Working under your lift - stand or sit?

[HMushman]

I am about to purchase Bendpak HD-9 for my garage. I would only be able to raise the car to about 52" before the roof hits the ceiling. So, this means that I will be working from my knees (no thanks) or sitting on a rolling stool. My question is, is anyone else in this position? I am wondering at this point if it is even worth it to get the lift? Should I just continue to work on my back? It seems that that height puts the wheels to about stomach/chest height which would be good for brake/suspension work but I am more concerned with exhaust, trans, etc. while I am under the car.

So, if you have direct experience here, please I would really appreciate your time because my finger is on the trigger and would love to know if people work this way and actually can do significant work like rear end, trans, exhaust, etc.

Thank you so much!

 

[Kaizen]

Eh the stuff I’ve done under my lift I can’t imagine being in a stool trying to get leverage and not move. Tough call. Definitely can see benefit even getting it up to a foot and using a creeper vs ramps.
No way ceiling can be modified? You sure concrete is thick enough? Maybe something else will negate your decision


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[wcp0611]

I couldn't imagine sitting under a lift for too long. I know I stand under mine and am constantly moving around for better angles and leverage, etc. Sitting would get so irritating after only a few minutes. With that said, if that's what your situation calls for, then you do what works to have a lift. You'll thank yourself for the ease of access a lifted vehicle offers. Does the ceiling/roof framework allow for you to cut into it and box in a shallow vaulted ceiling over the lift? Budget would just depend on how pretty you want it to look after installation.

 

[txvwnut]

I’ve got mid-rise lifts so I’m on a stool when working under a car. It’s really not an issue for me where if I need to get more leverage or can’t get to what I need to while sitting I’ll just kneel.

 

[HMushman]

Eh the stuff I’ve done under my lift I can’t imagine being in a stool trying to get leverage and not move. Tough call. Definitely can see benefit even getting it up to a foot and using a creeper vs ramps.
No way ceiling can be modified? You sure concrete is thick enough? Maybe something else will negate your decision

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Ha, I know, having something else to just knock it out would be good. I finally have some extra money and I am so sick of working on my back I am ready to just do it but I have this nightmare that I will be just lifting it high enough to lay under it as after a while sitting will be worse!

I am going to call a contractor tomorrow to get an estimate to make a pocket in the roof or raise part of it, if it is just insane then that will kill the deal but if it is reasonable like a few thousand then that would be doable...Thank you for your input!

 

[HMushman]

I couldn't imagine sitting under a lift for too long. I know I stand under mine and am constantly moving around for better angles and leverage, etc. Sitting would get so irritating after only a few minutes. With that said, if that's what your situation calls for, then you do what works to have a lift. You'll thank yourself for the ease of access a lifted vehicle offers. Does the ceiling/roof framework allow for you to cut into it and box in a shallow vaulted ceiling over the lift? Budget would just depend on how pretty you want it to look after installation.

That is what I was thinking, the moving around to get better angles and leverage...great points!! So yes, I will call tomorrow to get some quotes to mod the ceiling..Thank you as well!

 

[HMushman]

I’ve got mid-rise lifts so I’m on a stool when working under a car. It’s really not an issue for me where if I need to get more leverage or can’t get to what I need to while sitting I’ll just kneel.

Okay sounds good as well, this is also what I was looking for, someone that is okay with it. Thank you!

 

[pbon]

It’s better than not having a lift. But if you can raise your ceiling so you can get your car high enough so you can stand under it, that is ideal.

 

[HMushman]

It’s better than not having a lift. But if you can raise your ceiling so you can get your car high enough so you can stand under it, that is ideal.

True!

 

[kaymccampbell]

I have a mid rise lift, so I lay down, or sit tailor fashion, on the creeper. Sometimes I just sit on the floor.

 

[HMushman]

I have a mid rise lift, so I lay down, or sit tailor fashion, on the creeper. Sometimes I just sit on the floor.

Good to know as well, thanks!

 

[jsaw]

I have a midrise at home, and at work our ceilings are not high enough to lift high top vans , so I spend lots of time sitting on a rolling stool. It sure beats not having a lift.

 

[HMushman]

I have a midrise at home, and at work our ceilings are not high enough to lift high top vans , so I spend lots of time sitting on a rolling stool. It sure beats not having a lift.

Awesome, thanks for the input but would you say at that height compared to full height doing a trans or rear end? Easier just on jack stands or still better sitting down rather than on the back...

Thank you.

 

[nzjkb5]

So, has anybody used a rolling office chair under a medium-rise lift? We are buying a house with a garage that has a 10' 6" ceiling, and that's what I was planning on using (because I have a spare one) under a future lift, but a rolling stool would probably work well too.

 

[Kaizen]

So, has anybody used a rolling office chair under a medium-rise lift? We are buying a house with a garage that has a 10' 6" ceiling, and that's what I was planning on using (because I have a spare one) under a future lift, but a rolling stool would probably work well too.

I’d only use a no back rolling stool so if something did go wrong I wasn’t stopped by arms and back. With just a stool you can roll off it.


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[Kaizen]

Ha, I know, having something else to just knock it out would be good. I finally have some extra money and I am so sick of working on my back I am ready to just do it but I have this nightmare that I will be just lifting it high enough to lay under it as after a while sitting will be worse!



I am going to call a contractor tomorrow to get an estimate to make a pocket in the roof or raise part of it, if it is just insane then that will kill the deal but if it is reasonable like a few thousand then that would be doable...Thank you for your input!

Honestly I did brakes last month and just jacked up the wheel. I find it a pain to get a car on my two post. Never used one before so didn’t know. If I am off an inch with my truck I can puncture the fuel tank. My versa if I’m off the fender starts to buckle. Several rounds of adjust and lift. Definitely see trading this for a 4 post as I age.


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[Sureshot]

Get a rolling stool or two. I use mine all the time for different height items. Get yourself a rolling cart or two as well to wheel right under with you. I'm getting to the age where all the extra steps are felt.

 

[ehsan]

I have a mid-rise and I happily use a rolling stool when I'm under the car. Way way better than being on jack stands. I needed to replace the clutch on my race car and had to put it on jack stands since the mid rise won't allow you to drop the trans and I forgot how much it ***** to be laying on your back on a creeper.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

No I always just stand but after a long day my legs kill me so sitting would be nice I just don’t want anyone else using my mechanics seat so I only use it at home and not at work


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[glentre]

I have a four post lift that allows me to walk under any vehicle I put on it. However, some work lends itself to sitting on my rolling motorcycle seat and in those cases, I only raise the vehicle to sitting height. Not uncomfortable at all.

Glen

 

[ronr80]

I also have an HD-9, I only sit if I'm polishing wheels or cleaning the sides , R

 

[wcp0611]

Honestly I did brakes last month and just jacked up the wheel. I find it a pain to get a car on my two post. Never used one before so didn’t know. If I am off an inch with my truck I can puncture the fuel tank. My versa if I’m off the fender starts to buckle. Several rounds of adjust and lift. Definitely see trading this for a 4 post as I age.


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Same here for just jacking it up for brakes. I don't pull a car onto the lift unless it's a big job or just going to take a while.

 

[CraigStu]

Your low ceiling lift will still be WAY better than jack and stands. Last month I did the exhaust on my Tacoma pickup on jack stands. The muffler has a 20 inch tailpipe and a 40+ inch front pipe all welded together. Getting it out was really close to impossible because the floor limited how much angle I could get. I was real close to figuring out how to build a three 6 inch platforms to put the jack and the 2 stands on. Can you post pics of the garage inside especially the roof structure. There are a lot of ways to raise a ceiling. There is a thread here about that right now and many other threads in the last couple of years. I wouldn't call a contractor until you give us a chance to look at it. There are things a contractor needs to consider from a liability standpoint that will color his approach and your cost. You may end up w/ a contractor anyway but will be in a much better position to talk w/ him if your project has been discussed here.

 

[HMushman]

I have a four post lift that allows me to walk under any vehicle I put on it. However, some work lends itself to sitting on my rolling motorcycle seat and in those cases, I only raise the vehicle to sitting height. Not uncomfortable at all.

Glen

Hi, thanks! Question, though, have you or anyone ever pulled a trans in this position (sitting height), that is one of my main concerns..

Thanks!

 

[HMushman]

Your low ceiling lift will still be WAY better than jack and stands. Last month I did the exhaust on my Tacoma pickup on jack stands. The muffler has a 20 inch tailpipe and a 40+ inch front pipe all welded together. Getting it out was really close to impossible because the floor limited how much angle I could get. I was real close to figuring out how to build a three 6 inch platforms to put the jack and the 2 stands on. Can you post pics of the garage inside especially the roof structure. There are a lot of ways to raise a ceiling. There is a thread here about that right now and many other threads in the last couple of years. I wouldn't call a contractor until you give us a chance to look at it. There are things a contractor needs to consider from a liability standpoint that will color his approach and your cost. You may end up w/ a contractor anyway but will be in a much better position to talk w/ him if your project has been discussed here.

Cool great ideas! I will go snap some pics now. My only concern will be getting the work certified or whatever it is called just in case for permits/inspection and IF someday I plan to move and sell the house.

 

[HMushman]

Here are the pictures. Forgive the mess in the garage. So the garage has enough space left to right, the far bay I want to use where the mustang is has about 14 feet from the wall to the large I beam. From front to back I have about 25 feet and the height is just shy of 9 feet. So you can see from the pics in the attic, there are just the rafters that hold the roof and then the flat ones that go from the I beam across to the side walls. The garage door opener I can move over to the adjacent bay and I think I have enough room forward that the track of the garage won't be an issue but either way I saw that is easily solved.
Let me know if you need more pics. Thanks!

 

[tstaude]

I used my scissor lift with an 8' ceiling for a couple years, no regrets.
now I have a little more head room (10') and can lift a lot of vehicles the full 48"
I just use a rolling stool and have my tool cart nearby.

You will love it!

By the looks of what you have you can add some collar ties and raise your ceiling quite a bit.

 

[BruceMc]

I have a 12' ceiling which works fine for my cars, but still limits my access to sitting or bending over if I'm working on my 8' tall truck.

Get yourself a quality low back office chair. Usually these can be found used for cheap or even free. Easy to position yourself and move around while leaning back - just treat it as an elevated creeper. It can save a lot of strain on your neck and back when looking up while working for any length of time.

 

[HMushman]

I used my scissor lift with an 8' ceiling for a couple years, no regrets.
now I have a little more head room (10') and can lift a lot of vehicles the full 48"
I just use a rolling stool and have my tool cart nearby.

You will love it!

By the looks of what you have you can add some collar ties and raise your ceiling quite a bit.

Hi thanks! That was what I was thinking but then I read somewhere that doing that may create roof sag. You know you would think people would want business, I called about 6 contractors this morning and not one called me back.

 

[HMushman]

I have a 12' ceiling which works fine for my cars, but still limits my access to sitting or banding over if I'm working on my 8' tall truck.

Get yourself a quality low back office chair. Usually these can be found used for cheap or even free. Easy to position yourself and move around while leaning back - just treat it as an elevated creeper. It can save a lot of strain on your neck and back when looking up while working for any length of time.

Thank you, sounds good, good to know thanks. I still have yet to hear if anyone has done a trans at mid height. I am sure it is possible but just curious if maybe it is easier on jack stands or full height. I anticipate doing a clutch and then probably a trans so that is at least two times in and out. I am sure there will be a rear main at some point....

 

[jismay]

I have a mid-rise scissor-style lift and not a lot of overhead clearance.
Its great for working on the 94 Jeep or the 1970 Squareback.
The 1980 Vanagon I have to pull into the garage, close the garage door and then I just have the overhead clearance to get it up to the first safety notch. Still enough height to make a lot of things easy, especially with it being rear-engined.

The rolly-stool gets a lot of usage as does the creeper, and its still great to be able to raise and lower vehicles as I need to.

 

[AllenV]

I have a 2-post lift and 12-foot ceilings and do work both standing and sitting. But I will DQ myself from the polling due to high ceilings.

What I want bring to you attention regards your specific interest in transmission removal. Consider that with a 2-post lift you can remove most of the transmission attachments with your roof nearly at the ceiling, from your rolling chair. Then bring in your low-style transmission jack and lower the car down to set the transmission on the jack. Remove the last two bolt and raise the car.

The point is, that being able to move the car up and down during the job is a fantastic option. I just pulled the axles off of my '55 F100 this way.

 

[HMushman]

I have a 2-post lift and 12-foot ceilings and do work both standing and sitting. But I will DQ myself from the polling due to high ceilings.

What I want bring to you attention regards your specific interest in transmission removal. Consider that with a 2-post lift you can remove most of the transmission attachments with your roof nearly at the ceiling, from your rolling chair. Then bring in your low-style transmission jack and lower the car down to set the transmission on the jack. Remove the last two bolt and raise the car.

The point is, that being able to move the car up and down during the job is a fantastic option. I just pulled the axles off of my '55 F100 this way.

Great points! I see what you mean and that makes sense! Thank you.

 

[AllenV]

I am also of a certain age where my back is not fond of bending over to work on the top of a motor to do things like removing water pumps and pulling radiators. Even though I don't need to get under a car, I often will put it on the lift just to raise it about 9 inches to a more ergonomic position.

 

[HMushman]

I am also of a certain age where my back is not fond of bending over to work on the top of a motor to do things like removing water pumps and pulling radiators. Even though I don't need to get under a car, I often will put it on the lift just to raise it about 9 inches to a more ergonomic position.

Haha I am getting there so I know what you mean! Last time I did my roller rockers and replaced the intake manifold, the feeling when straightening out is the worst!

 

[racerboy]

My ceilings are just under 12’ tall (11’10”) and I have a two-post lift but do a lot of work on a rolling stool, especially when I’m under my Silverado 2500HD. For me, I still have the standard garage door opener which actually prevents me from getting any car to where I can walk under it anyway. I’m I. The process of looking for someone to come replace the opener with a LiftMaster so I can pick up the additional headspace, but I would agree that even if you can’t stand up completely, the ability to move the car up and down is well worth the investment.

Here’s the culprit in my garage



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[HMushman]

My ceilings are just under 12’ tall (11’10”) and I have a two-post lift but do a lot of work on a rolling stool, especially when I’m under my Silverado 2500HD. For me, I still have the standard garage door opener which actually prevents me from getting any car to where I can walk under it anyway. I’m I. The process of looking for someone to come replace the opener with a LiftMaster so I can pick up the additional headspace, but I would agree that even if you can’t stand up completely, the ability to move the car up and down is well worth the investment.

Here’s the culprit in my garage



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Sounds great thanks for the info. Seems that just about everyone says even w/o full height it is still a win having a lift.

 

[Mike C5]

My ceiling is only 8.5 ft so I didn't have too many choices for lifts. The MaxJax lifts 48" and with most cars, I can do that and not touch the ceiling. It's still far better than crawling under a car on jack stands or ramps. I made up this roll around frame for an old bucket seat (patterned after a fancy version I saw at an aircraft manufacturer). It works great although there are times I wish I had remote wheel locks.

 

[wake74]

For dropping larger items with the MaxJax, I just fabricated a heavy work platform that is like 24"x24" and maybe 36" tall. It's the same height and depth as my workbench so gets used as workbench extension when not in use. It gets rolled under the car, a couple of blocks to stabilize whatever is coming out. Seems to work just fine. While I've not pulled a ****** with this method yet, I have swapped diffs, and pulled a rear subframe that way.

I do like Mike's solution above, as those reclining aircraft seats for sale are expensive. Most rolling shop stools, are just a touch too tall for a Max Jax.

 

[volaredon]

when I built my garage I put in a 10' ceiling and went with a floor plate lift as I remember looking at lifts for my attached garage and seeing ads saying that you only needed 9-foot-something for a lift and my attached garage is 9-foot-4 ceiling. "Almost but not quite".
After a few years I wound up cutting my ceiling joists in the detatched garage and "headering off" all of the ceiling joists, so I can get that last bit of lift from my hoist, got tired of having to be on crouched knees at full lift that was available before I did that, I couldn't work under there for long like that. I have an open hole in my garage ceiling/garage attic floor, looking to enclose it as a "tray" ceiling for heat concerns in the winter.... or at least put a knee wall in the attic for safety while up there. I can get almost any vehicle up as far as the lift will top out now, sometimes I gotta lower the tailgate on pickups or it will hit my garage door opener.... most cars are absolutely no issue in that regard. I have a 1986 era Weaver 9000 lb symmetrical lift, love it.