Building garage with lift - opinions welcome

[Dave M]

We've decided to build another garage. Looking at ~20x30 that will accommodate a 2 post lift (10' walls and truss or 12' ceilings- limited to 15' overall height). Do any of you have experience/preference on the lift. I want ~6' clearance and don't care whether hydraulics are above or below. I've reviewed Atlas, Mohawk, BendPac. How about Challenger, ranger and other 'cheaper' lifts.

All opinions welcome.

[shogun]

I have since 3 years a MaxJax lift, also my wrenching buddy. Advantages in my opinion:
- fits in any residential garage with ceilings less than eight feet
- can use when needed, easy to set up by 1 person, then conveniently store out of way when not in use keeping garage and vehicle lanes free. You will not use it every day or week (requested by my wife and now I like it too)
-lifting height provides ample clearance under the vehicle for comfortable service of almost any passenger car and light truck
-mid-rise is no problem, I can work comfortably from a rolling shop seat under the car
- the system provides wheels-free convenience for quick brake and tire service
-single phase motor 110 V AC 20 Amp motor for the hydraulic mobile power unit
-low profile arms, even a lowered BMW no problem
-I have mounts for inside my garage and outside in the driveway

Disadvantage: hydraulic system is not superfast to raise or lower the car, so not recommendable for a pro shop, but for a DIYer fast enough
http://www.maxjaxusa.com/features.html

Problems I had:
-when the package arrived one connector for the hydraulic line between power unit and post was without thread, could not be used, my buddy made the thread on his lathe

-in rare cases when a car is misbalanced I let a car down from the highest highest safety stop, only one side goes down and the other side is stuck in up position. First time panic started, now I know how to handle it. Stop releasing hydraulic fluid= lowering the car immy, lift up the other side again till highest level, smack the post frame with a big mallet and the polyamid or whatever material blocks get lose again. Maybe I have to bleed the post hydraulic system once more and also have to regrease.

Seems to be not the only case, I found here the comment: quote:
Talked with Gabe this morning at Dannmar. He thought that the problem had been either something in the line (most doubtful), the flow divider not "kicking in" (possible) or just some binding of the blocks in the column. He suggested the following:

Re-grease the columns and make sure the block tracks are well lubed;

Raise the car up 16 inches to test the lift under load and reposition the car fore/aft to make sure it's at its balance point;

When lowering the vehicle, activate the release valve by "feathering" it -- in other words, very light initial touch instead of just hitting it hard to start the release flow.

I did these things and everything works just dandy.

In retrospect, I think that the car was misbalanced fore/aft and bound the block at the top on one column at full extension. When I tested the balance fore/aft after talking with Gabe, it was clear that I didn't have the vehicle's balance point even with the column. I was a little back heavy. I moved the car forward so that it was more balanced and it went up and down smoothly and with no complaints. I also had liberally re-greased the inner column and tried my hand at feathering the lowering valve. It worked perfectly. Gabe said that if you initiate the lowering by easing into it instead of just hitting the lever full on, the flow divider kicks-in better. Hitting the release valve hard can make the divider bias to one side.

Anyway, one problem does not a trend make. I'm chalking it up to fine tuning the system (I hope) and learning how to do this correctly. At this point don't think it will be a repeat problem. Dannmar made it clear that they were there to help so kudos to them for that.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=149900&showall=1

[whiskychaser]

Does jealousy count as an opinion? :-)

[Paul in NZ]

you could have roof trusses coming in from each end,with a bay made of rafters and ridge beam to give more height.The ridge beam can be supported from an end wall or a roof truss.
Kapiche?

[Dave M]

you could have roof trusses coming in from each end,with a bay made of rafters and ridge beam to give more height.The ridge beam can be supported from an end wall or a roof truss.
Kapiche?

Not really, but I have a builder that can translate ;) He doesn't seem to think that getting the height will be an issue. A friend has a garage in which part of the ceiling is 'open' or 'vaulted' to accomodate the lift.

[Dave M]

Thanks for the comprehensive post (as always) Shogun. It at all possible I will design the garage around a permanent, taller lift. The portability of the maxjax is appealing, but outweighed by the height limitation. I hope to place the lift at the far end of the garage and have enough unimpeded room behind it for other small projects (~28-30' long garage should allow this)

[shogun]

Then look for a lift where the wheels are free when the car is on the lift, also underneath the car when on lift there should be not much disturbing parts from the lift, free working space under the car is the way to go.
One more thing which is very important and which also is fine on the Maxjax: Door clearance even in lifted position

We often have to enter the car when on the lift, for example when we do a transmission flushing, then someone has to climb into the car and start the engine and switch thru all gears. I have a small aluminium ladder to get on the arms of the lift and then I can open the car door without problem, I have seen some lifts where one cannot open the car door anymore when the car is on the lift.

[Bill R.]

At my friends shop we have both types one with a connecting beam and the hydraulics on top the other on the ground. They are both assymetrical and have the columns slightly turned or angled to keep from smacking the doors so much when getting in and out. If you're going to be pulling transmissions with a trans jack then you want the hydraulic on top and a clear floor so you can roll the jack in and out. It can be done on the others but the hump creates problems. It requires more height for the overhead hydraulics, usually a minimum of 12 foot 8 inches i seem to recall. Alot of the cheaper lifts work fine, speed going up and down isn't usually an issue at home but shops complain about it all the time. If you have deep pockets then i'd go with one of the mohawk infloor with no columns. And alot of the cheaper ones its more of a challenge getting the bmw lifting points correct. I have to put a rubber pad on the lift arms closer than they will retract to, so instead of sitting on the pad at the end of the arms, i have to sit the car lifting point more on the arm and not on the pad at the end of the arm.

[Paul in NZ]

Not really, but I have a builder that can translate ;) He doesn't seem to think that getting the height will be an issue. A friend has a garage in which part of the ceiling is 'open' or 'vaulted' to accomodate the lift.

thats what i mean

[twastheglow]

Not to thread jack, but what is the "minimum" height needed for a garage ceiling to be able to utilize the MaxJax?

[shogun]

It is on the Maxjax website I posted above: A - Height Overall: (*) 89" / 2261 mm.

Specifications of the MaxJax

Lifting Capacity*: 6,000 Lbs. / 2727 Kg.
*Max Capacity / Front Axle: 3,000 Lbs. / 1364 Kg.
*Max Capacity / Rear Axle: 3,000 Lbs. / 1364 Kg.
Max Load per Arm: 1,500 Lbs. / 682 Kg.
A - Height Overall: (*) 89" / 2261 mm.
B - Height of Column: 64" / 1626 mm.
C - Width (Outside of Base Plate): 105" - 125" / 2667 mm. - 3175 mm.
D - Arm Reach (Min.): 24" / 610 mm.
E - Arm Reach (Max.): 44" / 1117.5 mm.
F - Min. Pad Height: 3.5" / 89 mm.
G - Max Lift Height (Pad only): 45" / 1143 mm.
H - Max Lift Height (With 3" Adapter): 48" / 1219 mm.
Motor: (**) 110-220 VAC / 50-60 Hz. 1Ph.
Length of Hose(s): 156" / 3962 mm.
Time of full Rise: 30-Seconds
Individual Column Weight: 300 Lbs. / 136 Kg.
Shipping Weight: 880 Lbs. / 399 Kg.
Shipping Dimensions: 14" x 64" x 40" / 356 mm. x 1626 mm. x 1016 mm.

* To top of cylinder when extended to max rise.
** Special voltages available upon request.
Specifications above are subject to change without notice, it is best to contact a Dannmar sales representative to confirm specifications before purchasing

http://www.maxjaxusa.com/specifications.html

[shogun]

Dave, which lift did you buy? Any pics?
Here some cheaper ramps options http://corvettec3.ca/ramps.htm