2 post

[carlsheritt]

I have a 2-post lift in my garage and noticed that the nuts securing it the floor are a bit looser than I think they should be. Does anyone have a ballpark torque figure for these? The lift was there when I bought the house so I don't have any information on it. I was thinking 100ft-lbs would be a reasonable number.

Also, does anyone know of anyone who services lifts in the northeast Philly/Lower Bucks County Pennsylvania area? If not, any ideas on what to look for in the phone book? I just want someone to check it out because I don't want a car or truck falling on me.

 

[Todd.Brock]

I have a Nussbaum 2 post and torqued to 175 lbft. Not sure if it matters but I used 3/4" x6" anchors per Nussbaum recommendations. Not ure about service.

 

[stioc]

Do you know the manufacturer? If you do you should be able to request the installation guide or manual for it with all the specs etc.

 

[carlsheritt]

It is an Aero-lift lift. I can't find any information about this company however. I believe I have the same size anchors, but there is no hope of torquing these nuts properly. I think the previous owner installed it himself over the garage floor which may not be the correct thickness. I tried to torque it to 75ft-lbs and one anchor is not holding at all and I suspect I will pull the others up if I try to torque them.

I think I'm going to have to remove the lift, remove the slab, repour it to the correct thickness, and reinstall the lift. I don't see another option really.

 

[OldCarGuy]

I wouldn’t be so quick to say the concrete floor is too thin. Either pull out one of the anchors or drill a hole through the floor using a masonry bit. Then measure the thickness. If the floor thickness is over 4" or the manufacturer’s recommended minimum thickness you’re good to go. If it’s impossible to pull the anchors out, a more likely scenario, try pounding them the rest of the way through the floor. Hopefully the holes were drilled all the way through the floor. Then install the epoxy style anchors...

.

 

[jcp907]

Worst case you can cut the area out where you want the lift to mount and re-pour that small section to your specification, instead of the entire slab.

 

[ron in sc]

I very recently had a Rotary lift installed. I think they said when they tightened the nuts they tightened to 150 ft lbs. They said to check them periodically and tighten to 90 ft lbs.

 

[carlsheritt]

I checked and the slab is about 6in thick. However, the some of anchors are pulling out and it seems like the slab is cracking a little bit. The lift seems to work fine, but now I'm worried about safety standing under it. I need to fix it somehow.

Thinking about it, if the slab is thick enough throughout the entire garage and structurally sound, there is a second 10 foot bay door and I wouldn't really mind having the lift on that side instead. I could move it over to there if I have to disassemble it anyway.

 

[carlsheritt]

Also, does anyone have any idea if the anchors pulling out could have been caused by failure to maintain proper torque on the nuts rather than a problem with the underlying concrete?

 

[Buckled]

Odds are the concrete had nothing to do with it. If you're not seeing cracking at the surface of the concrete, than the rest is likely solid. It's very coincidental that I just (tonight) pulled (by hand) one of the bolts out of the floor at my father in laws shop. The anchor was a very cheap mechanical anchor (wedge) that looked like it never really fully expanded in the hole. Try hitting the nut with an impact wrench. If that doesn't do it, loosen the nut and hit the top of the bolt with a hammer. This should reset the wedge part of the mechanical anchor. Once it's reset you should be able to slowly pull it out of the hole and like "Old Car Guy" mentioned replace it with epoxy anchors.

 

[jezlberry]

3/4 " Anchors should be torqued to 100 foot pounds

Never, Never (did I stress Never?) try to pull the anchor up out of the floor unless you are prepared to repour the pad!!!!!! Anchors go one way, DOWN!

Now that you know how thick the floor is, you could try to drive the anchor through the floor and inspect the hole. I suspect you have a Chinese lift since I've never heard the name. Some of these lifts were supplied with metric anchors which we typically threw away and replaced with Hilti or Redheads. But if someone drilled a 3/4 hole and tried a metric anchor, the result is what you are experiencing. If you can drive the anchor through, then get yourself a set of Hilti Anchors before you try the epoxy route. Usually we have found this to be a good solution.

And Never use an impact wrench to tighten the anchors. All of the anchor manufacturers state this clear as day in their instrucions!!!!

HTH
Brian

 

[Buckled]

If the anchor is not holding there is no issue with pulling it out of the concrete "by hand", it will do no damage to the concrete. Hitting lightly with an impact wrench should do no damage to an anchor that has lost it's hold in concrete, but if you are concerned tighten it by hand and see if it holds. If it doesn't hold just take it out by hand and replace with threaded rod and epoxy.

Odds are you won't be able to drive the anchor through the floor because of the base material below it.

 

[carlsheritt]

The lift appears to be Canadian made. I found some info about the manufacturer on it (Aero-Lift 390 Tappscott Road, Scarborough, Ontario Canada, 416-297-1500). They seem to be out of business.

I was able to pull one of the problem anchors out by hand with basically no effort. Its a 3/4 inch anchor, but was only seated 2 inches into the concrete. The hole bottoms out at this point. If the other anchors are the same (which is likely) they are also not drilled through the concrete either, but seated about 4 inches in. I want to contact someone knowledgeable about lift installation, but don't know how to find someone in my area. I'd like to be changing the clutch in my truck, but I have to fix this first .

Also, the anchor looks like this: http://www.toolbarn.com/product/simpson/WA75700/ and is 6 inches long

 

[pattenp]

The anchor bolt size and type determine the torque required. 3/4" as you pointed to in the link are typically set at 150' lbs and then reset to 80' lbs. Just drill your holes deeper than the bolt length and put in new bolts for the ones you can pull out.

 

[6t7gto]

I watched a company install a 2 post at my friend's shop two months ago.
The installer drilled the anchor holes all the way thru the concrete floor.
Which I was surprised to see.
Dropped the anchor bolts in.
Tightened them with his electric impact wrench then went over them with his torque wrench.

Don't recall the torque setting.

david
P.S.
The anchor bolts needed to be tapped into the holes with a hammer.