When we were in Vegas at the hardware show we saw a pretty cool invention called the Ladder Hand. Basically it is a small shelf that attaches to your ladder and gives you a place to temporarily hold items. How many times have you tried to head up a ladder when you have too much stuff in your hands. Then you get up there and try to find a place to put it all. Only for it to fall down on the ground. Now you have to climb back down and get it.
The Ladder Hand is made from an ABS plastic, so it is durable and strong. The unit can hold 15 lbs which is cutting it close to a gallon of paint. A full gallon of paint weights around 13 lbs. As you can see by the pictures below, there is a support arm that swings into place, so we would suggest putting any heavy weight items over that area and not on the outer area of the unit.
We do like the fact that the unit folds up and doesn’t take up a lot of room when not in use. While it does fit a lot of different types of ladders, we did notice some ladders it was more loose on. While it still stayed in place and was easy to attach, it sometimes had a little more play than we would like to see. One feature that would make this a great ladder accessory is if there was a clamp on the side of the Ladder Hand. So when you attach the Ladder Hand to the rails, you could use a thumb screw and it would tighten against the rail and make it very secure. The current design is already secure as it hugs the rungs, but isn’t there always room for improvement?
The tray is very nice as it measures 14″ x 11″. There are places to place loose items like screws and more. You can also put a screwdriver or other tools in small holes to keep them in the upright position for easy access.
All in all it’s a cool invention. While it does what it is supposed to do and it is worth the $20, we would really like to see a clamp version. For anyone who is working on a ladder and needs some extra places to store stuff, the Ladder Hand is truly a cool invention and one that not only helps store things, but improves safety. Check out the ladder hand and see what you think.
Well right off I can see it doesn’t have a round hole to put a beer can or soda can and the surface appears too smooth easy for small parts to roll around.
Bill–Anyone on a ladder with a soda or a beer really shouldn’t be on a ladder. Even stone sober, a ladder is an inherently dangerous place to be; a tasty beverage is distracting and beer simply messes up yopur judgment. If you look at the side of the ladder in the above photos, it says “Safety First”, with a list of things you SHOULDN’T do (like over-reaching, standing on the top step of the ladder, etc.). You shouldn’t be drinking anything while on a ladder, anymore than you should while driving a car.
As for the screws rolling around, that’s a legitimate concern. These products are built to a certain price point and will never please everyone. You could add a small stainless steel magnetic tray, or possibly buy a sheet of magnetic rubber (check the Internet for sources) and cut it to size for placement in the plastic tray. Either option should stop screws from rolling around.
I like this tray. I am not a big painter and don’t always like being on a ladder, so anything that helps me feel more secure on a ladder is good for me.
Safety first. The tray is nice and big for a paint can and brushes.