Do-it-yourself garage lift drawings

Types of lifts

Before installing a car gearbox lift on a pit in the garage, we study its main varieties in more detail. This will help you figure out what a pit lift can be like.

By drive type

Jacks for lifting cars differ in the type of drive that is installed in them. There are two main models in this classification:

hydraulic jack;
devices with manual mechanical drives.

Experts advise using hydraulic models, as they are more efficient. However, it is not easy to make such a device yourself, and that is why many people make manual car lifts.

By type of lifts

Another distinctive feature of car jacks is the type of lift used in them:

Screw. To install such equipment, use two durable racks in which special screws are installed. They are responsible for raising and lowering the vehicle. The operation of the installed screws is controlled by an electric motor.
Mini. In the manufacture of such models, hydraulic or mechanical drives are used. A special feature of the equipment is its small size. Therefore, mini-lifts are not used to lift freight vehicles.

Electromechanical Engineering

Some models use different electromechanical technology. Based on this, car lifts are produced:

Single post. Experienced motorists advise using such models in small garages, as they are compact. They consist of an electric motor, a movable carriage, and a vertical support.
Scissor. Scissor car lifts can be mobile or stationary. They are equipped with a strong frame for attaching hinges and a compressor device.

By number of plungers

Based on the number of plungers, multi-plunger, double-plunger and single-plunger models are distinguished. In models with several plungers, a special traverse is installed, which is responsible for the efficiency of the equipment.

Reviews and prices

Rental and purchase costs:

purchase of a car lift - from RUB 75,000;
rent - from 2,500 per day.

Alexander, 48 years old, Lipetsk: “I bought a scissor car lift for work in the garage at a price of 95,000 rubles. The equipment is good and reliable. I bought a model from the manufacturer Pikanisska. Over the 3 years of operation, the unit had to be repaired several times. There were problems with the elevator and lifting mechanism. I installed the unit myself, because... installation costs from 15,000 rubles. Such a device can easily lift a medium-weight passenger car.”

Leonid, 52 years old, Yekaterinburg: “Six months ago I decided to change my homemade lift (load capacity 2,500 kg) to equipment from the manufacturer Storm. Of the advantages, I can only mention the cost; otherwise, the equipment performed poorly. During the year of operation, the hydraulic system failed 4 times. The lifting time of the loading platform is more than one minute, while similar models can handle it in 40-50 seconds.”

Choosing the most suitable design

Before manufacturing a car lift, the most suitable design is selected.

For passenger cars

Often single-column models are chosen for working with passenger cars. The advantages of such car lifts include:

ease of operation;
compactness, thanks to which the equipment does not take up much space in the garage;
a modern lubrication system that does not require constant maintenance;
reliable protection aimed at preventing the car from tipping over during repairs.

Scissor-type equipment is also used to repair passenger cars. With its help, a car mechanic can quickly raise or lower the vehicle to the desired height.

For truck

The main feature of any truck is its size and weight. Due to the non-standard dimensions and large weight, not all lifts can lift such cars.

To repair such vehicles, they use cargo devices with a high carrying capacity. They can be movable, stationary and platform. They are used only in service stations that specialize in repairing tractors or trucks.

Which to choose

There are several types of garage lifts on the market. It is necessary to select equipment taking into account the size of the room; you need to take into account the height of the garage, its width and length.

The car scissor lift is equipped with a hydraulic drive. It is suitable for tire fitting work, as well as for wheel alignment adjustment. Such equipment helps to gain access to the vehicle from all sides. The maximum load capacity of such a mechanism is about 3000-5000 kg. It is recommended to be used for body repair work.

How to make a reliable car lift with your own hands

It is not easy to make a car lift from a jack yourself, and therefore you need to read the instructions in advance.

Calculation of dimensions and creation of a drawing

First you need to decide on the size of the equipment for working with cars.

The choice of car lift dimensions depends on the size of the garage in which it will be used. The average height of the device is three and a half meters, and the width is three meters. Equipment with such dimensions is capable of lifting a vehicle whose weight reaches 3-4 tons.

Required Components and Tools

Having decided on the dimensions of the car lift, you can begin to prepare the necessary tools and materials. To work you will need:

welding machine for joining iron components;
drill;
drill;
tape measure for measuring the dimensions of device parts.

The materials from which the device is made include:

bedding corners eight centimeters wide;
iron plates, the thickness of which should be 1-2 centimeters;
worm gearbox.

Assembly instructions

At the initial stage of creating a lift, steel corners are installed in the walls of the garage pit. After this, a metal plate is installed on their shelves and attached to the surface. The gearbox is installed on top, after which a key is fixed on the drive shaft.

After installing the gearbox, holes are made on the surface of the plate through which the chain will pass. When the chain is installed, a sprocket is put on the shaft. To install the second chain, the same holes are made on the opposite side of the plate.

The resulting structure can withstand a load of 2-3 tons.

How to install

In order to install a lift in the garage, you must perform the following steps:

Prepare the surface for installation of equipment. The thickness of the concrete platform must be at least 10 cm. It is not recommended to install the device on a freshly poured concrete floor; at least 25 days must pass from the moment of pouring.
It is prohibited to install the lift near the storage area of flammable materials and substances, as well as near the painting and washing area.
The area around the equipment must be sufficiently illuminated.
Before installation, it is necessary to provide for the direction of entry of the vehicle, and also correctly calculate the height of the mechanism so that it does not rest against the ceiling.
Align the frame to the height of the equipment and secure it with fasteners.
Insert mounting bolts into the riser holes and tighten the nuts. The length of the bolts must be at least 22 cm.
Attach the posts to the lifting device support frame.
Before installing the screw lift, you need to align the height of the posts.
Before installing hydraulic equipment, it is necessary to stretch a special cable, put on all the chains and check their tension.
After installing the frame, connect the electrical equipment and install emergency switches. To do this, you need to fill the oil fluid to the required level and test the auto-lifting device.
Raise and lower the loading platform several times. In this case, it is necessary to check whether there is any leakage of working fluid.
To connect the hydraulic system, raise the loading platform to half its maximum height, open the front of the control panel, route the hydraulic hoses and connect them to the fittings. All elements must be well fixed and tightened.
The pneumatic system is connected using special hoses. They need to be attached to the air valve, which is located in the system control unit, connect the compressed air mechanism and check the functionality of all parts.
At the very end, it is recommended to do several test lifts of the platform.

What types of lifts are there?

Lifts come in various designs, differing in the method of lifting the car and the type of drive. For vehicle repairs, three types of drives are mainly used:

chain mechanisms;
screw;
hydraulic systems.

The method of lifting the car plays an important role in the design; a garage lift can be a fork, scissor, or platform design. The most popular are fork screw units, the basis of which is a long threaded shaft made of tool steel. The parts of the unit are able to withstand the load of an average car; it is almost impossible to make the mechanism with your own hands, due to the complex design of the forks.

Types of lifts for car repairs

The easiest way to make a platform lift with your own hands is using a screw mechanism.

Parallel beams attached to the mechanism are capable of lifting a car weighing up to 3 tons.

Assembly cost

The lift is an expensive mechanism, either purchased or made independently, since all the parts are expensive. In practice, the best way to resolve the issue is to buy a used lift. Its service life allows it to serve many owners.

There are many different options, which allows each person to choose the right design. The lift can be used at any time if necessary, and work can be carried out to inspect the body, transmission elements and chassis. At the same time, significantly less financial resources will be needed.

Choosing a design

To make a vehicle lifting unit with your own hands, it is important to familiarize yourself with the designs on the market. The cost of finished equipment can be equal to the price of a car. In auto repair shops you can find the most common option - a screw two-post jack; the design can be made with a hydraulic or electric drive. The structure can be made using additional beams, depending on the expected loads. A scissor lift has a platform and is driven by a scissor-like mechanism. A homemade lift of this type is driven by mechanical force and is lifted by a hydraulic drive connected to an electric motor. Before making such structures, it is important not to forget about safety precautions. During operation, parts may spontaneously fall, which will lead to irreversible consequences. A homemade car lift must be made with a reserve of aggregate power; when using it, it is important to know the mass of the element being lifted.

In emergency situations with a garage lift, locking mechanisms allow you to hold the car. To avoid critical moments, it is necessary to check the condition of the electric motor and hoses. The main problem of making a screw lift with your own hands is the complexity of assembly and manufacturing of the mechanism. Hydraulic parts are expensive, purchasing a new design is impractical.

For garage use, a modification of the mechanism is suitable that allows you to lift the car from a certain side. With your own hands, you can make a hydraulic lift that lifts a car at an angle of up to 60 degrees; this design is called a tipper.

DIY garage lift

For use in the garage, it is possible to make a kit for lifting a car with your own hands. You will need the necessary components, tools and plumbing skills.

A homemade lift is made using the following parts:

Steel corners measuring 8x8x1 cm, for making a stable structure.
Worm type gearbox. A new product can be expensive; it is usually selected during disassembly or removed from a non-working mechanism. It is necessary to pay attention to the load capacity, the indicator starts from 350 kg, the transmission force indicator is 60 kg.
A steel plate with a minimum thickness of 1 cm is removed from old equipment.
Set of bolts, mounting hook, star-shaped keys.
Several iron chains with a link diameter of 2 cm or more. Weak chains will not withstand the load, you should pay attention to the quality of the product, some materials can stretch during operation.
Steel cable, 5 mm thick.

Assembly and installation of components occurs in the required sequence, following the proposed instructions. The steel corners are fastened to the walls in the opposite direction from the hood of the car. On top of the corners for the lift, a steel plate is installed with your own hands. The connection is made with prepared bolts. Next, you need to install the worm gear, securing it with a key on the drive shaft. A key of smaller diameter is installed on the output shaft of the gearbox.

Making a tipper yourself

The tipper is used to raise one of the sides of the car to the required degree. A simpler option that does not require special devices like a gearbox and chains.

Homemade car tipper

The process of making a do-it-yourself tipper includes several stages.

The shoe is made to work as a support for the future jack. It is important to follow the dimensions prepared according to the drawing so that the movement is free.
The lifting stand is made from 1.5 meter long corners, assembled in the form of squares, fastened with a welding machine. The racks are used in the amount of two pieces; it is important to take into account the distance through which the beam will travel.
Holes are drilled to attach the support pipe, also required for the locking mechanism.
The platform for the beam is made from a sheet of steel, the edges are bent, then the result is a box to which the sides are welded.
Supporting the car on the opposite side by raising it is done using a self-made structure made of beams. The square profile is made from a long corner corresponding to the car.

If you don’t have time, you can contact specialists who will make a tipping mechanism in the garage if it meets the requirements.

Simple lift for turning the car over

For use in open spaces, it is possible to make a simple lift for turning over a car. The chassis of the car requires maintenance and repair in a timely manner; in the absence of a lifting device or inspection hole, this is not possible, and work will be stopped.

Using a mini lift in a garage will require the efforts of several people, which can result in the side of the car being damaged. Few dare to repair a car at a strong angle, but in the absence of other options, there is no way out. It can be made by using corners with a cable mechanism from an old winch.

Lifting devices for disabled people

Restrictions on mobility lead to a reduction in a person’s everyday capabilities. Such limitations arise not only due to disability, but also due to old age, injury or post-operative rehabilitation. Lifting devices for the disabled, which can be ordered on the current page, are designed to return some functionality to the patient.

Main functions of lifting devices:

Increasing the patient’s independence (which is useful not only physically, but also from a psychological point of view);
Rehabilitation, that is, the gradual return of the lost functionality of the musculoskeletal system, if possible;
Loading the musculoskeletal system in order to prevent muscle atrophy, deterioration of the cardiovascular system and respiratory system.

From a functional point of view, the role of lifting devices is obvious - they help a person take a vertical or sitting position.

Difficulties in making a lift

The cost of a finished car lift is high, but a self-made version can damage a person working under it if the design is unreliable. The weight of the car should not exceed more than a ton; if the structure falls on a person, irreversible injuries can occur.

A homemade car lift is made according to prepared drawings, or versions of finished products are used. In the latter case, one has to rely on the author's high computational skills. Incorrect calculation of the base or one of the fastened units can lead to irreversible consequences, at best, damage to the lifted unit.

For a homemade kit, made with your own hands, you will need parts and components, without which assembly is impossible. You can find this type of component in large stores that sell construction equipment. If there are not enough funds for new parts, you need to go to scrap metal collection points and enterprises that write off old parts.

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No auto repair shop is complete without a car lift. The equipment is available on the market in a wide variety of models from local and foreign manufacturers. A car lift installed in a car service will pay for itself quickly, but purchasing a car lift for personal needs is a stupid expense. Moreover, it is possible to build a car lift with your own hands.

Variants of car lift models

When deciding to manufacture a lift yourself, you need to select parts for it. You should start by looking for the drive mechanism and locking device. These parts can usually be found:

At enterprises where there is old equipment.
In stores selling various parts for equipment.
At enterprises that update equipment.
At scrap metal collection points.

To manufacture a car lift of this type, you will need two hydraulic cylinders of the required power and size, a compressor and high-pressure hydraulic hoses. The scissor-type car lift design is the simplest to manufacture, but it is difficult to make a reliable brake. Therefore, if the hose or hydraulic cylinder is damaged, a dangerous situation will arise.

Electric motors with gearboxes and shafts, which are necessary for fork lifts or platform lifts, can be quickly found where the old machine park is being replaced with a new one. It will cost significantly less compared to the price of turning worms. The stopper of this device also has a simple design - an oblique bar with a stopper is made of steel measuring 2 cm in thickness.

Types of car lifts

Owners of personal cars are well aware of how rapidly the prices for the maintenance and servicing of such vehicles increase every year. The best solution would be to repair the car yourself when your qualifications and experience allow you to do so. A separate tool is already in the garage of car enthusiasts, but with a room for pit repairs and equipment, things are different. However, some important devices (for example, a car lift for a garage) can be created independently.

Best device design

Your future homemade car jack must have a certain design. A two-post mechanism (there are options with an electromechanical or electrohydraulic drive) is used throughout. The first consists of a threaded shaft with a supporting nut. The shaft rotates via an electric motor with a gearbox.

In the second case, the shaft is replaced with a hydraulic drive. And also the scissor lift has proven itself well in business. Special levers act as “scissors” . The load is lifted by hydraulic drives with electric motors. Each design may be suitable for your specific use conditions. Any installation considered turns out to be quite difficult to build such a car lift for a garage with your own hands. After all, even when creating a motorized lift, difficulties arise, and here the task becomes much more complicated.

Important Safety Points

You must be prepared for the fact that creating a useful system (a homemade garage lift) will be associated with significant financial costs and difficulties in manufacturing. But the main thing is the need for strict adherence to safety rules. Among them:

eliminating the risk of injury during device manufacturing;
ensuring reserve load-bearing capacity of equipment;
creation of locking mechanisms.

The last point deserves special attention, because such devices will protect against the consequences of emergency situations. It is better to anticipate them and regularly check the condition of the shaft and nut with an electromechanical drive, and for electrohydraulic equipment it is important to check for damage to the cylinders and hoses.

Lift-tilter

To avoid costs and a lot of complications, you can give preference to a simple garage lift-tipper.
The device will allow you to tilt the car to one side, and the tilt angle can vary from 45° to 60°. This is quite enough for most repair work. To build such a unit, you will have to create and connect a number of parts: the front pillar, beams (top, bottom, rear), shoe. Various connecting elements will also be required. You will need to work a lot with metal, so you must have a special tool - welding, a grinder and a drill with a set of metal drills. The main material for work is 4 mm steel sheets, angles and bushings.

The manufacture of a jack should start from the base - the shoe. It must be made of steel and in full accordance with the drawing. It is important to ensure free movement of the shoe along the front pillar in a vertical plane. The stand consists of two squares, which are welded from 32 corners with a length of at least 1500 mm. They are combined by means of segments of corners, and the distance between them should not interfere with the free movement of the upper beam. Then you need to drill holes for the support pipe and fingers - metal clamps of the upper beam and shoe.

Creating a Top Beam

Next, proceed directly to creating the top beam. For this, take two 1.5 m corners and weld them into a U-shaped profile. It is also necessary to weld a metal insert in the middle, which will ensure the fixation of the jack. The beam will be ready when you weld a plate of the appropriate length and height to the profile. The result is a rectangular beam. One end of it must be tightly welded - a bushing will be attached to it , and the guides for the jack are welded to the other end.
The platform for the beam is created from a steel sheet. You can bend its sides to get something like a box, or weld the walls of this very structure. Inside the site there will be a piece of wood of the required size, which is fixed with fasteners, and rubber is mounted on top of the wood. The platform is attached to the beam using a pre-welded eye.