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Does any one have any suggestions/info on Brand, model, price range installed, who installs ect ect.?????
I am considering a lift but also need to know how high of a ceiling you need. I have a pretty high garage ceiling but I guess it is really is the height from floor to garage door height when opened. - I guess
Also, how high can it be lifted and how long can it stay lifted? Is it safe because I have a 5 year old Son to be concerned about?
Can you store your car on a lift?
A lot of questions here so sorry but new exploration for me
I have a Revolution Rotary lift....excellent lift and was reasonable....I wanted a Bend Pak but arranging shipping to someone and install turned in to a nightmare.....You can have the lift delivered to your house but you will need a forklift to get it off the truck....A local guy who does lifts for businesses was a Revolution dealer so it was easy.....he took delivery, brought it to my house, and set it up.....$3600 installed....I will say I spent weeks measuring and re measuring for the specs.....clearance under the garage door rails....clearance of the car with the door raised....clearance for the car underneath.....I had my ceiling raised on the one side 2 feet....I also had the rails of the garage door raised so the lift fits right in and give enough clearance for the car when the door goes up.....the garage door sits about 6 inches from the 458 when it goes up.....everything fits perfectly but as I said I must have measured 100 times....
I use the lift as winter storage for the 458....once it goes up and gets plugged in it doesn't come down til the spring.....During the summer it goes all the way up and stays there....last summer I stored some things on it.....the rails sit on locks on the posts so there is no stress on the motor or steel wires....the lift is not bolted to the floor so if I ever want to roll it back or forth I can......
I have a two post bendpak. I essentially have a three car garage, that is only two cars wide. My ceiling is sixteen feet so that I can put my truck on it, and park another underneath. Admittedly, it is over engineered for what I need, but I feel that it is safe.
It can be difficult to choose a lift. A four post is very stable-but you can't work on your wheels or suspension. I have seen some nice scissor lift installations recessed into floors-they too are stable, you can work on your wheels, but you can't park under it. I can't see a one post lift being useful in a residential setting.
Short of starting with a clean sheet of paper like I did, I would talk to the people that built your house and find out what your garage floor could handle. Your load and selection may be limited by this. The hydraulic pumps are electric, so you could put a key lock on the circuit to prevent your son from getting hurt. I would ask your local repair shop for brand and capacity recommendations to accommodate your largest vehicle.
Quite a few things to consider. What's your primary purpose? If storage- then a 4 post lift is a good way to go. If it's working on cars- then a 2 post asymmetric is a good choice.
Next, how much ceiling height do you have or can you build? If you want a good 2 post lift for work you need about 13ft which is much higher than most residential garages. Typically these lifts are hydraulic/mechanical. Once lifted to the height desired you release the pressure and the load rests on mechanical stops so it is safe to work underneath for as long as needed. Still these are potentially dangerous pieces of equipment and best to keep the kiddos clear.
For a 2 post lift you'll need a 240 v circuit , cant remember the amps needed off hand. For anchoring the posts you need a minimum compressive strength and thickness of the floor/slab. I was in the position of building a detached garage so could design for the lift. I have a 13 1/2 ft ceiling. I went with the bendpak xpr-10A and am happy with it. They directed me to a retailer (Garage Equipment) and a local installer which was pretty reasonable. I think I paid something under $3k for the lift and about 600 for the install.
A way to start further research is go to the websites for bendpak and others. There is a lot of detail on the specifics of various models, installation requirements etc. Best of luck!
Last edited by zedcat; 12-09-2014 at 09:04 AM.
Reason: correction
Zedcat reply is on point. Look for an ALI certified lift. Pay close attention to where and how it's built. Nowadays they are almost all built in China. Some brands like BendPak have their own factories while others just source out to third party manufacturers. Personally I like Bendpak, Rotary and their consumer brand Direct Lift. BendPak requires a compressor to release the locks which gives it a degree of satefy as one has to go through the effort of connecting the air supply to bring it down.
It can be difficult to choose a lift. A four post is very stable-but you can't work on your wheels or suspension.
Not exactly. With a four post lift you need accessories to perform work on wheels or suspension. My lift is a Challenger 40efx. 12k working load, 17' runways, custom 8' approach ramps. I have two air over hydraulic rolling bridge jacks that allow lifting any vehicle off its wheels. My bridge jacks are Rotary brand and rated 6000 lb each.
When I bought my lift I wanted to have the capacity to work on my tow vehicle, work on my various cars, as well as store cars. I often work on my cars alone and feel that a 4 post provides the most safety, but is a compromise for access.
I ordered the Bendpak HD-9 four post lift and am having it installed in a week. Will post photos and reviews once complete. It seems like a good setup for the home environment. I also had the garage door guys come out to add a side garage door lifter and to move the tracks to the 11 foot ceilings.
The only other thing I need is to get an electrician to run a dedicated circuit/line to the lift motor. Bendpak recommends a 30 amp line (although 25 should work) for their 110 or 240v motors.
I raised my ceiling to the roof pitch, but it's still only about 11-12' right at the center peak, and slopes down to just 8' at the edges of the room. I purely wanted functionality to work on a car (not sure one underneath), and I also wanted to maintain ease of movement in the garage for two cars side-by-side if I needed to shove two cars in there.
With those constraints, a scissor lift was my only solution! And here it is (prior to cabinets and other things going in):
12-09-2014, 07:05 AM
Lift for my Garage
