Two post lift with platform as attic elevator?

[Orionrising]

Anyone every used a lift for attic access?

I have a 36x22 or so garage attic that would make a great woodshop expect its 12 feet in the air...
Looking at standard floor truss tables it appears to have a 50lbs per foot or greater live load rating which should be plenty as long as I dont get carried away with large tools, and mind placing them on the same spans, though i have to track down the manufacture and verify.

I have been looking at various makeshift pulley systems people have built, and thinking about gantries.

Then I looked at high rise car lifts... which there is one or two that go high enough but they area wicked expensive.....

Then I realized.... Do it in two strokes not one.

MY thinking is get a open topped two post lift that has a 6' capacity...

build a 6'x8' or so low bottom platform to lift with it...

lift to 6' roll another platform with a 6 foot interlocking frame on it... drop platform on frame, put lift down, lift up 2nd platform...

viola... 12 foot lift.

Wouldn't be lift anything more then 500 lbs or so, and it would be an excuse to get a lift anyway....

any thoughts? as long as the platforms interlock so the second one cant fall off, it appears to be a very safe method of doing it I think.

Would be controlled from the bottom, so none of the usual crush safety issues with makeshift elevators, would but a tiny capacity of the lift....


off to sketchup I go.

 

[deepstuff]

I thought of doing the same sort of thing and was looking for a 4-post lift for this purpose thins got me thinking a 2 post may do it. With a proper canterlever platform.
My attic floor is about 11 feet up from main floor. May garges as an attic in its front section and cathedral ceiling in the back. Attic access is through a doorway in interior vertical wall between attic and cathedral ceilings. Thought if i could loft it 6 feet with car hoist i could be on hoist and pass it the rest of the way. My hoist will b under cathedral ceiling.
As anyone ever used a two post ramp to put motor cycles or snowmobiles on shelving built to the side of the ramp?

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[Orionrising]

a qucik mockup, with the first to scale lift I found in the sketchup library.

 

[canuckian]

The guy I bought my Trans am from had a 4 post on the lower level of his warehouse that he used to bring cars to the storage loft on the 2nd floor. Drive it on, lift it , flip the ramps down and drive off. Pretty slick setup. He also had a platform on some type of winch or chain hoist for lifting motorcycles and parts to the second floor.

 

[Orionrising]

4 post would too expensive only one I found with 12 foot lift was like 8 k which is getting to the point it's cheaper to expand the building

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[Ray916MN]

My 4 post lifts to 7'. If I put a platform on the top of the bed of my pickup truck I can easily get to 5'. I'd be inclined to put what I wanted lifted on the 4 post. Raise it to 5'. Back the truck up and transfer what needed to be lifted onto a platform on top of the bed. Drive the truck onto the lift and raise whatever needs to be stored to 12'.

If the load was hoistable, I'd probably just hook it with my engine hoist, roll the hoist onto the lift, raise the lift and get it into storage that way.

 

[ard]

Go to youtube and search for garage elevator lift (various terms)...there are a TON of solutions. 120V winch, steel channels on 2 corners, you can do 500 lbs EASY.

 

[wssix99]

MY thinking is get a open topped two post lift that has a 6' capacity...

You'll find some examples of people doing this with 4 post lifts. Not sure if you will find too many people who have done this with a 2 post lift and lived to tell the tale... (2 post lifts require balanced loads, so you wouldn't be able to safely roll off the loads you are lifting to the second level)

 

[Orionrising]

correct, removing the load would require supporting the platform at 2nd story level, probably by over lifting and sliding joists under, though what I am envisioning now is basically pallett size, so it should be evenly supported at 4 corners.

 

[matt_i]

I am not sure if you have the Mohawk already but you can buy a fixable forklift for less than the lift. The 3 stage mast will accomplish what you want to do plus more.

You might also be able to design (or have designed) a steel truss to integrate into the structure and bear on the walls with some additional column supporting so you can use a chainfall hoist.

The biggest pain would probably be pushing materials up and projects down.

 

[Orionrising]

nah do not have any lift, the mohawk was just the first sketchup model I found in the library that appeared to be to scale.

I had considered a hoist, basically buying a commercial gantry and mounting it above a suitably size beam and posts on the 2nd floor. at that point I am at half the price of a lift, and a lift would be nice to have in general.

I supposed I could size a steal beam and put it on posts in a similar manner cheaper than the gantry, and control the swing of the platform with a track similar to what other folks have done. What I do not want to do and dont trust is mounting the beam to the roof truss.

 

[mike93lx]

Would it be the only way to get up and down? Seems like a second means of egress would be prudent.

 

[Orionrising]

there is an exterior stair. for man access.

First setback.... pulled the truss tag, and it appears they went out of business in 2011... will have to try and track down if anyone bought the place and might have design records. It appears to be a standard truss for them, being labled with 26' GAT.

 

[Onewolf]

50 lbs/sq ft live load rating seems pretty high unless someone had the foresight to plan for heavy stuff in the attic. I would definitely want confirmation from the truss/building engineer.

 

[Orionrising]

It's a one piece attic truss from with the floor being a 18" 2x4 floor truss 16" on center.

Definitely do need to talk to a truss engineer about it

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[Orionrising]

Yep truss company be dead http://www.freepressonline.com/Cont...Article/Sprowl-Mill-Auction-VIDEO/52/78/19664. No mention of any of it being sold. Not many competitors though will have to see if any of them are selling direct equivalents.

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[Orionrising]

http://alpineitw.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Floor-Truss-Span-Tables.pdf

by the table the floor load is 40psf I think. ( truss plates are 4x2, web is 3x2)

the roof itself is gambrel scissor truss.

and my understanding of that is the roof load would be transferred directly down into the walls, and the floor truss is basically a rafter tie in this situation?

or is it not likely to be anywhere near that loading, dont want to go pay a truss company to run it if not.

 

[Orionrising]

and the back 14 feet they left the original center beam up which makes it a span of 12 feet... or 85 psf ( have to check the beam sizing)

 

[Orionrising]

alrighty spoke with an engineer at work... I am correct that 40psf live load is the minimum a floor truss would be built to.

Now I need to either flesh out my lift idea, design a gantry, or find a reasonably priced forklift with 12' capacity. (checked craigslist, no dice on that one yet)

 

[Orionrising]

hmm other then would need to rig up a electric pump... this would work with my double platform idea for $1200 bucks... 8 foot lift, so would need to make a 4 high pallet to put stuff on with a little lip to grab upstairs floor for stability.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200442246_200442246

 

[wssix99]

alrighty spoke with an engineer at work... I am correct that 40psf live load is the minimum a floor truss would be built to.

Now I need to either flesh out my lift idea, design a gantry, or find a reasonably priced forklift with 12' capacity. (checked craigslist, no dice on that one yet)

If I were doing this, I'd just put a portable chain hoist upstairs. It would be much simpler/safer and all the loads get transferred to the floor, where whatever you are lifting would eventually sit. Then you could roll that hoist around for other projects you might be doing upstairs.

 

[Bob in HSV]

A fork lift is the easiest solution. Plus there a hundred uses you will find for it. Makes the best engine hoist, can lift one end of about the heaviest car or truck, with a trailer ball on a fork makes the best precision placement device, and many more. I moved and no longer have a second floor mezzanine. Electric ones are great and make little noise and no smell of LP fumes. I really miss my forklifts. I had one elec and one LP.