Used lift advice

[BioNerd]

Hello fellas,

I just bought a house with a sewer 2 car attached garage. We are moving in soon, so no pics. I think the ceiling is at 10-12ft high.
I want to find me a used lift, an actual 2 post hydraulic lift.
What would you recommend and discourage from doing and what’s a good budget to work with?


Thank you in advance, I promise lots of pics when the time comes.

 

[zkdiesel]

I will only use rotary or challenger American made lifts. Beware they both have two lines and the quality shows it
But I’m doing it professionally day in and day out on them. Dealer take outs are a good place to get but they will have wear, rust and a premium price.

 

[gizardlizard]

Big difference between a 10’ ceiling and a 12’ ceiling. Better hope it’s the later or you’ll really be limited on what you can comfortably work on.

 

[gizardlizard]

Big difference between a 10’ ceiling and a 12’ ceiling. Better hope it’s the later or you’ll really be limited on what you can comfortably work on.

With that being said, any lift height is better than kneeling down working on a vehicle on jack stands.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I'd be very surprised to see 12' ceilings in a newer attached garage.

Hopefully, the concrete is thick enough as well.


Try searching on Govdeals.

 

[Rc_Guy]

What is a sewer two car garage?

 

[BroncoAZ]

With that being said, any lift height is better than kneeling down working on a vehicle on jack stands.

I haven’t figured out a lift yet, I’m feeling it in my legs after two weekends of consecutive vehicle work on the ground.

 

[Markromeo]

I bought a used SPOA7 Rotary. I put new hoses and new cables on it. Its in decent shape, to me, to some its probably on the rough side. I paid $800 for the lift, and probably have 3-400 in hoses and cables. It works perfectly. I am overall very happy with it vs what I have invested. If I really wanted to make it nice, I'd get the arms painted up nice and yellow again, and touch up where the Rotary blue has worn off and gotten surface rusty from years of being exposed to moisture in a dealership.

 

[Daedalus]

Big difference between a 10’ ceiling and a 12’ ceiling. Better hope it’s the later or you’ll really be limited on what you can comfortably work on.

Yeah, and even a 12'-0" ceiling wouldn't be enough for some lifts. The columns have to be angled into place, which makes them a bit longer (hypotenuse) till they're vertical. Though I wouldn't want the headache that comes with having a short 2-post with stuff running across the floor.

 

[gizardlizard]

Yeah, and even a 12'-0" ceiling wouldn't be enough for some lifts. The columns have to be angled into place, which makes them a bit longer (hypotenuse) till they're vertical. Though I wouldn't want the headache that comes with having a short 2-post with stuff running across the floor.

Correct. Which is why I did this.

 

[Daedalus]

Hah. Bet those don't poke all the way through the roof like mine did. Ran the cross-member just over the ridge.

 

[gizardlizard]

They don’t. Where I wanted my lift, I only had 11’-8” of headroom to work with. Where there is a will, there is a way. I had a lot of will lol. I had to cut out the concrete too and dig, and key under the slab. It was all worth it and would do it again in a heartbeat.

 

[dave*99]

I have a Rotary SPOA10. It came from a business that outfits dealers and shops. He had about 7 at the time I bought it. Mine was in great shape. Not much wear at all. He also delivered and installed it at a great price. About half the price of what a new one costs uninstalled.

Note that there are symmetric and asymmetric lifts. Mine is asymmetric. It allows easier access to the doors to get in and out of the vehicle.

There are floor plate lifts for lower ceilings (cables run under a steel plate that is on the floor between lift posts)
Clear floor lifts.
Narrow configuration settings for narrow bays

Many details to review once you know your bay dimensions.

 

[kbeefy]

They also have extra wide lifts, makes getting in and out a little easier.

Thats what I have, 10k xtra wide BendPak.

 

[ColoradoMech]

If you are looking for a used lift, find a company that installs lifts and ask if they have any used ones on hand. A lot of times they will or if you ask they might give you a call if they get one in the future. Otherwise FB marketplace or Craigslist are your best bet but its hit or miss. A good budget for a used 8-9k lift is $2500-3000 or so. A new one is like $4-5k for an overseas brand. In a professional setting I would only touch Rotary or Mohawk but those are also the 2 most expensive brands and for a good reason. Rotary is in pretty much every dealership you step into however there are plenty of members here that have Atlas, Forward, Bendpak, and others and are happy with them for home use. Id personally stay away from Bendpak however that's my own personal opinion based on stories and nothing more.

Few tips:

-Make sure you concrete is to spec. Most lifts need 4.5" of reinforced 5000psi concrete until you get into the 14k + llfts.
-Some lifts can run 120v but many are 240v so take that into consideration.
-I have heard of ones that require air to deactivate the saftey locks but havent seen one myself but just keep that in mind if you dont have an air compressor. Most use a cable for the locks.
-As others have said, you can notch our your ceiling to make room in some situations

 

[dave*99]

^ Good advice there.
My Rotary SPOA10 manual calls for a touch less in the concrete spec.

 

[haveissues]

You are going to have to find out how high the ceiling is and thickness of the concrete. If you have enough of both I would suggest trying to find a used lift used by a homeowner. My rotary I bought was practically new.

 

[BioNerd]

Great answers guys, I have something to work with now!
Thanks

 

[housewolf]

I was doing the plumbing work at a Lincoln dealership that was being renovated so had a unique opportunity to buy three (all that would fit on my trailer) Challenger/AMMCO 9K# lifts for $1,500. The guys doing the demo were able to load them directly on to my trailer after taking them down so it made it real easy on them. The hardest part was making sure I got all the loose pieces that came with. They are probably over 20 years old but were still being used daily so I knew they worked. I sold the other two so basically got mine for just the headache of getting them. Only issue was, I didn’t end up with the lift I’d “cherry picked” for myself because we loaded them in the wrong order and I didn’t want to have to deal with unloading and reloading them on the trailer. I was able to find the installation guide online and my son and I installed it in half a day. I didn’t repaint mine, just pressure washed it and set it up. It’s ugly but works fine.
I sold my other two to friends for $800 ea but I would imagine the actual value to be ~$1,500.

 

[jonesg]

Great answers guys, I have something to work with now!
Thanks

the depth of the concrete and head room will dictate whether you are limited to a mid rise lift or scissor type lift.
funny thing is the 2 post low rise (50 inch height) lifts cost at least $1000 more than the full size ones.
its doubtful you have headroom for a 9 footer.

i removed and poured most of my garage floor last summer, its not an easy diy job but it was badly broken and heaved so it needed doing regardless, i made it deeper and rebar reinforced it.

if your floor isn't badly broken i wouldn't replace, maybe just do deeper 3x3 footers.... or get a decent scissor lift.

 

[dave*99]

There is lots of advice on GJ about how much concrete you need. The manufacturer states the requirements in their installation materials. GJ folks often inflate those specs. I went thicker in the 2 installations I did. They were both new pours so it was easy.

With an existing floor, you won't know what you have until the hammer drill breaks through.

One piece of advice a lift installer gave me proved to be valuable. He said drill all the way through the concrete - or at least 2X as deep as the anchors are long. If you ever remove the lift you can hammer the anchors flush to the floor. Twelve years after I installed the lift I moved and took it with me. That advice was very useful.

 

[bb29510]

my toyota tacoma take 12'6 for me to walk under it, Im 5'5