has anyone actually cut holes in the ceiling for a lift?

I have an 11' ceiling so I would have a foot above the ceiling. I'd rather buy a model without the floor plate and get an asymmetrical, but you cant get those in any brand but Mohawk but not paying that much ... Plus I want the extra capacity of a bigger lift. Looking at the BendPak XPR-10.
So just looking for someone who has done it..!

Think "attic stair opening".

I've cut a hole in my ceiling secured a winch between my ceiling joists. Like Falcon said, think "attic stair opening".

You will just need to ensure the posts line up properly so they don't intersect a ceiling joists. Your specifics will likely be different. I had I-joists when I did my thing. They were 16" tall and spaced on 16" centers.

Crawl into the attic above the garage and determine the sizing of YOUR joists and spacing. Doubtful if they will be perfectly on 16" centers. Mine varied 16-18" because of other things tying into the structure.

If possible, go one step further and try to layout on the concrete where you want the lift and where the posts will project into the ceiling. Depending on the exact dimensions of the lift and the exact size/placement of your joists you may have to move one way or the other to clear obstacles.

Once you verify clearance and actually do the cut and get the lift installed I would go back and make a "trim plate" to go around the hole as much as possible without hindering any moving operations of the lift. Otherwise your efficiency is getting shot all to hell.

Haha, LX's way works well too....but just a "tad" more expensive.

Which way do your rafters run?
I saw one where a guy has the lift standing up between 2 of the existing trusses and didn't modify anything.
Can you stand the posts and then put the top bar in over the trusses bottom piece?

Bob

I have a rotary lift installed between the joists so that the bottom of the part that crosses over the top is flush with the bottom of the cieling . My cieling is ten foot. I have a hole in the roof where the ram goes up , I covered the hole with a plumbing vent to keep it watertight .You can find a pic here. http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=83660&page=2

I wish I was lucky but my trusses run the opposite way. So I will plan on cutting holes in the celling and then running the top bar across the tops of the trusses. Should be interesting since I would imagine its not easy tilting the lift posts to fit though a hole in the ceiling.

whitefeather said:

Haha, LX's way works well too....but just a "tad" more expensive.

Click to expand...

oops, my post disappeared.

LOL, yeah, got rid of the trusses completely. Helps to know a structural engineer

I have a hip roof, on top of the trusses going the wrong way! So rafters would have been nice.

I have a 26 Ford tall t. In my former home I installed a lift in the two car garage and had to cut 2 ceiling beams and a cross beam. I braced it up by doubling up all the other beams with "nondirectionsl plywood an another 2X4 with lots of glue and screws. I used a l8ft 4x4 on a floor jack to raise each beam as I worked across. It was interesting because each time the floor jack was lowered and raised I had a lot of creaking. When I lowered it for the last section their was no creaking. I then cut a hole in the center for the roof of the T and raised it up, Worked fine. My big concern was I live in SO.Cal, where the ground shakes sometimes. Fred26T

I went through the roof (and the ceiling). 12' posts - 10' ceiling = doesn't fit. 2 holes for the posts, and the cross-member sits about 8" above the ridge. I can't walk under the car, but I can sit on a wheeled stool, and I've been able to pull a V8 out from under my sedan with it. I need to remove the lift soon and move it to my current garage. That'll be a chore.