Said It Here

Are ridge hooks enough to secure a roof ladder?

Ridge hooks alone often feel completely untrustworthy, leaving workers questioning whether they should attach roof brackets at the bottom or use a different type of ladder altogether. This uncertainty prevents people from trusting their setup enough to safely complete the job.

Overview
People affected6 accounts across 1 forum
Workarounds found9 items attempted
Community agreement16 total upvotes

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

Found another way around this?

Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.

  1. 1
    Use a strap or rope to tie the ladder to the chimney looking stack on the opposite side so it doesn’t slip
    Did this help you?
  2. 2
    getting the ladder 3 to 5 rungs higher
    Did this help you?
  3. 3
    sinking the ladder foot into the ground
    Did this help you?
  4. 4
    using rubber feet or attachments designed to prevent sliding
    Did this help you?
  5. 5
    Using ridge hook ladders and clamp-type standing seam anchors
    Did this help you?
  6. 6
    Using a goat or Ridge Pro to hook over the edge
    Did this help you?
  7. 7
    Setting up ladders in valleys and using magnetic boots
    Did this help you?
  8. 8
    Using boom lifts to access hard-to-reach areas and install anchors
    Did this help you?
  9. 9
    Removing ridge or hip caps to install temporary anchors underneath
    Did this help you?
Tried another approach not listed above?+ Share your workaround ↑

In their words

Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.

r/Roofing6 people · September 2026 – October 2026

“Its safe until you fall.”source ↗

imthehink · r/Roofing · 4 upvotes

“Every career roofer has at some point done dumber, and at some point done this and coached himself the whole way up how dumb it is.”source ↗

LaughingMagicianDM · r/Roofing · 4 upvotes

“How do you even anchor in for a harness on metal roofs?”source ↗

TacticalOtter1998 · r/Roofing · 2 upvotes

“How do you anchor to corrugated roof for temporary work? That’s most common in Central NM.”source ↗

TacticalOtter1998 · r/Roofing · 2 upvotes

“Do you think the ridge hooks are enough to secure the ladder? Should attach roof brackets at the bottom instead? Use a different type of ladder?”source ↗

summitbydawn2021 · r/Roofing · 1 upvotes

“Would never trust that setup”source ↗

bobotheboinger · r/Roofing · 1 upvotes

“That's a nope from me.”source ↗

Hypericos · r/Roofing · 1 upvotes

“How do you connect your anchor point? I have steel walkers and a goat”source ↗

TacticalOtter1998 · r/Roofing · 1 upvotes

Where this came up

People with this problem also raised