low ceiling garage & car lifts??

[joesnow]

Thinking about maybe getting a car lift. Garage ceiling is low. Any carpenters with suggestions? Thinking about a low 2 post lift.
The car can go up aprox 34" Changing trans are a pain on your back. Any suggestions please?
Thanks.

 

[wannadrag]

Either need to raise the roof or put a pit in.

 

[daredevil]

or get knee pads lol. maybe you could cantilever the trusses over the lift.

 

[69 Runner]

Theoretically you need 14' for a car at the top of a lift with the hood open

 

[joesnow]

Thinking about 0ne of these maybe.
http://www.asedeals.com/pit_lifts.html
http://www.carguygarage.com/lbsportabletwop.html

 

[696pack]

What is your intended purpose and use for the lift?

I wanted a 4 post lift so I could store two cars in one space (one car under the other.)

I had a two year old house with a garage ceiling just under 10'
I bought a lift and cut the sheet rock out of the ceiling and then used 2x4s to box the trusses horizontially and vertically to the upper portions of the existing truss structure. After I had all of this done, I cut the bottom of the truss horizontials that were inside the new "box." I had to cut out three 2X4s that made up the lower portion of each of these trusses. Then I finished the inside of the box with sheetrock. The roof structure trusses were twice as strong as it was originally when I was finished with it.

The only problem was that when I cut the original ceiling out, I found that EVERY wire for the house ran right over the middle of this area coming from the breaker box. I had to extend and re-route all of these wires around this new box.

In the end, I had a ceiling pocket that allowed the roof of the car to extend an additional 24" up into the box (this was a gabled roof over the garage so there was an issue with the available clearence on one side) for enough lift height to store my 1966 Coronet 2 door sedan up on the lift and drive my 1966 Corvette Coupe under the lift.

You will need to determine the height of your top car (the one on the lift) at the tops of the fender or the points of near contact of the windshield and rear glass area. You then need to determine if you have enough clearance under the lift at this point to drive the second car in.

Remember, if you have a typical garage door that retracts into the garage it will have to clear over the top of the rear quarters. The top (or roof) of the car is all I was concerned about recessing into the new "box" in the ceiling.

Measure, measure, measure!!! Then measure again.

You will have to know where you are going to position the lift in the garage for the car to fit on the lift, clearance the overhead door, etc. You will want the front of the car as far forward in the garage as possible when it is up on the lift and make sure the overhead door will not hit the back of the car when it is in the raised position.

Hope this helps you out.

Where there is a will there is usually a way.

 

[joesnow]

Detached block garage.Of course the main support runs across both bays the wrong way. No trusses old school frame. I guess a carpenter/framer is who I need to talk to.
2 post for working on cars. I am getting tired of laying on my back under the car.
The ground clearance keeps getting lower the older I get. Ha Ha.

 

[chrisssteeven]

I believe you can get four posts lifts that are movable and they make two post lifts but they must be bolted to the floor and require a certain amount to concrete thickness.Theres people here that can help u better i am sure but also i know there are some good garage forums.

 

[Donny]

A typical car garage? Ok, I ran that idea down a few years ago. First of all, if you live in a neighborhood with a HOA; forget about it. No one will want you pulling mechanic duties in your house -- the garage is considered part of the house. Zoning regulations will likely prohibit you from doing this. Plus, selling the house after a lift was in the garage would be an almost impossibility!

But, if you live in a Bubba neighborhood (been there, done that, and love Bubba's b/c I am one even though we live in a nice house now) they likely won't care, hell, your neighbors may want to come over if they even get their car off jack stands out in the street.

What was my answer? Craigslist. I found a shop for lease with an apt and bathroom, and a lift, and way bigger than any garage for way less than I anticipated! Needless to say, that place is HEAVEN!!!!

 

[Histoy]

I used to have a Kwik Lift. You drive up on the ramp, then lift the rear with a floor jack until the rear legs of the ramp drop down. I've changed a lot of transmissions with that lift.

 

[joesnow]

Sorry to hear you have to deal with HOA. We live in a small town, but we have an acre of land. Most neighbors have 1-4 acres. Bigger nice homes with no dumb zoning laws. My "Bubba" garage won't be a promblem. I have rented a garage for years in the past, I'm not into leaving home to work on my car anymore.
This is the one I'm leaning toward.
Any thoughts?

www.asedeals.com/two-post-lifts-maxjax.html

 

[696pack]

A typical car garage? Ok, I ran that idea down a few years ago. First of all, if you live in a neighborhood with a HOA; forget about it. No one will want you pulling mechanic duties in your house -- the garage is considered part of the house. Zoning regulations will likely prohibit you from doing this. Plus, selling the house after a lift was in the garage would be an almost impossibility!

But, if you live in a Bubba neighborhood (been there, done that, and love Bubba's b/c I am one even though we live in a nice house now) they likely won't care, hell, your neighbors may want to come over if they even get their car off jack stands out in the street.

What was my answer? Craigslist. I found a shop for lease with an apt and bathroom, and a lift, and way bigger than any garage for way less than I anticipated! Needless to say, that place is HEAVEN!!!!

I lived in a subdivision with an HOA with regards to the lift and modifications I made to the garage ceiling to make it fit. Your HOA has NOTHING to say about what is inside of your garage. It's concerns are for unapproved exterior changes to your home. The only time anyone sees your lift is when the garage door is opened, they could care less if you are stacking cars for storage.

If you are using the lift for paying customers you will not only have a problem with your HOA but also the city or county because a residential area is not zoned for this business work.

When I sold the house I removed the lift, and left the raised area in the ceiling. The buyer asked about it and I told them what had taken place. They wanted me to pay for and have it inspected by a stuctural engineer and have him sign off on it. I refused but was confident enough in my own work to give them a written guarantee for material and workmanship for 5 years for that modification. They bought the house.

 

[Donny]

Good deal 696, hope it works good, glad to hear it!