You will no doubt have seen the Xtend and Climb Ladder around quite a bit by now. The ladder is much favoured by surveyors and the like for quick inspection jobs but here at PB life often gets a little rougher. Roger Bisby took it out for a month to see how well it stood up to the harsher treatment it will inevitably get from builders.

The best thing about this ladder is that it takes up so little room but extends up to a surprising 3.8metres which means that when I am running up and down the motorways I can leave the roof rack in then lock up and just make do with this.

When it was working at its best (before I filled it with sand and cement) the sections slid smoothly as the thumb catches were pressed. You have to engage your brain for this part because any of your little pinkies that are in the way will get trapped as the rungs slide down. After using is successfully on these kind of jobs  for three weeks I made the mistake of using it on a job where I was knocking a bit of old brickwork out and plugging up a few holes. The result was that the debris got inside the sliding sections and played havoc with the catches, making them difficult to operate. So I would say where possible avoid anything messy with this ladder. If it does become clogged you can clean it with silicone spray (not WD40 but furniture polish like Pledge) which will get it running smoothly and reliably.

I would like to see one simple improvement in the design which would be to make the Velcro section of the strap a lot longer. At present there is no way of holding the lower sections in the closed position if you try and move the ladder using the extended section.

If, for example, you are tacking cable along the wall, as you pick it up from the upper part further sections drop down which is annoying. An all Velcro strap would allow you to secure all the unused sections as you move it along. Then it would be perfect.  I am still sold on it and will keep it in the van neatly strapped up against the side, ready for action.