Anyone have info on what it takes to proprly install an old style single post in ground hoist? Foundation requirements and what all is needed besides the cylinder and arms to work?
don't know about Brush Prairie,Wa. In a lot of built up areas with rules, they are concerned with leakage into the ground. That's one of the reasons why you don't see them much. Unless you are getting a good one for free, I'd consider a 2 post or 4 post. More room to work on stuff underneath, no servicing/leakage issues, able to store another car underneath, and probably cheaper new. I had one drop a foot while I was under it, not fun....
I know a guy that took one out 10 years ago. When he later tried to sell his shop the EPA got involved, a nightmare.
I can't imagine even getting it for free would be cost effective vs. getting a new twin post or drive on. We got our 10,000 twin post at our shop warrantied, delivered and installed for $3500. The ONLY good thing I can think of on in in-ground hoist is no chance of dinging the doors getting in and out, but if you are careful you shouldn't have to worry. A friend of mine just picked up a 6,000lb drive-on Benco from the wholesaler for a grand. My $.02? Buy new.
i have a single post i would like to use, theres lots you can do with one, exhaust is not so easy but can be done, and there great for body work, i used to work with ones years ago and loved it. someone must have had a hand in installing one. mine has the swing out arms.
They take quite a bit of hydraulic oil (usually over 55 gal) to operate and they ((the system) tend to leak when they are older. Most have a hydraulic oil tank in the pit next to them that is larger in size then the cylinder of the hoist it's self. I got one for free that another guy had decided not to use and I finally hauled it to the s**** yard. They also tend to drop when you have a car up on them. Some times only a couple of inches and sometimes several if you don't have the safety lock in place and working. As a couple of the guys mentioned, I would belive that local regulations (from epa) may not let you install one in a lot of places. That due to the amount of hydraulic oil involved. When you have to add 10/20 or 30 gallons of oil a year to some of those, it's going someplace that you don't want it to. There are a lot of good deals on the two post and four post hoists out there and if you decide to move you can unbolt one of those and load it up and haul it to your next garage without too much h***le. Or they give added value to the garage they are in instead of being something that may be an issue to deal with. I worked in shops with the floor hoists for years and taught in the highschool shop with a two post floor hoist for 13 years and although they are nice to use I wouldn't install one in a new building.
Look on the Portland Craigslist. There are 2 and 4 post lifts on all the time. Industry quality stuff from 1200 to 3000.
1979. I'm 17 working in the shop. Almost brand new Caddy comes in "just for a service" so the boss says put it up on a single post we used just for tire work and on-the-car wheel balancing (remember that?). The post hits the top of the run, wobbles a bit and jolts-- just enough to vibrate the Caddy, knock one of the feet loose, then **** broke loose in my pants as the Caddy began to slide sideways. The foot caught the trans pan on the way down and that held it from falling on me. I never put a car all the way up on one of those ever again....not very stable at full height. Scary.
I personally would not invest any money in installing it even if it was free. The first place I worked had an old one. They ripped it out and put in an in ground 2 post lift because the hole was already there after pulling out the single post. What a difference! Not all free-bees are good-bees. You will not like it. The other bays got the 2 post above ground lifts later.
I worked in two different shops that had the single post in ground "rack". The lifts were 15-20 years old at both places and I never saw a car fall off a rack, ever! Saw some scary **** when the idiot who set the legs didn't watch what he was doing. The biggest problem with them is the leaks, boy do they leak, which is why the EPA wants them out of the ground in commercial shops. At a local GM dealership a service technician was killed some months ago when a truck fell off of a two-post asymmetrical (newer off center 2 post lift). I know a few guys that work there and they said he didn't have the legs set correctly and the one arm moved and shifted the trucks weight and down it came. I saw the truck that fell, it wasn't damaged much but it was a little spooky to see it. They all can be safe if used correctly, the single post lifts just make a huge mess because they leak. Marty McFly
Anybody ever heard about them getting air pockets and suddenly/violently shooting upward? My dad said one time when he was a kid at the Sinclair station they had 1 do just that. It shot straight up like a cannon and put the car into the ceiling.
We have one at our shop (still used daily). The old thing jumps the last foot up if you don't watch it.. It will falls FAST if you don't let the air off slowly. The lift is better than 30 years old and has no safety locks, leaks oil, has never been maintained, and is probably going to kill someone at some point. The only nice thing is you can spin small cars around on it so you don't have to back them out of the shop. I try to stick to my newer alignment rack to do my work and let the other guy that works in the shop toss tires on the old one.
I have a couple of friends that have them. One guy runs two. If they dont leak they are fine. The ***** is putting them in. The guy that has two had one out a few years ago and it was a 16ft hole. He had a friend with a towe truck with a tellescoping boom pull it out. If you own the place and its not in public view business etc that you have to fight with regs, epa etc do it if you get one cheap.
Bad deal, we had them long time ago, environmental nightmare. I can't even emagine the hole digging and plumbing not to mention the hydraulic oil being cheaper than you can get a modern hoist for. Bend pac sells them for less than 2K.
We Wired A Good Year Tire store up around Portland that was brand new with about 8 in ground lifts half single posts and half 2 posts. I thought it was weird that they were allowed and put in in ground lifts They couldn't have been cheap. And With all the environmental Wacko's in Portland I would think someone would throw a fit
Just to help you decide, hydraulic oil is currently around $11 a gallon. Now multiply that by the 55 gallons you will need. Add to that the cost of digging the hole, pouring the concrete, running the lines, etc........ It would be cheaper to go with a 4 post. Probably a lot cheaper!
Good decision, I worked at a shop that had 4 of those things, 1 of them dropped 2' without a car on it while we cleaning the floor after closing.
Same here, Had one drop a full size crew cab on my boss while I was underneath. (First job at a garage as a youngster) Not a good outcome.
I have also had a bad experience with them. I know one guy that was killed when the complete post came flying out of the hole and hit the ceiling before killing him. Another time when I was running a shop in the late eighties. I had a full sized Impala on the lift for an isnspection. All the tires off and on the phone with the parts house. I hear a small pop and then large hissing noises from the shop while I am on the phone. The hydralic line had burst under the concrete and the fluid was shooting up in the air four foot or so out of the cracks in the concrete all around the car. While the car is coming down in one to two foot increments dropping and bouncing. I grabbed the tires and hung them while the car still in motion. Grabbed the air gun and managed to get two lug nuts on the wheels before the car finally hit the ground. That was where I learned how to install lug nuts Nascar style. Another time was at another shop. There was one of them that would get about half way up and then shoot to full extension even while off the air handle. A couple of cars hit the ground with that one over the years. Also if you turn your compressor off at night they tend to bleed down by themselves. P*** on it. They are just old technology and not worth the h***le.
Hello stupid! this thing is low on oil!!!!!!! when low on oil there is no oil left to sqeeze through the orfice controlling the rate of speed and you now effectivly have and air cannon. the only purpose of the oil in this type of hoist is to controll the rate of speed of the piston travel. they work just like a hydraulic shock asorber. this hoist is in serious need of repair. Why would you even use this equipment in this condition????? If your stupid enough to keep pouring oil into this thing then may you deserve the expensive enviromental problem your creating or the injuries your gona get. even the best designed equipment is dangerous in the wrong hands!!!!!!!! sorry if this offends but why anyone would continue the use of a piece of equipment that has a tendancy to drop on them rather than fix the problem is beyond me. I am not trying to offend but give you a stern wake up call. anyone that has one of these hoists with this problem and they are still using it need this wake up call. I think it very important to note the the author of this post specifcally states that this unit has never been maintained. I would not recomend this with any lifting type of equipment. There isnt a design in the world that can make up for the stupidity of the lack of maintenance. So is this hoist an old technology h***el that makes it dangerous or is it the lack of mantinece? this hoist obviosly has problems and is in desprate need of repair.
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