# Loft ladder installation > Loft ladders supplied and fitted across Cambridgeshire, with the hatch made bigger if it needs it. Four types, a free survey and a written price. Source: https://completeloftservices.co.uk/loft-ladders/ Generated: 2026-09-21 --- - [Home](/) - Services - Loft ladders # Loft ladder installation Supplied and fitted across Cambridgeshire, with the hatch made bigger if yours is too small for one. Four types, a free survey, and a written price that says whether the opening needs work before anything else does. [Book a free survey](#enquire) [Which ladder suits your loft](#which) ## Three measurements, before you ring anyone Most ladder questions answer themselves once you know these. Take them with a tape from the landing, write them down, and any quote you get will be a real one. If you are also thinking about [boarding](/loft-boarding/), the same three numbers shape that job too. [Send us your numbers](#enquire) - ### The hatch opening Length and width of the hole itself, not the frame around it. This is the measurement that decides whether a ladder fits at all, or whether the opening has to be enlarged first. Opening - ### Floor to ceiling From the landing floor up to the hatch. Ladders are made to a range of drops, and the drop decides which types are even on the list. Drop - ### The landing itself How much clear floor there is where the ladder will come down, and what is in the way. A sliding ladder needs run out space that a concertina does not. Swing ## Which ladder suits your loft Four types, and the right one depends on the hatch, the drop and the landing below it. We fit all four, including electric, which plenty of firms will not touch. - [AluminiumLight, and the usual choice](/loft-ladders/aluminium/) - [TelescopicFor a tight landing](/loft-ladders/telescopic/) - [TimberWarmer, and quieter underfoot](/loft-ladders/timber/) - [ElectricDown at the touch of a button](/loft-ladders/electric/) ## Is your opening big enough? Nobody publishes this, so here it is. These are the ladder makers' own published figures, which is the yardstick we measure your hatch against. The exact ladder we quote depends on what your supplier stocks, but the sizes below are typical of what is on the market. - ### A timber folding ladder Fakro's LWK Komfort, one of the commonest timber ladders in the country, needs a ceiling opening of 1110 x 550mm and suits a floor to ceiling height up to 2.80m. It is rated at 160kg per step. 1110 x 550 - ### A concertina ladder Standard openings run from 1200 x 600mm to 1400 x 700mm, and a made to measure one can go down to 750 x 530mm. They reach a floor to ceiling height of up to 4.6m, which is why they suit tall hallways. 750 x 530 up - ### A genuinely tiny opening If your hatch is smaller than any of that, compact concertina ladders exist that fit an opening from 370mm. So a small hatch is not automatically a building job, it just narrows the choice. from 370 - ### The landing below it A concertina drops almost straight down and can work in a landing as small as 150cm. A four section folding ladder needs about 128cm clear. That is usually what decides the type, not the hatch. Swing Figures published by the manufacturers: Fakro LWK Komfort and the Supreme and Piccolo concertina ladders, via [Premier Loft Ladders](https://www.premierloftladders.co.uk/product-range/wooden-loft-ladders/lwk/), and the landing figures from [Fakro's own guide](https://www.fakro.co.uk/blog/how-to-choose-a-loft-ladder/). Read September 2026. We are not a stockist for either, they are simply the clearest published numbers. ## The hatch is usually the real job This is the part nobody writes about. A lot of older houses in Cambridge, Ely and the villages have a hatch big enough to post a head through and nothing else, and no ladder made will fit it. - 1 ### We measure the opening, not the lid If it is too small, we tell you at the survey and price the enlargement as its own line, so you can see exactly what the ladder costs and what the opening costs. - 2 ### Making it bigger means cutting a joist A bigger opening usually means trimming a ceiling joist and framing around it. That is structural carpentry, not a quick cut, and it is why we quote it properly. - 3 ### Somebody has to make good the ceiling New plasterboard, taped and filled, ready for you to paint. We say up front that the decorating is yours, because a surprise about paintwork is how these jobs sour. - 4 ### Then the ladder goes in Fitted square, tested with weight on it, and shown to you working before we leave. The old ladder, if there is one, goes in the van. ## What is not included, said out loud A ladder quote is small enough that a surprise really hurts. These are the things that get priced separately, on their own line, before you agree to anything. - ### Enlarging the hatch Trimming the joist, framing the opening and fitting a new lid. Common on older houses, and quoted on its own. - ### Decorating after the plastering We leave the ceiling filled and ready. Painting to match your landing is yours, and we would rather say so than pretend. - ### A light in the loft Climbing into the dark with a torch in your teeth is how people fall. Wiring is an electrician's job and is priced separately. - ### [Somewhere to put your feet](/loft-boarding/) A ladder gets you up to the joists. If there is no floor up there yet, [boarding](/loft-boarding/) is the other half of the job, and doing it [with the insulation](/loft-boarding-and-insulation/) is one visit rather than two. - ### Moving a tank or pipework Occasionally the only sensible place for the hatch is where something else already is. That is a plumber, and we will say so. - ### Asbestos, if we find it Older hatch linings and some ceilings can contain it. We stop, get it tested properly rather than guessing, and carry on once it is cleared. Ladders are the job people put off for years. If yours is a wobbly three legged thing balanced on the landing, the survey is free and the answer takes twenty minutes. ## Fitted so it is safe to use, not just so it fits - ### Fixed to timber, not plasterboard The frame is screwed into the joists and the trimmers around the opening, which is what takes the load when somebody is halfway up it carrying a box. - ### Set square and tested A ladder that racks as you climb it feels wrong because it is wrong. Every one is squared up and put under weight before we sign it off. - ### The drop checked against your landing The feet have to land flat on the floor, clear of the stairwell. If they do not, it is the wrong type for your house and we will say so. - ### Handrail where it earns its place On a steep drop or an awkward landing, the grab rail is the difference between confident and careful. It is on the quote, not an afterthought. ## Awkward lofts are the ones we get called to Most "you cannot have a ladder there" verdicts are really "that ladder will not fit there". Here is what we do about the four we hear most. ### Straightforward You are climbing on a chair or a step ladder to get into the loft. The hatch is a sensible size or can be made one. There is clear landing floor for it to come down onto. You use the loft more than twice a year, or want to. ### Solvable, with a bit more work A hatch over a stairwell, where the answer is usually to move the opening. No floor up there yet, so we [board it](/loft-boarding/) at the same time. A loft too full to use, which we clear first. Or a proper room in the roof, where you want stairs rather than a ladder, and we can arrange those through our [conversion side](/loft-conversion/). ## Loft ladder questions we get asked **Will a ladder fit my hatch?** Measure the opening itself, not the frame. Many older hatches are too small for any ladder, which is not a problem, it just means the opening gets enlarged first. We measure it at the survey and price both parts separately. **Which type should I have?** Aluminium suits most houses and is the usual answer. Telescopic suits a tight landing, timber feels solid and quieter underfoot, and electric suits a high ceiling or anyone who does not want to be pulling a ladder down by hand. The drop and the landing usually decide it for you. **Do you fit electric loft ladders?** Yes. Plenty of firms will not, which is why people struggle to find someone. They need a power supply near the hatch, so an electrician is usually part of the job and that is priced separately. **How long does fitting take?** A straight swap into an opening that is already big enough is a morning. Enlarging the hatch, framing it and making good takes most of a day, sometimes with the plastering set to dry before the ladder goes in. **Will it make a mess?** Cutting an opening makes dust, there is no way round it. We sheet the landing and anything near it, cut with the dust pulled away where we can, and hoover up before we leave. **Can you take the old ladder away?** Yes, and it goes in the van with our waste. If it is a sound ladder you want to keep, say so and we will leave it where you want it. **Is there a weight limit?** There is a standard for this, BS EN 14975, and it sets the minimum load capacity for a loft ladder at 150kg. Worth knowing: it is not a legal requirement, so a cheap ladder need not meet it. The ones we fit are rated at or above it, commonly 160kg or 200kg per step, and we will tell you the rating of the one you choose rather than offering a vague reassurance. We also check the opening and the fixings will take that load, because the ladder is only as good as what it is screwed to. The standard and the 150kg figure as published by [Premier Loft Ladders](https://www.premierloftladders.co.uk/en-14975-loft-ladders-european-standard-overview/), read September 2026. **Can you fit a ladder and board the loft on the same day?** Usually yes, and it is the sensible way round: the ladder goes in first so the boards are not being posted through a hatch you are about to change. [Boarding](/loft-boarding/) and [insulation with it](/loft-boarding-and-insulation/) are quoted separately so you can see each part. ## Once you can get up there safely A ladder on its own is worth having. A ladder over a loft you can actually stand things on is the job most people wanted in the first place. [Loft boarding A raised floor on legs, so the insulation underneath keeps working.](/loft-boarding/) Hatches and lids Bigger openings, insulated lids, and draught sealing that actually seals. ## Book a free survey this week It takes about twenty minutes and you get a written price with nothing hidden in it. If the job is not worth doing, we will tell you that too. [01223 000 000](tel:01223000000)