First Alert EL52-2 Two-Story 14-Foot Escape Ladder
by First Alert
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List Price: Our Price: $32.28 You Save: $37.71 (54%) Availability: Usually ships in 4-5 business days Buy Used: from $31.00 (click here) Category: Tools See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of First Alert EL52-2 Two-Story 14-Foot Escape Ladder
Customer Review: My Ladder is a death Trap
Summary: 1 Stars
After reading the reviews I decided that this product would meet my needs. Fortunately, I opened it up to test it out when it arrived, because the ladder was attached to the metal bars backwards, meaning that the legs that are supposed to keep the unit away from the wall pointed out instead of against the side of the house.
I imagine this could lead to broken limbs or a broken neck, depending on how agile the person was trying to navigate this wobbly ladder during an emergency, as they tried to gain a toehold with the rungs right up against the wall.
To add insult to inevitable injury, when I called First Alert customer service, they pretty much ridiculed me that I was using the unit wrong, and then told me to go through the process of returning it without so much as a "sorry about that" or "how can we help".
I wish I would have bought the highly rated X-It ladder, instead of trying to save a few bucks at my own peril.
Customer Review: Great for Escape
Summary: 5 Stars
Luckly this hasn't had to be used. It's still in the box but looks easy enough to use. We bought it for our daughter who lives on the second floor in an apartment. She thinks it's silly, and we hope she'll never need it but you can't be too careful. We would have one too if we had a two story house.
Update 8/2010: This is still in the box. Unfortunately our daughter had moved into a three story condo and the ladder would be of no use there. The master bedroom is on the third story and there is no place to hook the ladder to. There is only a small railing outside the sliding door and it's too skinny to hook the ladder to. On the second level the balcony wall to too thick and it won't fit over it. Be sure to measure what location you hope to use any escape ladder on first. I guess it's meant for regular windows only.
Customer Review: Not good for kids
Summary: 2 Stars
This is not a good escape ladder for kids. We have a 6 year old daughter who was not strong enough to lift this heavy ladder up to the window, unfold the cumbersome hooks, and then throw the ladder part out the window. It is hard and awkward even for an adult to do this let alone a child.
Once the ladder is hooked on the window sill, you have to lean waaayyy out the window to pull the release tab, risking falling out the window to do this, especially if you are a vertically challenged.
Once you pull the tab, the ladder is supposed to neatly fall to the ground without getting caught up on itself. Wrong. The ladder gets so tangled that it would require you to go 4 or 5 steps down, untangle, go 4 more steps, untagle, etc.
I do not recommend this ladder.
Customer Review: Very difficult to use and climb on safely.
Summary: 1 Stars
I tested this item from our second story window as soon as I got it home. First of all the rungs became entangled with the nylon straps when I released the velcro handle, had to pull the ladder up to correct it. The way it hooks over the window sill was not sturdy at all, and tended to shift dangerously when weight was put on the first rung. Just placing my foot on the first rung was a challenge in daylight with no emergency occurring, it just doesn't protrude from the wall far enough. I am athletic and of normal height/weight, but clambering down this ladder had me fearing a fall and I crawled back through the window before I got below the second rung. I returned the product to the store and will have to find some other way to egress our home in an emergency.Customer Review: 2 story ladder will not work with wall thicker than 10 inches (at widest point)
Summary: 3 Stars
The description on the Amazon website says it will fit walls 6 inches to 13 inches thick. This is not true for the 2-story ladder. The widest the ladder can open is 10 inches, as correctly reported in one of the prior reviews. The instructions included with the ladder also say the maximum thickness is 10 inches. If the wall is 10 inches thick, the ladder will likely not work, either, since it probably won't hang right. In order to hang as shown in the picture, the wall can only be 9 inches thick. Measure the thickest part of your wall including interior and exterior sills. If you have a brick house, the ladder likely will not work. My wall was 12 inches, and the ladder cannot reach around it. Otherwise, it looked well-made.