2 post lift install in existing single garage

[JOEPRO]

That’s going to be fun actually setting the arms under the car with the walls being so close , hope you have enough room to get from front to rear

Have you actually got enough room to (for example) pull a half shaft, or wield a BFH against something down the side?

The garage is the same width now as it will be when the lift goes in! I can do anything I need inside that existing garage.

The lift itself and setting arms will be 100% fine. The lift is not being altered in any way in terms of it's intended width.

It's just that I have no working space beyond the lift posts which is a limitation in this existing single garage.

A narrow garage with a lift is still an improvement from a narrow garage with no lift.

 

[Beanwood]

The garage is the same width now as it will be when the lift goes in! I can do anything I need inside that existing garage....

...A narrow garage with a lift is still an improvement from a narrow garage with no lift.

I don't doubt it's an improvement - but if you wanted to e.g. pull a half shaft you may park the car against one wall - not an option with a lift, where it's going to be central.
Don't get me wrong - I'd do this in a heartbeat if I had more room and funds available

 

[JOEPRO]

I don't doubt it's an improvement - but if you wanted to e.g. pull a half shaft you may park the car against one wall - not an option with a lift, where it's going to be central.
Don't get me wrong - I'd do this in a heartbeat if I had more room and funds available

I work on my own cars only - which are Mercedes so their driveshafts all come out underneath no dramas. The space really is fine and if for some reason I need more room I can use my other garages or outside.

 

[JOEPRO]

The largest task in this whole project is just moving my stuff out of this garage and either into my other block built garage or into the house cubby holes

There are shelves all along one wall full ht. I will be taking away the wider 600mm deep shelves but keeping 2x 300mm small parts bays at the top left on plan as I must still have some storage in this garage. 2x narrow bays won't interfere with a car on the lift.

That in itself is going to take me up until I get off work for Christmas.

Then there is a w124 Merc coupe in there unfinished. Some welding was done at the rear of the car. So I'll reassemble it's galvanised subframe and waxoyl / finish enough work on it over the holidays to get it back on its wheels and roll it out of the way for now.

Then the actual saw cutting of floor can commence early jan and get founds poured and allowed to cure for a month before standing and bolting down the lift itself.

So whilst I am busy relocating stuff every night and free minute, visible progress on this thread will appear slow!

 

[Dilkris]

I work on my own cars only - which are Mercedes so their driveshafts all come out underneath no dramas. The space really is fine and if for some reason I need more room I can use my other garages or outside.

So you have access to lifts in the other garages and outside ???

 

[JOEPRO]

So you have access to lifts in the other garages and outside ???

My other other double masonry garage is too low a ceiling to allow any 2 post install. It has a mid rise scissor lift.



My 3rd "garage" is a Clarke temporary garage.

Long term goal is to build another 2x car garage extension with proper heights to allow for a 2 post and 4 post lift installation and therefore +4 cars inside.

So for now - this existing sort of high ceiling internal single car garage is the only space where I can install this 2 post lift.

 

[JOEPRO]

The scope of this job could have just grown massively but for good reason

I'll get proper levels and draw a cross section but imagine that the existing floor steps up about 50mm at the door threshold. And from there it's laid to a fall. Poor quality slab really it's rough as anything.

Tightest height clearance I have with the sectional door in the open position is currently 2800mm.

I believe there is scope to remove the existing slab and pour a new one with a slight slope in and level from there. Target to increase this pinch point in height to 3m.

If I can do that - then that means that 2x of my cars can be stored in there. One on the lift and one below. A w124 or w220 on its wheels measure 1450mm in height. Ambitious yes. But I am in dire need to get these cars inside and this garage is part of the house and very warm. Double glazed windows. Insulated masonry cavity walls and insulated sectional doors.

Will investigate more and see can I get the 3m height in there. Flooding isn't a concern either. I live at the top of a steep hill and my driveway is falling out the whole way to the road. So not worried about that in this case but I understand conventional wisdom is to fall a garage floor outwards.

 

[Turbo]

The largest task in this whole project is just moving my stuff out of this garage and either into my other block built garage or into the house cubby holes

There are shelves all along one wall full ht. I will be taking away the wider 600mm deep shelves but keeping 2x 300mm small parts bays at the top left on plan as I must still have some storage in this garage. 2x narrow bays won't interfere with a car on the lift.

That in itself is going to take me up until I get off work for Christmas.

Then there is a w124 Merc coupe in there unfinished. Some welding was done at the rear of the car. So I'll reassemble it's galvanised subframe and waxoyl / finish enough work on it over the holidays to get it back on its wheels and roll it out of the way for now.

Then the actual saw cutting of floor can commence early jan and get founds poured and allowed to cure for a month before standing and bolting down the lift itself.

So whilst I am busy relocating stuff every night and free minute, visible progress on this thread will appear slow!

So no more saws? Stihl share prices are falling already!

 

[JOEPRO]

So no more saws? Stihl share prices are falling already!

Yes I think the Stihl projects are coming to an end! I did unearth 2x TS410s that need rebuilt though but concentrating on this garage for the next few months

 

[Turbo]

I was chopping up a steel frame last week in a field and I was thinking about how useful one of your con saws would have been!

 

[JOEPRO]

I received the last replacement part for the control panel today. The emergency stop swtich. So that's the 3x push buttons replaced, emergency stop and the isolator which were parts broken/ missing when I bought this lift. All tested with a multimeter and good to go.



So that's one job done on it at least. The lower section of the control board plastic cover is missing and always was. But when ordering some new parts I'll see if it's possible to order that too.