stair climbers for boilers

Unknown

the Powermate . Very similar to the Lectrotruck - the load moves up or down on the front part while the wheels stay on the stairs . Both brands are very heavy . The Powermate does not have convenient handholds for moving the handtruck once you're off the stairs . The Lectrotruck does .

We had an Escalera for a few months . It has nobs built into the stairclimber wheels that grab on the end of each step . Very light and makes bringing up heavy loads almost effortless . Bringing a load down was tricky - sometimes it would slip off a step to the next one .

The entry version of the Escalera runs about 1/2 the price of the other powered trucks .

mechanical contractor

stair climbers

Looking for feed back on stair climbers.models and cost.thks..work safe!!!!!

jbplumber

Stair climber

Ferguson Ent. Thru there heating and cooling express stores has a stairclimber available. If there is a branch location near you check with them. J.Lockard

Mark Eatherton1

Escalara unsafe...

Depending upon the age and condition of the stairs, the Escalara can be an unsafe proposition. I was using one once, removing a 120 gallon stone lined tank from a basement. My partner was supposed to be there to help me, but got held up, thank God. I strapped the tank to the dollie, no problem, moved to the base of the stairs, no problem, began climbing the stairs, no problem. The stairs were covered with a Berber carpet, no problem.

About half way up the stairs, the bull nose tread of the stairs collapsed under the pressure of the whole shebang, and in the flash of an eye, myself, the dollie and the extremely heavy storage tank had a VERY bumpy ride back down to the basement, out of control. If my partner HAD been there, he'd most likely would have been on the bottom side of the dollie, and he'd have been one hurtin' unit.

One of our suppliers (Low Energy Systems) uses the trombone style of dollie, and other than transitioning mid stair landing/turns, we've NEVER had an issue. Bulky, yes. Heavy yes, but extremely slow and controlable which is important when lives and equipment are at stake.

We ended up having to replace all the bull nose on his stairs, one complete tread as well as the carpet. It completely ate the profits on that job.

Nothing beats the right tool for the right job...

Work smarter, NOT harder.

ME

Dave Stroman

Mark, You told me this story once, but we have had so much good luck with our Escalera that I really swear by them.

Dave in Denver

John Starcher_4

So Mark.............

How on Earth do you protect yourself (liability-wise) in a potential situation like this in the future?????????

Is it the contractor's responsibility to verify structural integrity of stairs (and how do you do that?)? How did that tank get into the basement to begin with? Down the same stairs?

Don't take this the wrong way, but is it YOUR fault that the homeowner's stairs are not structurally sound? You got me thinking about how to deal with this type of potential situation!!!

Starch

Paul Mitchell_2

Lectro-truck

Hands down. Steel one heavy but works great. Cost is approx $2900.00. Worth every penny.
Paul

Mark Eatherton1

I hear ya Dave...

Call it blind luck or whatever. Keep Rob out from under the beast (and anyone else) and do a stress test (bounce on the edge of the tread with your feet) to make sure their in good shape before you toss the anchor...

NEVER again.

ME

Mark Eatherton1

If I were a wise man...

I'd have the HO sign a release prior to touching the tank, indemnifying us against any damage.

The stone line tank was installed by another contractor 20 some years earlier. We adopted a whole new policy after that job. Replacement does NOT include removal of or haul off of the existing tank. We will move it to another room if they want, but will not transprt it upstairs.

We give them the names of local moving contractors if they really are serious about getting it removed.

We've even gone to the extent of hiring local movers to transport heavy cast iron radiators. One HO wanted to pull all his radiators and send them to the paint shop for sand blasting/powder coating. We hired a local moving company to do all the foot work. They're insured, and they KNOW what they're doing

Knowing when to say when is important..

We took the attitude that if we hadn't been on the stairs with that particular type of dollie, that the damage woudn't have been done. The damage wasn't enought to warrant turning it over to the insurance company, so we ate it ourselves.

Live and learn.

ME