not taking bookings now before Christmas (even our hardworking team needs a break), we are booking for January.

So, if having guests to stay once again has made you reassess how you use your home for storage, then get in contact and we will be happy to provide a no-obligation consultation about loft boarding, fitting a fixed ladder or even moving your loft access completely.

Storage hacks for Christmas lights and decorations for our customers in Warwick and Worcester

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

If, like us, you have just brought down your Christmas decorations from the loft, then you may have experienced the frustration of trying to unravel tangled Christmas lights.

Every year we pledge to put away the decorations as we want to find them but, come January, we are just so keen to get them back up to the loft that they are shoved into boxes in haste. This time, however, we are determined to find some easy hacks for keeping the decorations in tip top condition when it’s time to put them away.

Wind strings of lights around kitchen roll tubes

One easy idea for storing strings of lights is to put them inside the inner tubes of kitchen or toilet rolls. If you really want to make sure that they don’t tangle, then you could wind them around the outside. We’ve also seen lights wound around sheets of stiff cardboard taken from unwanted boxes, so that they can then slot into storage tubs ready to be put away.

For tree ornaments, egg boxes make handy protective packaging that will keep your baubles safe until the next year.

A Christmas tree bag is a good investment

Christmas tree bags are also a good investment for artificial trees and are readily available online – an easier option than wrestling the tree back into its original box. A sturdy bag will also help to keep any dust or grit from falling on your tree.

With some creative thinking and repurposing, there are lots of packing items we can save to store our Christmas lights and decorations safely in the loft.

If you would like to make accessing your loft easier, then contact us to arrange a no-obligation quote for a fixed loft ladder or loft boarding. We cover a 20-mile radius from our base near Studley in Warwickshire.

What areas do we cover in the Midlands for loft ladders and loft boarding?

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

We have spent the past decade fitting loft ladders and boarding lofts throughout Warwickshire and Worcestershire.

We work in approximately a 20-mile radius from our base in at Sambourne, near Studley in Warwickshire. This means that we work as far north as the southern parts of Birmingham and as far south as the Cotswolds.

Some of the towns/cities that we cover are:

  • Kidderminster
  • Bromsgrove
  • Worcester
  • Stratford-upon-Avon
  • Warwick
  • Leamington Spa
  • Droitwich Spa
  • Evesham
  • Broadway
  • Solihull
  • Alcester
  • Studley
  • Redditch

We are always happy to advise on whether we cover your area, so contact us to find out more at stuart@stusloftladders.co.uk

Old loft ladder in Stratford and Warwick? Maybe it is time to upgrade your ladder

Posted by Stu's Loft Ladders editorial team on

If you had a loft ladder fitted a long time ago or moved into a property with an existing ladder that has seen better days, you might be thinking of replacing it.

We would expect all the ladders that we fit to remain in excellent condition for many years. In fact, for most people, having a loft ladder fitted is a job they would not need to repeat in the same property. This is great news for our customers, but means that we only get repeat business when they move house!

However, if your ladder is no longer sliding easily into place or back into the loft, then you could be making the job of getting up there much more of a hassle then it needs to be. 

Modern ladders fold easily and smoothly into place – no trapped fingers. Many are attached to the loft hatch door, which makes getting them down that bit easier.

If your loft ladder does not feel stable or no longer feels securely attached, then don’t wait for it to get worse. Call us in to replace it.

We have recently been messaged by a homeowner, who wanted to repair his ladder – not one of ours, of course. We were able to advise on how to source a replacement part. So, it is always worth contacting us for advice.

Call us on 07712 327889 or email stuart@stusloftladders.co.uk