Niwaki Tripod Ladders
The 12' Niwaki EN Pro Tripod Ladder - essential for hedging contractors and tree surgeons.
Niwaki Tripod Ladders are incredibly light and easy - this is Jake's Mum with an original ten footer.
The 12' EN Pro Tripod Ladder
The 8' Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder
The 4' Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder
The 6' Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder with the back leg pushed into the hedge.
Details of the EN Pro Tripod Ladder
8' Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder
How we measure Tripod Ladders
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Greatest ladder ever. Couldn’t live without it.
Thomas, Sweden.
Choose between the lightweight, Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder for regular garden use, or the Heavy Duty EN Pro for commercial landscaping, tree surgery, other tough jobs and for those needing the hardest wearing, most reliable solution.
Tripod Ladders are essential for large topiary and hedges. Depending on the slope, you can either work face-on, with the 3rd leg poked into the hedge, or sideways, with the ladder parallel to the hedge. Their adaptability (3 legs), stability (wide base) and comfort (double rungs) allow you to spend all the time necessary to do jobs properly, without rushing.
Ideal for orchard work, both for picking and pruning, where thanks to the single back leg, you can can get right into the crown of the tree. Unlike traditional orchard designs (pointed A-Frame), you can lean over the top, or rest picking baskets etc on top. They’re also considerably wider at the base than A-Frames, have the telescopic back leg (vital on slopes) and of course are welded not riveted, so are much, much stronger - and exceptionally light and easy to use.
- Stable Tripod Design
- Perfect for Cutting Tall Hedges
- Adjustable 3rd Leg for Slopes and Steps
- Simple & safe spring pin adjustment
- Lightweight and Weatherproof
- Up to 9’ Safe Standing Height (SSH)
- Manufactured by Hasegawa Kogyo
- Optional Rubber Feet for hard surfaces
- *Prices include delivery in mainland UK for all sizes except the 15' (please contact us for 15' delivery options)
The Niwaki Tripod Ladder is described by Monty Don as one of his five favourite gardening tools in the Telegraph. As used on BBC Gardeners’ World.
| Size (open height) | Weight | Width | Spread | Folded Length | SSH* | Hedge (guide) | Steps** | Load Bearing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4' (1.2m) Orig. | 4.9kg | 95cm | 92cm | 1.32m | 2' | 4 | 100kg | |
| 6' (1.8m) Orig. | 6.5kg | 1.25m | 1.22m | 1.94m | 4' | 6'-8' | 6 | 100kg |
| 6' (1.8m) EN Pro | 8.4kg | 125cm | 149cm | 187cm | 112cm | 6'-8' | 6 | 150kg |
| 8' (2.4m) Orig. | 8.3kg | 1.25m | 1.57m | 2.59m | 5' | 8'-10' | 8 | 100kg |
| 8' (2.4m) EN Pro | 10.6kg | 125cm | 190cm | 247cm | 140cm | 8'-10' | 8 | 150kg |
| 10' (3.0m) Orig. | 10.5kg | 1.45m | 1.93m | 3.17m | 7' | 10'-12' | 10 | 100kg |
| 10' (3.0m) EN Pro | 13.5kg | 147cm | 231cm | 307cm | 197cm | 10'-12' | 10 | 150kg |
| 12' (3.6m) Orig. | 12.1kg | 1.45m | 2.19m | 3.81m | 9' | 12'-14' | 12 | 100kg |
| 12' (3.6m) EN Pro | 16.8kg | 147cm | 272cm | 367cm | 253cm | 12'-14' | 12 | 150kg |
| 15' (4.5m) Orig. | 17.7kg | 1.45m | 2.67m | 4.67m | 12' | 15'-17' | 15 | 100kg |
*SSH: Safe Standing Height, 3 steps from the top. **Steps: includes the top
Unbelievably brilliant. Can’t describe how much we love it
Mrs B.
Ladder Bumpf
Tripod ladders are used all over Japan by gardeners and nurserymen. Our customers include tree surgeons, topiary specialists, head gardeners, orchard owners, hedging contractors and landscapers, as well as countless keen gardeners who all appreciate the stability and practicality of the tripod design.
We import directly from our Japanese manufacturer Hasegawa Kogyo's factory in China, and keep stock of all models in our warehouse in Shaftesbury. Hasegawa have the reputation for making the best quality and safest tripod ladders in use today - their production conforms to JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards.) Ask any gardener in Japan which ladders they use and they all say the same thing: Hasegawa. All our ladders have full safety and user instructions included as factory fitted stickers. The EN Tripod ladder conforms to EN-131 standards for commercial use.
The wide base, deep steps and telescopic back leg, as well as clawed feet and flat top make them incredibly safe and easy to use. Rather like in the design of the Eiffel tower, your weight is directed downwards and outwards, pinning the ladder to the ground. The back leg adjusts quickly and easily up to 18" in 6" stops with a spring-loaded pin, extending 6" and shortening 12" for use on slopes and steps. How flat is your garden?
The welded, extruded aluminium construction is weatherproof, strong, and very light. Double rungs are easy on the feet, and don’t get muddy or slippery.
Which Ladder
Good question, very hard to answer. Every garden, every gardener and every job is slightly different and what works for one might be useless for another. BUT there are a few basic truths.
Original or EN Pro: the heavy duty EN rated ladders are designed for landscapers, tree surgeons and other tough jobs - but do perfectly well in private gardens. If the ladders are used day in, day out, or will be taking a heavy weight of more than 100kg, think about the EN Pro. Consider it a beefed-up version of the original Niwaki Tripod Ladder, conforming to EN-131 standards, assuring professionals, employers and all demanding gardeners of the quality and safety of these remarkable ladders. With a load bearing of 150kg, reinforced lower rungs and a chunkier back leg, the EN Pro is stronger, more robust, and more rigid, offering greater stability and user safety. For regular domestic use, the Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder will do you fine - although it is not recommended for trade or commercial use.
Size: using our SSH (Safe Standing Height) combined with your own height, and the height of the job in hand, we can fairly accurately say what size ladder you need (for a specific job). On the larger ladders (8' and up) the SSH is 3 steps from the top, so the top is effectively your handrail or something to lean against. On the 4' and 6' models, because they're smaller, the SSH is officially 2 steps from the top, but for more cautious users we still recommend 3. So, using the 8 footer as an example, you can stand, comfortably and safely, at 5'. Let's say you're 6' tall, which means the top of your head is at 11' and you can reach to about 12', arm outstretched. For hedge pruning, where ideally you want to be working between waist and chest height, you'll have a working height of 8-10'. Of course it's higher if you're taller than 6', and lower if shorter.
The 15' Tripod Ladder is enormous - far too big for most gardens, and very hard to manoeuvre. We only deliver this ladder in our own vehicle. Please contact us to discuss, before ordering.
| Ladder | SSH | Arm Outstretched | Hedge Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6' Tripod | 3-4' | 10'-11' | 6'-8' |
| 8' Tripod | 5' | 12' | 8'-10' |
| 10' Tripod | 7' | 14' | 10'-12' |
| 12' Tripod | 9' | 16' | 12'-14' |
Weight: they're all remarkably light, and folded up into a lump of aluminium, in a suitcase, would seem like nothing at all. What they are, though, is tall, and wide. Moving them around, especially when you're deep in the undergrowth and you need to move a few feet, can be tricky: the legs stick out wider than you think, and the taller ladders can be top heavy. Taller people tend to hold the ladder higher up, so this is less of a problem - for shorter people it can be a real bore. Keiko, who is Japanese-height, finds using the 8 footer fine, but not the 10 footer. Mum (pictured in the slideshow) has no trouble at all moving the 10 footer around.
All-rounder: just like everything else, there's no such thing as the perfect all-round ladder (even though we like to think we get pretty close.) If your ladder is for one job - great. If it's for general use, there are a couple of points to consider. If you think you need the biggest one, think again. It will be great for a few jobs, but it will be OTT for lots more: we always suggest getting the size that will get the most use, and point out that even if you get the biggest, it still won't be big enough for some jobs. Personally, my favourite ladder is the 6 footer (and you can guess how many I have to choose from). Think also about where the ladder will live, whether it will travel, and who else might use it.
Slopes: all our tripod ladders have an adjustable back leg, with a spring-pin that extends (by 6") or shortens (upto 18") in 6" stops. So working into a slope is fine (always try and work into, not down, the slope).
Load Bearing: Original Niwaki Tripod Ladder: 100kg, EN PRO Tripod Ladder 150kg.
