[Greenbuilding] Best attic stairs?

[RT]

On Sun, 21 Feb 2016 23:08:58 -0500, Bill Christensen  
<billc_lists at greenbuilder.com> wrote:
>
> I'm looking for a really good insulated, sealed attic stair


S'Up, Wild Bill-Bob.

Many moons ago (like in the 70's of the previous millennium) I made a few  
super-insulated, sealed attic stairs using store-bought lumber and  
hardware from the local small-town (Paris Ontario)building supply (ie  
before Big Box outlets like Home Despot existed) ... plywood skinned box  
filled with XPS foam w/ HD piano hinge... ladders made with 2x4s, rungs  
glued/screwed into dadoes cut into the rails , ladder sections connected  
with HD strap hinges, shutting against compression bulb air seals and the  
whole schmozzle counterbalanced with a steel pail filled with steel chain  
suspended by a steel cable (vinyl-covered clothesline) & pulleys.

Thinking a bit about it this morning, in these days when people seem to  
have more money than time to f at art around making stuff themselves, I  
wondered if the (heavy) 2x4 folding stairs might be easily replaced by a  
store-bought extension ladder, chopped up into pieces and reconfigured to  
suit the situation ?

But the best solution would be to get rid of the interior access to the  
attic and move it outdoors to a gable end (or such like) and use the  
homeowner's general purpose ladder propped up against the wall on those  
occasions when access to the attic is needed (assuming that it's not a  
habitable space, of course.)


-- 
=== * ===
Rob Tom  .  .  . T60BOM
Kanata, Ontario, Canada

A r c h i L o g i c  at  Y a h o o  dot C A
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