Technical Old time in-ground single post lift

Where I worked we had a few of them, They would lift 30,00 lb trucks no problem. I put new seals in the one in the paint shop, Verry hard to find parts. there used to be an outfit down on Powell and 12th st in Portland that still had service parts for them, made quite a mess. they later turned in to enviornmental disasters when the plumbing developed pin hole leaks. EPA required us to dig up the whole floor and clean the dirt, that area was shut down for months. For the money you'll spend installing one unless you are regularly lifting large vehicles you would be better off with a modern above ground hoist.

 

Lifts need to be treated as what they are... A dangerous piece of lifting equipment that can be misused and in doing so create a dangerous condition. IMO lift safety is taken for granted. I'm always cautious working under/around my 4-post and lowering and lifting it.

 

That was my concern with the property we looked at. If they were trying to hide it, had it leaked? With a big focus on soil remediation in my province, I didn't want to have to foot that bill if they ever came knocking.

 

we had just put the car up. we had two of the lifts for service work. They were installed in the late 60's when the dealership was built. If I recall correctly we ended up replacing the ram because it was worn so badly. Not much of a job to change the seals. Four bolts held a ring, but to change the ram we ended up using a wrecker winch fully extended to lift it out. I was a one piece ram.

 

I used to spray that undercoating goop that cshades mention. In my neck of the woods it was made by Quakerstate.
It was brown and stuck to everything.
Im sorry to say that when i restored my 69 camaro back then I sprayed the underside of the car with it. I still have the car and it is still in good shape so the stuff must have been good. Although the 100 plus Chevy Citations that i probably sprayed seem to have become extinct!

 

I haven't got a lift but have been considering it. What I don't like about 2 post or single post is getting down on my knees to position the arms correctly. I'd need a separate lift to get me back up to a standing position.

 

I’ve read some comments along the lines of “went down x inches and hit the safety catch” or similar.
My boss taught me like you use a floor jack, set the catch, lower the lift on it, then bump it up just a tad.

 

I'm curious about the intended purpose of bumping it up a tad?

On a modern style lift I was taught that you release all pressure from the lifting mechanism and put the weight on the safety catches.

 

I'll answer in my particular case. I'm 6'4". On most lifts, when they are topped out, they are still uncomfortably low, unless the vehicle is a lifted truck and the lift pads are raised. On that single post that I talked about, it was shorter still. Not just twisted back and tilted head, but bent knees. A real bitch. Think limbo contest. I hardly ever used it, because I was the tuneup and smog guy, but this was a busy day and I was doing something under the rear of the car that required a lift. So I ended up under this thing.

Here comes the hindsight. It was a busy day, working on a lift I hated and didn't suit me. It was going to be a fairly quick job IIRC, and it was something I didn't do a lot, although what I was doing is not part of the memory of that day. I needed the full extension so it was not dropped onto the safety, which is something I normally do with two posts and 4 posts. I screwed up and the safety held so I didn't pay for it and I am happy with that outcome.

This thing had not been a problem in the past, although it was a bit finicky. It was the lift of last choice for all the mechanics in the shop, so was used the least, only once or twice a week, if that. I've worked other shops where most were of this design, and were used every day by others.

 

I've never installed one of those, but I've removed a few. You are in for a major project if you want one of those. You need about a 10 foot deep hole with lots of diameter to work in and install air lines, etc. trenched to where to operating valve will be located. You need a good, solid soil base and a 16 "thick concrete pad about 3 feet square or larger with rebar and bolts ( J bolts ) to fit the post base , firmly imbedded in the concrete. A plywood pattern for the bolt holes drilled and the bolts firmly attached and sunk into the concrete until the plywood pattern rests on the surface. A week to cure. Remove pattern. Nuts and heavy washers under the post base and the same on top. This is your adjustment for plumb, and must be accurate. This must all be done in a manner to keep the top of the post at the top of the floor. Backfill in 6" lifts and well compacted. There's more involved but this should give you an idea of what kind of work is involved

 

Same time period, working at a Sears Auto Center and the manager was going along raising all the lifts at the end of the night for us to sweep the floor. One car was parked over one but the arms weren't set. It stood the car on its nose but caught the rockers before it fell off.

I had worked in a station with a single post lift and we never had problems like that but we didn't have the volume and rush that Sears had. That one did leak off but would sit right down on the safety foot and stay there. That was in the late 70s and the owner couldn't find parts or repairmen even then.