Learn about our dock ladders

Aqua-Stairs®, a top name in boat ladders nationwide, proudly provides options for spaces of all sizes. When you learn about Aqua-Stairs company, you will discover our background in the industry. Reach out to us today to choose our aluminum dock ladder for your property.

They say necessity is the mother of invention and that is certainly true of the Aqua-Stairs line of boat ladders and dock ladders. At Adairco, LLC, all we sell are dock ladders for marine and boating use.

Back in the late 1990s, I was concerned about dock safety for swimmers who had limited swimming skills, disabilities, handicaps, or simply insufficient physical abilities to use existing swim ladders. I watched and saw people struggle to use the existing vertical dock ladders – this even included people without some sort of handicap. So, I studied the traditional dock ladders and swimming pool ladders, none of which accomplished what I needed. I wanted a ladder that could accommodate the special needs of handicapped or disabled people. I also needed a ladder that most everyone, including dogs, could use to get out of the water. Understanding that a staircase or angled ladder is usable to most, I pursued that angled or sloped design since I knew it would accommodate most issues. It would also need to be a wide step ladder as well as a deep step ladder – this would allow for comfortable footing. No more skinny steps that hurt your feet!

Starting with wood, I made staircase dock ladders that worked somewhat, but these dock ladders were difficult to keep from floating up, making them difficult to use. When I did get the wooden swim ladder to stay down, it became waterlogged and was too heavy to rotate out. And worst of all, those dock ladders quickly became too slippery to use due to the growth of algae and slime.

The only solution that made sense was to make a boat or dock ladder out of lightweight aluminum. Stainless steel would make them much heavier and considerably more expensive to fabricate. This made it easy to rotate them out of the water to keep clean and more durable. We first started making these flip-out swim ladders in just a 4-step dock ladder model and quickly found that people with fixed docks needed a 6-step dock ladder since water levels varied on some lakes and of course, coastal areas. Since then, we had made several other models for docks (3/4/5/6/7 step models) to accommodate the special needs of the elderly, young, and those with certain handicaps.

Next, people started requesting angled pontoon boat ladders, so the development of a sloped ladder for side entry and rear entry was made. The rear mount pontoon boat ladder was then adapted next for the swim platform on larger boats and yachts. Some people have used these folding pontoon boat ladders as a deck boat ladder and even as a houseboat ladder. Any of our boat stairs also make the perfect dog boat ladder.

The Aqua-Stairs boat ladders and dock ladders have become a game changer for both people and dogs. These stair step design ladders enable people and pets to get out of the water with ease since they are like walking out steps. There are models to fits boat docks, piers, seawall, swim platforms, pontoon boats, and more.