Garage Lifts

Wondering if anyone has any pictures of garage lifts installed. Would like to see if I can find one that fits into my garage. Any pro's/con's dangers to be aware of etc......would be helpful. Cheers

There is one in the back of the new Excellence magazine that claims to be half height and will fit into any garage. Of course, this will not allow you to stand under the car.

What is your ceiling hieght, and what type of garage door do you have? What is the clear hieght when the door is open (if it is an overhead door)? Is this to park 2 cars, or to work on one car? If this is not for parking, but service, what type of work are you planning to do?

Note you need more than 4" of concrete thickness in the floor in order to have a post-based lift. Scissor lifts are fine for this depth. Chad

I have a two post Rotary lift in a warehouse - there's just no way one would work in a home garage, unless it was specifically designed for it. You must have a six inch floor, about 12 feet of height, and no interference with the open garage door. Believe me, if I thought my home garage would accomodate them, I would have a Rotary 2 and 4 post at home in a heartbeat. Steve 99 996

Ok lets see: Douple car garage with width 20 feet and lenght 21 feet. I do not know the thickness of the concrete but would imagine it to be at least 4-6 inches. The hieght of the garage is probably 15 feet. The overhead door, two single doors, are 9 feet above concrete and 6 below ceiling. I was hoping to get a lift that would accomodate my car and a smaller car below it when the lift is up. There was a guy on this forum who showed pictures of his new garage and I believe he had the lift I was looking for......I will try to do a search and see if I can find it. Cheers

I found the thread..........it was titled " Eeeet's ALIIIIIIVE!! (More New Garage Pics, with POWER!) " but unfortunately the pictures do not seem to be there any longer. Cheers

what are you intending to do with your lift? sounds like you have great ceiling clearance. i have a 9 foot ceiling with a cross beam, making my max useable height 8'6" or so. I have a 2 post low clearance lift in my 3 car garage installed in the 2 car bay. most garage slabs are 4" of 3000 psi concrete by building code. i do all the work on my cars so maximum clearance was necessary for me and opted for a 2 post lift with assymetrical arms. if you are looking for double-decker parking and really light maintenance work, the 4 post lift is your best bet. you can add rolling jacks to this to lift the car off the ramp/rails and do wheel/brake/suspension work but its very costly for all the accessories to do this. 4 post lifts do not need to be anchored to the floor, making it very easy to install... some even have a castor lifting system to move it around. if you are looking for something that stays out of the way, maybe even portable (somewhat) and can drive over and not lose any garage space, the scissor lift is your choice. if you are wrenching on your car like a grease monkey then you want the maximum clearance you can get... 2 post lift. drop the engine/tranny, exhaust, anything... its wide open. all lift manufacturers will customize their lift for your needs... just need to call them. several of them have low ceiling models (which i have)

These folk could be a lower cost alternative: http://kwiklift.com/commercial.htm however, I�m not sure it would that that much more height than stands but would be a bit more convenient.

Make sure to carefully cover your lower car...as various fluid leaks from the lifted car can cause all sorts of corrosive, staining issues etc. AK

I have a lift in my garage. It's a www.backyardbuddy.com lift. When I did the research, most of the 4 post lift manufacturers say that you do not need a special floor for the lift. In my case, I was pouring a new slab so I had it upgraded anyway. Several of the 4 post lifts have large floor pads, the ones on my lift are 12x12 inch. In addition, I have the www.kiwitile.com flooring so that also dissipates the weight over a larger area... All of the lift companies offer drip trays so that you don't have to cover the car below the lift. As to the door, you can go with a coil spring lift (most garage doors use pull springs) and raise the door to the roof. My door is about 4 inches from the roof... Good luck. Roy

[QUOTE=hayaku]what are you intending to do with your lift? sounds like you have great ceiling clearance. i have a 9 foot ceiling with a cross beam, making my max useable height 8'6" or so. I have a 2 post low clearance lift in my 3 car garage installed in the 2 car bay. most garage slabs are 4" of 3000 psi concrete by building code. i do all the work on my cars so maximum clearance was necessary for me and opted for a 2 post lift with assymetrical arms.[QUOTE] Hayaku - Send some pics. That sounds great! C.

I installed a Worth 7,000 pound capacity lift. I have used is for about a month now on 3 seperate cars. I got it from Northern Tool. I like it a lot. Little more info: My ceiling height is around 9 feet of usable space as measured fron the I beam you see above the center of the shop. The concrete floor is about 4 inches thick and seems to be sufficient for the load requirements. I have had my 4 door Tahoe on the lift for a brake job, No problem. The lift hydraulic motor is a 220 volt, single phase. this is the specific lift: http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...26123&R=126123 I did the install myself. special tools needed were a concrete hammer drill with a 3/4 inch bit. I used the bucket of my tractor to get the uprights standing, and a sludge hammer to nudge them into exact position. Otherwise you need some wrenches to assemble, and a bit of 220 volt wiring know-how and a good level......

Here is a nice pic

Dooya think yoo have reserved too much space for the BMW?...............??

Here's some pics of my garage.... a work in progress.. it looks quite different now with more organized storage... please excuse the mess and super fast hot rod bikes you see i need a bigger garage...

Unless it is a BMW Motorcycle...

Do check the concrete thickness and specs on the floor... Unless you specified the thickness it will not be what is needed and the specs (I think 4,000) is not what they use as standard spec for normal garages... It is an easy fix, cut a 30"x30" hole on each side (see your install guide for the specifics in the model you select) use a few rebars, 4,000 psi reinforce concrete, 6 inch thick and you are done. Last step is to take photos and share the process with the folks here

specs for most 2 post lift is 4" thick 3000 psi concrete. most building code requires that for the slab. most houses built in the last 10-15 years will have this. 2 post lifts require more strength from the slab then a 4 post or scissor lift. i did pretty intensive research on lifts before i bought mine. called every single manufacturer and talked at length with their engineers for home use installs...

For those of us with "normal sized" garages: Thread -Darren

Darren, I am astounded that that unit will pick up a 3,500 pound car.....I sure would not crawl around under the car I can say that much......maybe I could be convinced otherwise................ BTW the Worth was $2,800 delivered, and came completely assembled except for the cables.

on the contrary, thats a 6000 lb scissor lift with automatic locks... very nice and expensive unit... thats the sane choice for most people who are not willing to give up valuable garage space...

I checked the thread over on the 993 forum looking for some info on the model but didn't find anything. Also tried the snapon online catalog to no avail. I thought that I looked about everywhere but couldn't find any car lifts; found engine hoists & dolleys but no scissor lift. Anyone know the model &/or price estimates for that Snapon lift? thanks, kristap

Snap-On Lift, Mid-Rise (Electric) Stock#: EELR338AP

Thank you, Mitty! Silly me - should have looked under 'A' for above ground lift. Regardless, thanks for the pointer.

You're welcome! Heh, it took me quite a while to find it.

So Mitty, How do you like it? Do you leave it down and just drive over it when not in use? I'm tempted but it is a little $$$$$$. Thanks for the post..

Check out gregsmithequipment.com, they have lifts that go from 48" lift to the full hight lifts like a car dealer might use....

Here's another idea. 6000# portable Bend-Pak lift on sale and free shipping... http://www.asedeals.com/portable_lift.html

that thing takes up the space of a car... and its not easily maneuverable as they claim... i've seen it in action at a local garage, they almost rammed it into the car they were trying to work on... for $3500, i could choose much better ways to spend on a lift... for you guys that aren't willing to give up on garage space and want to save some money, theres a few options: for this one, you cut the holes in the garage slab for the unit to fit flush with the floor. you will also need to cut a channel from one lift to the next for the hydraulic lines. this is flat and flush with the floor... very nice. it has a capacity for 6000 lbs. it goes for about $1800 for just parts. bendpak p-6 flush mount pit lift. this is a surface mount pit lift that you drive over. its not portable either, like the one above. for install, you just bolt it down. but you need to handle the hydraulic line that goes in between. like above, you can cut a channel in the floor for it or you can get a metal tunnel to cover it. it also lifts 6000 lbs. it also goes for about $1800. bendpak p-6 pit lift. and finally the fully portable version of the p6. this of course does not have the clearance down the center aisle. it is movable and based on the same p6 design with 6000 lb capacity. it goes for less then $1400. bendpak lr-60p. and then there are scissor lifts. this one goes for about $1500. it is portable like the snapon one and handles 6000 lbs also. bendpak md-6xp i am not affiliated with bendpak. they make a great lift and are in use by several large shops with great reliability and reputation. i have an autolifters 2 post lift. all of the prices i quoted are from www.gesusa.com edit: the software on this forum can't handle images dynamically called... hmmmm.. just click on the picture links to see what it looks like.

This is not my lift or car (I wish for both), I linked to the original post below the picture. Yes it is pretty expensive, but it is the smallest and easiest to hide. -Darren

Wow, some awsome garages!!!!

You can say that again...............and thanks for all the posts. Some great idea's. Cheers and safe driving.

I looked into 2-post lifts intensively last summer for my (new to me) residential 2-car garage, and my hands-down favorite was the Mohawk A-7, www.mohawklifts.com The posts are 8 feet tall, so the lift fits under normal ceilings. Design quality seemed to me superior to Bendpak and Rotary. Check your garage slab before you buy... Mine was 2.5" thick in places, not enough for me. I was set to spring for a lift but not to repour the garage slab, so no lift for now.

You dont need to re-pour the pad. Jackhammer a 2 foot square hole for each upright. Dig down to a depth of 8 inches and pour a footing for each upright. Use the right kind of concrete mix that will give the proper sheer strength and you will be fine. You could do it all by yourself. Get or rent the rotary hammer drill and you won't need the jackhammer....for extra strength take rebar and shove a foot of it under the old pad with 8 inches sticking into the hole for the footing. Pour the footing over the exposed re-bar.....that footing is going no where....... BTW I looked at the mowhawk site, no prices.......how much does the 7,000 lb lift cost? My Worth was $2,800 bucks, no delivery charge, and it was completely assembled, except for the cables.

Hi Gretch, Low $4k for the A7 not including shipping and installation, as of about 8 months ago. I liked the robust construction, low-maintenance design, and hydraulic (rather than cable) equalization. I had the sense I could pass an A7 lift on to my grandchildren. Re the slab, I talked with the Mohawk folks, and their recommended alternative was to cut a hole and pour a single subpad keyed under the existing slab - subpad being about 1 foot thick, 4 feet wide and long enough to go beyond each post a couple feet. I suspect they recommended a single pad for torsional reasons, although when I did back-of-the-envelope calculations I realized that the sheer mass of the subslab was enough counterbalance to keep the lift from tipping even if the vehicle CG were way out from the geometric plane of the posts. A true "standalone" solution... Of course the official recommendation is sufficient for a 7,000 pound vehicle and likely has a hefty safety margin - my vehicles top out at 4,000 so your solution may have worked fine... I suppose the other half of the story is that I got sidetracked with the rationale that the family would have more fun with a tournament-style ski boat than Dad's lift, and now the garage has an extra inhabitant.

I am curious how they manage the equalization without cables.........what happens if you blow out a hydraulic hose?, especially on the way down (when you have disengaged the safety stops)? At four grand that lift would also have to do basic things like change the oil in my cars by itself, to justify the premium. That subpad recommendation from Mohawk certainly would let you sleep at night....hell you could build a 30 foot tall stone chimney on top of something like that.....How did they recommend you key it into the slab? Just undermine the slab by a foot around the perimiter of the hole? Yep, you could certainly rely on that to go absolutely nowhere. Good luck settleing in on the exact lift you choose.....let us know how it works out.

I just ordered a four post rotary this morning for my temporary space; new two post will be ordered as soon as my permanent space is done. One nice feature of Rotary is that the local dealer will assemble them on site - I am not sure which other lift manufacturers offer this. $3100 base price. Steve 99 996 62 356C 64 356C 76 930

How much do they charge for the install? The two things that took some time were the rotary hammer drilling and running the 220 wiring to the panel. Once I had the uprights in place and the holes marked on the floor, the drilling took maybe a minute a hole. Then I had to eliminate the concrete dust, and install the anchors. I should have prolly used the shop vac, but I just blew the dust away with compressed air. The compressed air works better for getting the loose concrete out of the anchor holes. I spent maybe a couple of hours on the wiring to the panel, most of it just running the wire so it was a presentable install. Cable install took maybe an hour in total, hook up the hydraulic hoses, fill the reservoir and off to the races. Prolly total install time was under 10 hours. I did it myself and took my sweet time about it. I could do it again in less than half the time. I gather the "base price" does not include shipping.......? Seeing the options folks have suggested here, I am pretty happy with the deal I got from Northern........especially as compared to $4k for a sizzor jack....... However I do recognize that each option has its pluses and minuses based on the specific application...I have a lot of space, two farm tractors, a dozen heavy implements and mowers, couple of sleds, couple of ATVs, a truck, three sports cars and a sedan and we are in and out of the shop working on or repairing all this stuff depending on the season. For my application this lift was the "best fruit buy" I could find.....

Gretch: when I had a rotary two post put in a shop a few years ago, installation was free and two guys had it done in 2 hours - they were very efficient, and used dollies and the trucks liftgate to avoid every possibility of heavy lifting. However, now there is a fee, which i didn't get into; i may pay it, or i might make all my buddies who will want to use the new lift help me. Steve

I surely hope that the lifts leaving the wheels hanging down are only used for short term car servicing, not storage. If those cars are left up for a long time, the suspensions (shocks) will be ruined.

oh ****... define long period of time. my car's been sitting on blocks with the wheels hanging down for a few months now :| will taking the rims off avoid this? that snap-on center stand is a very interesting idea and seems to be a good compromise for small space situations. how deep do you need to drill it into the concrete?

oh ****... define long period of time. my car's been sitting on blocks with the wheels hanging down for a few months now :| will taking the rims off avoid this? If the car is in a humid enviornment, it only takes a few weeks for surface rust to start forming on the shock's pistons. Check them out before lowering the car and clean the rust off the best you can and polish then up witha goon non-silicone lube.

1999Porsche911 said it well. You should not unload the suspension for more than a few hours. I would have your suspension checked the first time you bring the car down, and next year I would fill the tires to 55PSI and store the car sitting on the wheels.

Anyone got proof that this is anything more than an old wives tail................?

I asked my mechanic about leaving the car on a lift for an extended period of time. My race car is on jackstands and will be for while I finish some work. BTW, he's one of the best. He proclaims it an old wives tale. He said the reverse tension on torsion bar cars was bad but there is no evidence that it has any negative impact on coilover cars. Just one data point. You should do what you think is best. Jim

i know of a bmw cca racer in ohio that stores his race car up on a 2 post lift with the wheels hanging... he takes it down for races and lapping days/tuning etc... but it's stored up there for long periods of time... i have seen a few cars at dealerships up the entire week while having its engines removed for service, etc...