Ladder Problem

A 5.0 meter ladder (m = 1.20kg) leans against a frictionless wall.

A 60kg painter stands 70% of the way up the ladder. Will the
ladder slip if the coefficient of static friction is .50?
To begin the problem, we need to make a FBD.

From the FBD, we discover that the force of friction must be

equal to, or greater than the force on the wall to prevent the
ladder from slipping.
4 ft.
F_wall
B

m_painter=60kg 3 ft.
A
F_friction m_ladder=1.2kg

F_floor
Use the equations that we know

M=F*⟘d
 
 ,
∑ 𝑀 𝐴=𝑓 𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑙 ∗𝑑𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑙 −𝑓 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟 ∗𝑑 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟 −𝑓 𝑙𝑎𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑟 ∗𝑑𝑙𝑎𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑟
 

 ,
 
∑ 𝐹𝑥 = 𝑓 𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 − 𝑓 𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑙
 .
∑ 𝐹𝑦=𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑟 −𝑓 𝑙𝑎𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑟 −𝑓 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟
 

Distances from Point A:

d_painter=.7*(3) m Forces:
d_ladder=.5*(3) m g=9.81 m/s^(-2)
d_wall=4 m f_floor=f_ladder+f_painter=600N
f_ladder=1.2*g=11.77N
f_painter=60*g=588.6N
μ_static=0.50
f_friction=f_floor*g*μ_static=300N
f_wall=?
Solving: Finding the Solution
After solving first for the frictional force opposing any
slip, it was found that the force of the wall cannot
exceed 300 N.
Using the equilibrium equations, and doing some
algebra, I discovered that the force of the wall will be
313 N. This is greater than the force of friction, so the
ladder will slip.