Lift as Attic Ladder

[beartoothweb]

I was doing some design, and it occurred to me...I don't want to spend $400 on an attic ladder for 12' ceilings, NOR do I want to try to climb up a normal ladder with storage stuff for the attic.

I'm wondering if any of you guys have tried using your lift as a materials lift for attic storage. The lift height on my lift is 6'7", which leaves 5'3" with the 12' ceiling. Obviously, that doesn't get the goods into the hole as is, but my head would be above the hole, and I could lift things up and in, then climb in and move it around. With a little ingenuity, I could add a platform or something to get it higher as well.

Just some crazy thoughts. Seems easier than lifting a 50lb box up a 12' ladder.

???

 

[tfi racing]

Thanks for reminding me!I was staring at the ceiling yesterday trying to decide where to put the attic access,now I have more to consider... You may want to get a ten or twelve foot stepladder anyways,they come in pretty handy if you have tall ceilings,especially during construction.

 

[beartoothweb]

Thanks for reminding me!I was staring at the ceiling yesterday trying to decide where to put the attic access,now I have more to consider... You may want to get a ten or twelve foot stepladder anyways,they come in pretty handy if you have tall ceilings,especially during construction.

I have a 20' extension and a very nice 12' step ladder (fiberglass), so no worries there.

 

[Brad54]

Thanks for reminding me!I was staring at the ceiling yesterday trying to decide where to put the attic access,now I have more to consider... You may want to get a ten or twelve foot stepladder anyways,they come in pretty handy if you have tall ceilings,especially during construction.

And changing light bulbs!
The ceiling half my basement is 12-feet, as is my shop.
that first light bulb change was expensive! (Didn't have a ladder tall enough)

As for the material handling, I think it's a great idea. I see no reason you couldn't make a simple ladder, out of 2x4s even, and anchor it to the ceiling joists, hinging it so it swings up into the attic. Make a swing-down set of steps with the feet on your lift, and walk right into the attic with the parts.

-Brad

 

[e-tek]

YES!! My first attic access was in the centre, but then I cut another when I put in my lift, so I could do jys that. But I have an 11 foot ceiling and the extra tall BP lift, so I don't have to lift quite as far! I don't put tto much up there, just stuff I won't need for a long time.

 

[mikeyr]

been using my lift as a attic ladder for years now, love it, nice stable platform to get things up there with. I have 10ft. ceilings so only about 2ft. from lift to attic. Works great.

 

[kvom]

My garage has 13' ceiling, 16" joists, and a 25' clear span. I originally specified a trap door to the space above (habitable), but the engineering analysis showed that the necessary adjustments to the joists would be too expensive.

 

[gsport]

i've got 14' walls and i'm in the process of insulating them right now... i use my four post lift with castors as a scafolding...

 

[avc8130]

You could use the lift to get you close...then use a normal set of attic stairs setup to land on the lift.
ac

 

[Wardster]

I bought a scissor lift to get in my loft instead of installing stairs. Since it is mobile, I was able to use it to install lighting and store misc lengths of pipe in the rafters. will eventually use it to insulate/close in the ceiling. My shop space is 30'x55' with 20' side walls. Best purchase I have made so far for my space.

-Wardster

 

[JebNY]

I saw on a different forum a year or so ago a fellow that had a loft along the back of his shop. He had it setup so he could load his pickup with what he wanted in the loft, back onto the lift and lift it up. He had the hight such that he could roll stuff off the back of his pickup right into the loft. Seemed like a great setup.

I have a 4'X6' trap door in my second floor and use a front end loader on my tractor to get close and lift things the rest of the way for big items. I just use a pallet on the forks.

Jeb