BendPak Tech Support concerns

[scottmoyer]

I had a high lift added to my garage last week to accommodate a lift. I started researching lifts and came to the conclusion that the BendPak HD-9 might be my best option. While doing research on them, I came to this forum and found many threads regarding the same questions I had.

I am leaning towards the "110V" (120V) unit as my garage is attached to my home and the builder didn't provide power for anything other than garage door openers and a single outlet shared with other rooms in the house. I have seen many posts where 15A service was mentioned as ok. I also saw some that said 20A was required and some that said 30A is recommended.

I called BendPak to get a final answer and was surprised at what I was told. The rep said that the standard 15A would work fine. I suggested that I heard a startup current could exceed 17A and that would trip the circuit. At that point, he said that a 20A would be fine, but 30A is preferred. I told him that I'd have to pull new wire from the panel to get the 30A. His suggestion was to just replace the breaker on the existing 15A line in the garage!

I questioned his liability on making a suggestion to people of installing a 30A breaker on 14-3 wire. He said it should be fine. I said it was fine until the wires overheat and burn the house down! At that point he said he'll look into that and get back to me. Three days and waiting.

Just for the record, anybody adding wiring for their lift, and using 120V/15A service, should consider using 20A. The plug is slightly different and the wire is 12awg, not 14awg.

If you do have it plugged into a standard 120V/15A service, have you had any issues with tripping the circuit?

 

[Keel]

So the guy on the phone isn't an electrician ..
Me , I'd have it on it's own circuit and if that means running a new wire.. so be it.

as for it tripping a 15a .. a light vehicle will take less power than a heavy one..

Me I'd not run it off any 14/3 wire..

problem is the BendPak HD-9
uses a Motor: 220 VAC / 60 Hz / 1 Ph

So you are running a 220vac wire/circuit anyways.

 

[scottmoyer]

The guy on the phone isn't an electrician, yet he tells people how to wire up their unit?

The HD-9 does have a 120V option.

I will be using a 120V/20A service on 12awg wire. I found that the master bath Jacuzzi tub, which hasn't been used in the 14 years we've been in this house, has a 20A service to it. The access panel to the outlet for the tub is in the corner of the garage. I will use that and run new wire from the junction box to where I need it. I can easily disable the connection when we sell the house.

 

[Keel]

The guy on the phone isn't an electrician, yet he tells people how to wire up their unit?

The HD-9 does have a 120V option.

I will be using a 120V/20A service on 12awg wire. I found that the master bath Jacuzzi tub, which hasn't been used in the 14 years we've been in this house, has a 20A service to it. The access panel to the outlet for the tub is in the corner of the garage. I will use that and run new wire from the junction box to where I need it. I can easily disable the connection when we sell the house.

Not per bendpacks own web site..
you got a link.. to this 110v

The phone guy doesn't need to know.. the buyer needs to have an electrician wire it.. or at least read the install directions..
Sure the guy on the phone should've looked it up..
But even if he did and it read a 220v 15a motor.. He is not going to know what wire or breaker to run.. that's why you have electricians ..
Cause frankly if you can't read the motor v and amps rating and know what you need run/ you should not be wiring it.

 

[pattenp]

Technically if the circuit is currently 15A using #14 wire and is dedicated and is a hardwired motor circuit, the breaker can be increased to a 20A breaker and be NEC compliant. If a plug and outlet connection then no increase in the breaker size is allowed.

 

[LXCam]

If you already knew all the answers, why'd you even ask the questions?.

 

[jackson1701]

Is the guy from Bendpak you talked to named Pat by chance?

 

[scottmoyer]

I know the electrical answers that a 30A breaker requires #10 wire, and that 20A is best used with #12. I wanted to hear from the manufacturer if what I was reading online was true. I don't have the lift yet, so I don't have access to the data plate. I'm going only by what I read online that says the current jumps to 17A. The manufacturer should be able to confirm if that is actually the case. Especially when they do have a 120V motor, but all documentation that I found states 220V (240V).

I disagree that the manufacturer tech support doesn't need to know this information. That's be like me calling Dodge and asking if I can run 87 octane in my Hellcat! The manufacturer technical support needs to know the right answer to that question. Telling me that 87 is ok can cause major engine damage. A salesperson is a different case, but technical support should be able to support technical questions.

As for finding proof of 110V option, do a search on garagejournal.com. That's where I got my information!

 

[Ign]

Due to DUTY CYCLE of the lift you're never gonna manage to start a fire. If you can give it a dedicated circuit I wouldn't worry about it one bit.

If you've got other things (receptacles) on the circuit, no, don't just swap the breaker.

 

[Al G]

Not per bendpacks own web site..
you got a link.. to this 110v

The phone guy doesn't need to know.. the buyer needs to have an electrician wire it.. or at least read the install directions..
Sure the guy on the phone should've looked it up..
But even if he did and it read a 220v 15a motor.. He is not going to know what wire or breaker to run.. that's why you have electricians ..
Cause frankly if you can't read the motor v and amps rating and know what you need run/ you should not be wiring it.

120 is an option. Call.any distributor to order one and they'll ask what voltage you want.

 

[Keel]

120 is an option. Call.any distributor to order one and they'll ask what voltage you want.

Then it should be easy for him to find on the web site and put a link here for it.
As the only motor listed for any of the lifts in that series is 220v

A company would list both.. and one would be the optional one..

A distributor changing out a motor is not the builder offering it.

 

[ishiboo]

Due to DUTY CYCLE of the lift you're never gonna manage to start a fire. If you can give it a dedicated circuit I wouldn't worry about it one bit.

If you've got other things (receptacles) on the circuit, no, don't just swap the breaker.

Duty cycle and the fact that the running current is only 17A.

A 20A breaker on #14 should probably be fine, I guess if it were me I wouldn't ever run anything less than #12 to it, and I'd probably choose a 240V motor. Again that's if this is a dedicated motor circuit, and it doesn't go against what they say.

It's important to also consider trip curves on something like this. A 15A QO breaker will put out 30A for 8+ seconds before it trips. Or 45A for almost 3 seconds before it trips. Or a 20A breaker will put out 80A for 1.25 seconds before it trips. Inrush currents can be higher but should be for very short periods of time, and start current/unloading/etc. has everything to do with how bad it'll be and the duration. That (and duty cycle/use cases/etc.) is one of the reasons why manufacturers are allowed to spec out requirements on specific applications like this.

 

[ishiboo]

I know the electrical answers that a 30A breaker requires #10 wire, and that 20A is best used with #12. I wanted to hear from the manufacturer if what I was reading online was true.

That is not necessarily true with specific applications. Air conditioners often will call out both a breaker size AND minimum circuit ampacity. So you will find some with a 25A breaker and #14 wiring, all to code.

Welders are another example since the duty cycles for a home welder are VERY low. I have a Millermatic 252 which is rated at 46A @ 230v. It then specs a 60A circuit breaker at #8 wire.

 

[DerStig]

I had a high lift added to my garage last week to accommodate a lift. I started researching lifts and came to the conclusion that the BendPak HD-9 might be my best option. While doing research on them, I came to this forum and found many threads regarding the same questions I had.

I am leaning towards the "110V" (120V) unit as my garage is attached to my home and the builder didn't provide power for anything other than garage door openers and a single outlet shared with other rooms in the house. I have seen many posts where 15A service was mentioned as ok. I also saw some that said 20A was required and some that said 30A is recommended.

I called BendPak to get a final answer and was surprised at what I was told. The rep said that the standard 15A would work fine. I suggested that I heard a startup current could exceed 17A and that would trip the circuit. At that point, he said that a 20A would be fine, but 30A is preferred. I told him that I'd have to pull new wire from the panel to get the 30A. His suggestion was to just replace the breaker on the existing 15A line in the garage!

I questioned his liability on making a suggestion to people of installing a 30A breaker on 14-3 wire. He said it should be fine. I said it was fine until the wires overheat and burn the house down! At that point he said he'll look into that and get back to me. Three days and waiting.

Just for the record, anybody adding wiring for their lift, and using 120V/15A service, should consider using 20A. The plug is slightly different and the wire is 12awg, not 14awg.

If you do have it plugged into a standard 120V/15A service, have you had any issues with tripping the circuit?

The tech support is the least of your concerns with Bendpak. Take a look at my thread:

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=354731

I have spent around $5500 on their products (3 different of them), not one of them worked without a problem and when I mean a problem, I mean major major issues like welding issues or incorrectly sent parts.

And for the record, I had the same question you did before purchasing my lift along with bunch of other questions. You speak to 5 different people, you get 5 different answers. There is not enough documentation.

-Their manual says at least 1" of cable thread needs to be shown above the nut
-One tech told me 2-3 threads is fine
-Another one told me, as long as the nut has full thread coverage (i.e. not even a single thread) is fine
-Another one told me go with manual

I have a rolling jack that is not level on 4 different directions. Side to side it's so bad that one side of my car is 1/2" higher than the other side when it's lifted. Can you believe that? They came back yesterday and said this is "within spec". Right.

Bottom line is this, and this is my personal interpretation. This company used to be a leader in the lifting industry for many years. Sometime in the recent past, to cut their production costs, they moved operations to China. However, they continued charging the same price. They have a product made in China but they charge U.S. prices. They have a brand name which they have been able to hide under, but I'm sure eventually there will be enough people like me who will speak up.

If I were you, I would buy Rotary. It's a bit more expensive, but made in USA. Believe me, the amount of work I had to do on my lift from painting (due to damage and rust), to troubleshooting, to now also changing the hydraulic power unit (because it leaks) which means redoing every damn connection on it, was ridiculous. They should put me on their payroll and pay me!

 

[DerStig]

I had a high lift added to my garage last week to accommodate a lift. I started researching lifts and came to the conclusion that the BendPak HD-9 might be my best option. While doing research on them, I came to this forum and found many threads regarding the same questions I had.

I am leaning towards the "110V" (120V) unit as my garage is attached to my home and the builder didn't provide power for anything other than garage door openers and a single outlet shared with other rooms in the house. I have seen many posts where 15A service was mentioned as ok. I also saw some that said 20A was required and some that said 30A is recommended.

I called BendPak to get a final answer and was surprised at what I was told. The rep said that the standard 15A would work fine. I suggested that I heard a startup current could exceed 17A and that would trip the circuit. At that point, he said that a 20A would be fine, but 30A is preferred. I told him that I'd have to pull new wire from the panel to get the 30A. His suggestion was to just replace the breaker on the existing 15A line in the garage!

I questioned his liability on making a suggestion to people of installing a 30A breaker on 14-3 wire. He said it should be fine. I said it was fine until the wires overheat and burn the house down! At that point he said he'll look into that and get back to me. Three days and waiting.

Just for the record, anybody adding wiring for their lift, and using 120V/15A service, should consider using 20A. The plug is slightly different and the wire is 12awg, not 14awg.

If you do have it plugged into a standard 120V/15A service, have you had any issues with tripping the circuit?

Also, to answer your question, in my opinion, 20A is fine. 15A I dont know. I wouldnt bother with 30A. Mine runs on 20A.

 

[scottmoyer]

Then it should be easy for him to find on the web site and put a link here for it.
As the only motor listed for any of the lifts in that series is 220v

A company would list both.. and one would be the optional one..

A distributor changing out a motor is not the builder offering it.

Keel, not sure why you have a problem here. I stated that you can find information all over this forum regarding a 110-120V option. The distributors are not swapping out the unit, it's a BendPak unit.

 

[Al G]

Then it should be easy for him to find on the web site and put a link here for it.
As the only motor listed for any of the lifts in that series is 220v

A company would list both.. and one would be the optional one..

A distributor changing out a motor is not the builder offering it.

Click on the catalog sheet link on the website. At the bottom of the sheet there is a note that says special voltages available upon request. The distributor is not changing the motor.

 

[Z2V]

120v was an option when I ordered my HD-9 this past November from Bendpak. I went 220v anyway.