The board on a ladder trick — is it safe?
I needed to hang a giant metal star on the wall above the stairs down to our basement. But there was no easy way to reach the spot on the wall where I had to screw in the hanger.
Enter the board on a ladder trick, found in Popular Mechanics “Complete Home How-To” book.
A step ladder stands on the stairs, leaning against the far wall. A board extends from the top stair across to a rung on that ladder. Then the ladder is tied to the stairs, the board is clamped to the ladder and the board becomes a secure platform.
At least that’s how it’s supposed to work. But failure could mean a dangerous fall. Is this technique safe? In the name of science, I decided to give it a try.
Some viewers previously gave me grief about not strictly following the scientific method in my vinegar-versus-rust-for-19-months video, so we’re doing this by the book this time and taking this experiment step-by-step.
See the results in the video above. (Spoiler alert: I survived.)
