It is said to be safe practice that non-self-supporting ladders are to be placed such that the base-distance from the supporting wall is enjoyed in a ratio of 1:4.

It is also good to tie the top rung of a non-self-supporting ladder to the thing it is leaning against.

It is wise to refrain from standing on the top two steps of a ladder, and if the ladder is used to climb onto a roof or platform, overlap the ladder so that you can climb up past the level of the roof and step down onto it.

According to New Zealand ACC figures, one is %60 more likely to be injured if one has someone-else 'footing' or 'minding' the base of the one's ladder.

In spite of the almost inevitable temptation to predict injury as a consequence of ladder-minding, this remains an excellent example of the fallacy of post hoc ergo propter hoc.

Rather than playing a causal role in subsequent injury, the presence of a 'ladder-minder' indicates at the least an inkling of doubt in the mind of the climber regarding the overall safety of the venture, hence their seeking a minder in the first place. Ladder minders are strongly positively correlated with an unwisely deployed ladder and/or an ill-balanced climber.

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