Loft Ladders Review: The Always-Popular Concertina Model

A concertina loft ladder is an aluminium ladder that folds like an accordion and stores inside the loft directly above the hatch, so it takes up no floor space below and no loft space outside the hatch perimeter. It is the loft ladder to choose when the hatch is small or the landing below is tight. We sell our own Concertina Loft Ladder in five sizes, from 8ft (2.44m) to 12ft (3.66m), priced from £179.99 to £259.99 with free next-day UK delivery. The smaller sizes need a hatch opening of just 450mm by 570mm (or 450mm by 600mm in the case of the two largest ladders), tested to European Safety Standard EN 14975 with a 150kg load rating, and arrives fully assembled.

This review covers all five sizes, what separates them, and how to work out which one your loft needs.

Why a concertina ladder rather than a sliding or wooden one

Most loft ladders need somewhere to go when they are not in use. A three-section sliding ladder folds up and rests along the loft floor beside the opening. A wooden folding ladder does much the same. Both need clear, boarded space next to the hatch, and both need a reasonably generous opening to pass through.

Concertina loft ladders do not. It compresses into a block and sits directly on top of the hatch door, inside the perimeter of the opening. The stored ladder measures 450mm wide by 450mm high by 570mm long on the three smaller sizes, and 450mm by 450mm by 600mm on the two largest. Nothing protrudes into the loft beyond the hatch itself.

That single property is why this is the ladder for a small opening. It is also why it suits a loft that is already boarded and full: you are not surrendering a metre of floor space next to the hatch to store it.

The trade-off is honest enough. A concertina ladder has more moving parts than a sliding one, and at £179.99 to £259.99 it sits above a basic aluminium slider. What you are paying for is the space it does not take up.

The five sizes

Every size shares the same width, tread dimensions and backboard. What changes is the number of treads, the reach and the weight.

Shared across all five sizes: ladder width 380mm, tread width 340mm, tread depth 80mm, backboard 450 x 190 x 20mm, maximum load 150kg.

Two things in that table matter more than the rest.

The hatch requirement steps up on the two largest sizes. The 8ft (2.44m), 9ft (2.74m) and 10ft (3.05m) models need an opening of 450mm by 570mm. The 11ft (3.35m) and 12ft (3.66m) models need 450mm by 600mm, because the longer folded stack needs 30mm more length to sit in. If your opening is 570mm long, the 10ft (3.05m) is the largest you can fit.

And the weight roughly doubles across the range, from 14kg to 23kg. That is worth knowing before you start, because you are lifting it up through the hatch to fix the backboard. At 14kg most people manage alone. At 23kg you want a second pair of hands.

Which size do you need

Measure floor to ceiling in the room below the hatch, then pick the model whose maximum height is the first one above your measurement. A 2.9m ceiling takes the 10ft (3.05m). A 3.1m ceiling takes the 11ft (3.35m).

If you fall between sizes, size up rather than down, then remove treads. The ladder is designed to be shortened: treads unbolt, and taking one or two out is the normal way to fit a ceiling height that sits between models. Going the other way is not possible, though extra treads can be bought separately up to the 12ft (3.66m) maximum.

Ceilings lower than 2.44m are fine. Use the 8ft (2.44m) and remove treads to suit.

Fitting: what to expect

Of all the loft ladders we supply, this is the quickest to install, for one reason: it arrives fully assembled. There is no ladder to build. The job is fixing the backboard to the joist or to joist-sized timber, and the ladder comes with it.

The one condition worth checking before you order is the direction your hatch door opens. A concertina ladder sits in the loft directly above the door, so the door has to swing down. It cannot lift up into the loft, because the ladder is occupying that space. If your existing hatch is a push-up board, the conversion kit supplied free with every ladder converts it to a swing-down door, with hinges, screws, catch and bolts included.

Two practical notes from fitting these. Refit the door flush with the architrave rather than sitting proud, which both looks better and leaves maximum room for the ladder. And if you are working alone, fix a temporary batten to take the ladder’s weight while you drive the screws.

Set the ladder to a climbing angle between 65 and 80 degrees. The base position is adjustable, which is what lets it work in a room with limited floor space below. The treads are designed to angle very slightly inwards rather than sitting perfectly parallel to the floor, which makes climbing easier and is correct, not a fault.

Safety and build

Tested to European Safety Standard EN 14975, with a 150kg maximum load. That 150kg is the total: you plus whatever you are carrying up.

The treads are 80mm deep and 340mm wide, which is generous for a loft ladder, and rubber-coated for grip. Deep treads matter more than they sound when you are coming down carrying a box and cannot see your feet. The feet are triangular rather than round, which stops the base rolling away from you as you put weight on it.

The carriage and bolts are steel rather than aluminium. Aluminium bolts are the usual failure point on cheaper concertina ladders, and steel is a meaningful upgrade. A double-sprung mechanism carries the weight as the ladder is lowered and raised, so it does not drop under its own weight.

Supplied with a metal operating pole and metal hook, full fitting instructions in plain English, and the hatch conversion kit. This ladder is intended for home and DIY use.

The verdict

If your loft opening is small, or the space beside it inside the loft is already used, the concertina is the right answer and there is not much competition for the job. The 450mm by 570mm minimum opening is the smallest of any ladder we sell.

If you have a generous hatch and clear loft floor beside it, a three-section sliding ladder will do the same work for less money. Buy the concertina for the space it saves, not for the sake of it.

Across the range, the 10ft (3.05m) is the one most people need and the last size that fits a 570mm opening. Check your ceiling height and your hatch length before you order, and if the hatch is 570mm, do not order above the 10ft (3.05m).

Full dimensions for every size are in the concertina loft ladder fact sheet, and all five sizes are available on the concertina loft ladders product page.