Epoxy Floor VS Scissors Jack

[dmeray1]

My Scissors Jack, floor jack, and jack stands have steel rollers or edges that I am concerned will "jack" an epoxy floor up in a hurry. It seems no matter how careful I may be that I will damage the finish. I am worried I will be more concerned with the garage floor than my oak floors in the house....lol Am I being to paranoid? Should I look at the "Racedeck" type flooring?

 

[Hammerdown]

Any floor is going to suffer damage under this type of scissor jack. The repetitive motion of the steel wheels is hard on the surface. I have not seen them used on a modular flooring system like and think that it would not be as stable than on just a coated floor or bare concrete. It may have trouble rolling over the seams between tiles. We have a Revolution mid-rise scissor lift in my brother-in-laws garage, and it does scratch the surface of his epoxy coating. We painted a safety stripe around the area the jack sits in to "box" it out from the rest of the floor and added additional coats of the color and clear coat. This way as the jack wears out the finish in this area, you can re-coat it and still have it look "correct". Just sand and re-coat in the jack area when needed and it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb. The stripes make the floor look "professional" as well.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Why not add a pair of metal strips as tracks?

 

[Dmtalon]

I discovered yesterday that epoxy vs. metal caster 3ton floor jack = scratched/dented floor. :-(

I completely eliminated making the marks by using an empty cardboard moving box. That got me wondering if there is such a pad/material that would work for this on a regular basis? The cardboard did it's job, but it took a beating in the process and I don't expect it to last very long.

Some looking around I found ONE jack manufacture that sells a poly wheel kit for a floorjack and not really finding much in the way of a pad specifically designed to go under jack casters.

http://www.dsuban.com/American-Forge-35014P-Polyurethane-Wheel-Kit-For-350Gt-350Ss-p900.html

Surprises me that there's only one (unless they don't last/work well).

 

[914wilhelm]

1/8" Masonite, shiny side up.

 

[Dmtalon]

So, where can I get some of this Masonite? I figured Home Depot, but it doesn't seem they have "sheets" / pieces of it. Amazon has some hardboard masonite but seems kind of silly ordering a sub $2 anything off amazon

 

[spyhunter]

I've been testing racedeck type flooring with similar results. Jackstands and a loaded rolling jack leaves permanent marks on the tiles. An unloaded jack does not seem to leave marks.

 

[dmeray1]

Thanks for the inputs. I thought about the masonite....but I am wondering about using thin hardwood sheets...any thoughts? I guess I am having trouble fussing about a nice floor when I know there will be ramps, lifts, jackstands and stuff dropped on it. Since I am in Michigan I am kinda leaning toward a "racedeck" type of floor system. Maybe the area where the lift is can be bare concrete using a cheaper paint just to look nice and have everything else tiled?

 

[914wilhelm]

So, where can I get some of this Masonite? I figured Home Depot, but it doesn't seem they have "sheets" / pieces of it. Amazon has some hardboard masonite but seems kind of silly ordering a sub $2 anything off amazon

If you goto to Home Depot and buy a whole sheet, probably about $15.00, they can rip it into any size(s) you want for a nominal charge, $00.25/cut IIRC. You could probably get one cut into 3 pieces 32" x 48", have spares and be able to cart them home in the back seat of your car.

 

[jhelrey]

I would not trust that lift!

 

[Porschedoc]

I would not trust that lift!

Why not. I have worked on 2 and 4 post lifts professionally, and have a bendpac midrise at my house and it is perfectly stable/safe. It has locking mechanisms just like any other lift. They are rated to about 6000lbs which is plenty for most vehicles. You can push on the car all you want, no way in hell is it ever tipping over.


And yes, it will rip up the epoxy on the floor with about 2 cycles of the lift. Get some thin steel sheet for runners and you will be fine.

 

[MrMark]

I wouldn't use any masonite. That stuff is slick. What about a piece of carpet for the jack stands and floor jack. I was just thinking about this.

 

[dmeray1]

I would not trust that lift!

I don't trust any lift....I bought a couple if high rise jackstands plus the unit has a locking mechanism.

 

[rcplaneguy]

How about stopping the racedeck tiles shy of where the jack is located, letting it move and rest only on the bare concrete?

 

[spyhunter]

Are your jack and jackstands always going to be in the same spot every single time?

I just got a few more samples from floor junkies and greg smith equipment.

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

Why not get two strips of stainless steel, 1/4x4" the length required and drill and countersink the plate for countersunk screws. Place them where they need to be and drill the concrete to match your pattern and use countersink red heads to bolt it down. You would need to bolt down a stop for the fixed end to make sure it is in the same place every time the lift goes up but that should not be a problem.

Should last a lifetime that way without messing anything up and look great in the process.

 

[mayday0017]

+1 for GeorgiaHybrid's idea

 

[Ovidiu]

I discovered yesterday that epoxy vs. metal caster 3ton floor jack = scratched/dented floor. :-(

I've been jacking up my cars and leaving them on stands on epoxy for over 2 years and I have not had one instance where it got dented. Same with jackstands, I had one of my cars on stands for over 4 months and no problem.

 

[dmeray1]

^^^What brand of epoxy did you use?

 

[Ovidiu]

wolverine, I have an install thread here somewhere...