Faced with a problem of being too old to climb flimsy attic ladders in order to store items I decided to build an elevator to make the job easier. Here's how it turned out.
Thank you. And definitely "priceless" for us. I'll soon be 81 years old and my wife 76. We bagged our 8' Christmas tree, lights and decorations still on, rolled it out the front door to the garage, onto the elevator, off in the attic and parked it until next year. Took almost ten minutes with a brief pause. I rode up with it. I'll reverse the process about ten days before next Christmas. Yes to Priceless...
A lot like mine. With the barn door tracks and dolly I found the bottom dollies only keep things 'in place'. The wheels are designed for downward action. When there is weight on the front the bottom of the metal frame is riding on the metal tracks. I mounted some UHMW plastic on the frame to keep from having metal on metal.
Great video. Those fold down ladders are super sketchy, I can't believe we still use them anywhere. Even without safety brakes, that is nicely overbuilt, just enough. Tastefully, one could say.
Thank you. I probably use my elevator an average of ten to twelve times a week to go up and down. But I also lower it down to about 3' off the floor to use as a handy work-shelf. I also saved a large lawn mower cardboard box to serve as a paint booth. I just open the flaps to keep the spray inside the box, paint one side and rotate it to paint the other. If I want it to dry overnight, I just shoot the elevator, paint box and all up higher, or even into the attic. Each Christmas, we just roll our fully decorated 9' tree (bagged) down, roll it outside around to the entrance, and inside the door to where it looks best. Then remove the cover, plug it in and wait for Santa. Takes less than ten minutes each way. Sometimes, I even hear my 77-year-old wife riding up to get something from the attic. She can't even pull down the folding stairs, much less climb them. We both trust the elevator way more than the pull-down stairs.
Thank you. Like most decisions involving anything at all, one must weigh safety against practically. If we don't want to be injured or killed in an automobile accident, we can remain home the rest of our lives. Even then, if we live near a busy street, it is very possible that a runaway car might come through our bedroom while we're sleeping. The same holds true fro claiming ladders, especially while carrying items up or down. Every rung of the ladder increases your chances of injury or death should you slip, or the ladder breaks, or you experience a physical problem from the exertion. Although safety was a major factor in my design and construction, I knew I would be safer using my freight elevator than climbing a ladder at my age (83). I now go up and down sometimes three or four times a day. I even park my 9' Christmas tree, with all its decorations in place, in the attic after the holidays. It only takes a few minutes to roll it down and to the living room next season. Given that my A/C filter change requires me to go into the attic, and the some items need to be stored there, avoiding going into the attic is not an option. Now I don't give it a second thought. And If the power goes off, I have an automatic whole-house natural gas generator that starts up immediately and the power is back on for as long as it takes.
Great project, Leroy! I'm building a new house and your idea inspired me to include in my house design. I ordered 2 pieces of 20-foot long unistrut to use for the tracks.
Thanks. It certainly changed our lives here for the better. I wish I had ordered the 20' sections. All they had in the store were 12' sections. Sometimes there is a loud snap when the dolly wheels cross the joint crooked. I'm working on it.
Good job, Leroy. Very handy, very useful but very dangerous. If there’s a material failure with any component in the lift linkage the consequences could be devastating. Unobservable Mfg flaw (fatigue) in the eyebolt, unobservable crack in the cable crimp fitting, the list goes on. A second winch with separate hardware and termination points on the carriage will seem like a perfectly reasonable addition in the event a material failure sends the carriage crashing to the floor. And ounce of prevention ... (There’s some videos describing the Otis elevator brake mechanism. Very interesting.)
Thank you. I completely understand and appreciate your concern for material failure or any other danger it presents, but so do the fold-down stairs offer many other elements of danger. I weighed all these factors before deciding to go with the more practical hoist/elevator. It is used daily and the cable is inspected each time I ride it. And at my age (81) and weight (290), I'm more likely to die from age and weight issues than a hoist only lifting 15'.
@@leroymcmillin HaHa!! Point taken, Leroy. You made me laugh! I totally get it. As a retired engineer I think about things like that and just hate to see you crash and burn prematurely. Best wishes you old 81 yr old intrepid soul! U R AWESOME! 😂👍🏻
That is a nice lift. I would install a drop stop if the cable ever breaks it acts like a seat belt. They are relatively inexpensive and offer peace of mind.
Hey Leroy its JoJo AKA Firetruck. Love the lift. was considering doing one of those myself in the house Dollie and I just built. Glad to see y'all getting along well!!
Hey Jo Jo. Sorry it took so long to reply back. The elevator is a life-saver for me. I'm too old to climb those shaky pull-down attic stairs, especially while carrying a box of something. Hi to Dollie.
Hey JoJo. Long time... Judy mentioned y'all some time back. We were just talking about all the really nice people we met over the years due to the Big Green Egg. That was back in the days when it was easy to make friends because we all shared a common love for the Big Green Egg. Y'all were on the list to swing by in our Motor Home and say hello. Maybe even cook something. But we briefly tried Motor Homing, and quickly discovered we were not cut out for it. So all those people we were going to visit .........Hi toDollie. I'm sure she is still as good looking as last we saw y'all.
Excellent work!im planning the same basic lift for my attic too. Have you considered the dbl nano lok. You can add one for less than $200 and it will hold over 800lbs if your hoist cable breaks. Just a thought since you have occasional riders.
When I designed my lift I wanted it to haul me and any items I may want to move to or from the attic. During the time I've had it, I seriously doubt that it ever had over 500 pounds on it, me included, at any one time. Add the weight of the lift frame and flooring and it might hit 650 pounds. The hoist motor is capable of 1,250 pounds with the double loop setup. That's strong enough and fast enough for me and well within the limits of the lift equipment. I toyed with emergency stop ideas but could not come up with anything simple and affordable enough to work for me. But you are correct, it would be a lot safer with something like you suggested. The newness has pretty much worn off by now and I take if for granted. And I do inspect the cable often. I'm still thinking my riders would feel safer with a good 'fail-safe system.' Thanks.
Since some of you may still be looking for information before installing your own elevator, I thought I would add this information so that you won't be disappointed later on. Last week I changed out the hoist motor for the sixth time. And no, it was not the fault of the hoists, but the cables. Each cable gradually developed a problem, usually starting with an annoying 'snapping' sound and bump as the cabled wound back on the hoist's drum. The snap was caused by the cable not tracking properly. There is no device to keep it winding evenly side to side. I didn't consider the bump a safety issue, but I began to notice the cable was showing wear in the exact spot it crossed the other cables. Eventually, I decided to take advantage of my Harbor Freight Extended Warranty. So I took the first hoist down and returned it to Harbor Freight. They gave me a new one and I took out another extended warranty. After the second hoist did the same thing I thought maybe I could just replace the cable easier than replacing the entire unit. Well, they manual said nothing about cable replacement, so I went to CZcams to see ifothers had done it. I found nothing for the Harbor Freight hoist, but other brands treated the cable as a regular wear and tear repair for the owner. Replacement cables were inexpensive, but considerably cheaper in money and time than replacing the entire unit. But since I paid for a full replacement with the extended warranty, I always opted for the replacement. Besides, it appeared that I would have to take the hoist apart to change the cable. I sure didn't want to do that. This last time I decided to search for a different brand Hoist and found one for about the same price as Harbor Freight but had a lift capacity of over 1,700 pounds when looped through the snatch-block. I ordered it and installed it within an hour after arrival. The cable was larger but overall, the unit was very similar to the Harbor Freight hoist. The hand-held remote controller also has a large red emergency STOP button, but that's totally unnecessary on a "dead-man' switch type controller. No matter. It looks and works fine. But the larger cable really makes it difficult to wind up smoothly side to side, especially if I do not stop the down movement in time to keep the cable tight. The slack cable now goes back up and crosses the other cable on the drum just like the Harbor Freight hoist, but the larger cable makes for a larger and louder bump. Annoying but not unsafe. So now I'm trying to come up with a 'soft-landing' solution that will keep the cable tight. If I stop before it lands on the floor, all is well. But stopping less than an inch is not easy when you only have one eye. I'll come up with something. Meanwhile, Harbor Freiight replaced the last hoist and I decided not to purchase the extended warranty. Instead, if the new one needs a cable, I will try that first. And I can always install the back-up Harbor Freight hoist. I'll never need to life 1,700 pounds anyway. Just thought you guys would like to know this. Although there are a few 'kinks' in the cable (pun intended), this is still a worthwhile project, not to mention convenient and safer one than the fold-down ladder. LM
I'm not suggesting you do this, you know, legally speaking, but if I were in your shoes, I'd consider switching to a synthetic line, and shorten it to the point where you leave about 8-10 wraps on the drum, maybe less. I there's a rule, you can look it up somewhere. But the synthetic lines are supposed to be much smoother when comes to not overlapping like that. I think, partly due to them being thicker, they fall into place easier. As for the coasting to a stop... That's tricky with something like a hoist or winch without a load. I think the best you can do is just get good at letting of the button at the right time. Oh, and I'd seriously consider a safety brake of some sort. Especially if you modify the cable and/or still use it for people. Check out the channel called The Elevator, that guy has some great examples on his. If not for safety's sake, it's at least a fun project.
@@AlexR_44 I looked into the synthetic line and may do it if this cable ever wears out. It has settled down and I never give it another thought. until I decide to inspect the cable on the way up. No broken wires so far. As for a brake, I've considered several designs I found online, and some I came up with myself. They all have at least one flaw or undesirable quality about their performance or reliability. I even considered mounting a smaller hoist that was capable of handling the weight and wiring it so that the smaller hoist motor would only bear part of the weight just to keep the cable tight. But there seemed to be a syncretization problem in that setup. I have an automatic whole-house generator, so I'm not concerned about power loss. And the hoist motors are very good at stopping when the button is released, or the lift touches the limiter. Cable breakage, I have learned, is rarely due to a complete cut through a cable that instantly drops the elevator. Instead, the cable becomes frayed, usually from wear. Frequent inspections would notice this problem long before total failure, and appropriate steps could be taken. One braking idea I've been working on is a caliper-driven mechanism that does not instantly stop the elevator in place, but instead, slows the downward 'fall' of the elevator until it reaches the floor. This idea solves two problems: safely lowering the passengers, while also making it easier to service the problem without the elevator stuck somewhere inaccessible. We'll see. Thanks for your comments and suggestions. I think a lot of folks appreciate the thought that goes into such a project. And it helps to get independent input to consider.
cool cool. and yea, I wouldn't worry about cable breakage either, way more concerned with the quality of the internal components of a HF hoist allowing it to freewheel down, but it seems like they've been selling these for a while now and I haven't heard any stories of broken shear pins or anything yet, so, godspeed. 👍
Mr McMillin, I to am gettiing where the attic access is formidable at my age (69) and multiple knee repacemets (5 and counting). I to live in Covington and with my wife in a wheelchair it is just me retrieving or placing seasonal decorations in the attic. Plus the garage ceiling height of 12' means a long climb on those questionable attic ladders. Looking on line for the rollers you used, as they offer a small pivot point instead of a ridgid connection. Have all the hardware even fixed point rollers but would prefer the ones you used. If you still have the supplier that would be great. Will look for your reply, thanks for the video, and follow on advice about the hoist.
Thank you. I will be 83 in three months. I know the problems of climbing into the attic on those scary pull-down ladders, especially if you carry something bulky or heavy. I solved the problem with parts and dollies from Tractor Supply, a Hoist motor from Harbor Freight, and the platform made by a local welder. The attic framing was figured out by my nephew. The power was already in place. It has never failed me. I can take 4'x8' sheets of plywood up and bring them back down with ease. Out 9' Christmas Tree rolls from the living room, hout the front door, down the sidewalk, into the garage and onto the elevator, and parked out of way until next year. We're old, so it takes about ten minutes. A youngster of 69 could do it eight minutes easy. The video shows everything you will need to consider in order to design your own. There's a lot of talk about safety issues, and rightfully so. All I can say is that it is much safer than the pull-down ladder.. I occasionally get suggestions to improve the safety of it, but so far, it does exactly what I want it to do with no concerns on my part. Even my wife goes up alone to take stuff up or bring stuff down. She may call me if it's heavy. As for the payload of the ceiling, my ceiling joist ore 2"x12"s on 12" center. I may have 500 to 700 pounds of stuff up there but it spread over 300 square feet. I'm not the least bit worried that the ceiling will fall in. Potentially dangerous, yes. But not nearly as potentially dangerous as the Pull-down ladder. I consider the "Potential" danger very low compared to many other things in life. But I am trying to lose a few pounds to soften the fall if the cable breaks.
Thanks Alvin. Yes I finally did. After my 6th Harbor Freight swap using the extended warranty option, I found another hoist online that looked similar to Harbor Freight's hoists, but it had a larger payload and slightly larger cable. It wasn't as good 'a quality as Harbor Freight's hoists, but it was less expensive. And it fit my needs well. So far, one year later, it is still working fine. This one also states in the manual to "replace the cable when worn." There was no instruction or obvious provision for replacing the cable in the Harbor Freight hoist. The replacement Harbor Freight hoist is still in the box if I need it. Thank you for asking. It's a good point to keep in mind when selecting a hoist motor. Also, don't confuse "Hoists" with "Winches" like those on the fronts of Jeeps and such. Huge difference... L
Yes it does. So much so that it's easy to access anything stored in the attic in about one minute. That's very handy for items used occasionally. Such as the pressure washer, wheelbarrow, wood planer, extra lumber, Christmas decorations, including the fully decorated 9' tree on wheels, Mardi Grass and Halloween decorations, luggage, ice chests, etc. My garage is no longer used to store anything. I even keep a large empty cardboard box up there for when I need to spray paint something. Just bring the box down to counter height, place the item inside and paint. It's the best investment we made when we built the house. The builder would not do the job so I let my nephew and brother-in-law do it. Took 2 days.
Steel, as recommended by the welding shop for loads not exceeding 2,000 pounds including the weight of the elevator, cargo and any passengers. The hoist motor and cable has a 1,300 pound limit when looped through a snatch-block, lifting approximately 12'. Works perfectly for mine.
Hi Leroy-great project! In your video you show and say “The plywood backing is to reinforce the wall and tracks where the elevator is mounted.” A couple of questions: are the tracks mounted just to the plywood or are there studs behind the wall that the tracks are also screwed into? What size thickness of plywood did you use? I do not have studs that align with where I need to attach the tracks, so I’m trying to decide if plywood over the drywall would provide sufficient support for the tracks, or if I will need 2x4 studs to drill the track to. Thanks very much!
Thanks for asking. I believe I mentioned about the plywood backing two or three years ago, but I'll gladly do it again. The 3/4" cabinet grade (a lot cheaper back then) plywood is mounted over the drywall and into the studs. The tracks are mounted to the plywood. One stud was off by a few inches, so attachment was only on three studs. Not to worry, the tracks carry no weight and only serve as guides for the carriage dollies that roll freely inside the tracks while the hoist lifts upward pretty much straight up. But I placed the hoist motor back about 1° off plumb so that the upper dollies would tend to remain toward the back of the track. If I had it to do over, I probably would make it 2° to compensate for me standing on the front side of the platform when I'm taking stuff up or down. I'm 300 pounds and considering the change in center of gravity, the upper dollies tend to lean forward. Even so, it has not caused a problem in over six years of almost daily use. And if there's no cargo on board, I usually stand in the center. As simple as the design is, there's always room for improvement. I'm working on a sort of friction clutch or brake to simply slow the drop-speed in case of a cable break. My experience with cables "breaking" is that it is mostly a strand at a time, thereby giving me enough warning that I should land the thing and replace the cable. I continue to feel much safer using the elevator instead of the fold-down stair-ladder that scares the crap out of me. I hope this answered your question.
Beautiful....but, who made your metal platform frame?? That seems to be a mandatory piece with every video I've seen of this, but this also seems to be something that has to be custom made, as well.
Thanks Phil. Beautiful is a nice word. I like it. In my mind, 'Functional' is probably a more practical word for it. But all that you see there is a composite of a lot of ideas from others who wanted/needed an elevator that would handle their specific needs. Each of them came up with novel ideas to address their specific situation. Some were fairly basic, but some were very creative. All were useful in my design process. I took my drawings and photos to my local welder and within minutes he knew exactly what would work. He could have 'over-built' it but he didn't and probably saved me money and even grief down the road. He loved the video when I showed it to him. I should point out one issue. I've replaced the hoist five times in four years. I had purchased the extended warranty, so it was just a swap-out. The hoist was fine, but the cable would eventually get to the point where it would 'Bump' as it got crossed on the hoist drum. Eventually, the cable would start to develop 'knots' where the cable rubbed the other cable. There was no instruction in the User Manual as to how to replace the cable, and Harbor Freight's Customer Service didn't offer any advice or instructions as to what to do. I suspect they didn't want someone to screw up the replacement instructions and then blame them for any damage or injuries. I'm fine with that. I personally do not want to take the hoist motor apart to replace the wire cable, so I just returned it for a new hoist. Even at 80 years old, it only takes me about half an hour to take it down and put it back up. And yes, people wanting to see my elevator always come when the cable is making that annoying 'SNAP' that shakes the elevator. The replacement rides smoothly most of the time , depending on where I'm standing on the deck. My nephew who actually did all the framing and installation was here yesterday and we talked about it. We both agree on the cable issue, so next time we just might try replacing the cable. By the way, a lot of folks have left comments and asked questions. If you are thinking about installing a similar lifting device, you would do yourself a favor by reading some of those questions and comments. If nothing else, it will satisfy your mind about construction and safety issues before you invest time and money in it. Thanks for your comments and questions.
Now LeRoy you could have saved a bunch of time and money and just had Judy climb the ladder and you just pitch stuff up to her. I miss you guys and think about you often. I was trying to think of a great sign off for you involving "Spring finally found a way out of work Chicken"...lol seriously though...glad you both are doing well.
What a nice surprise! We think of you often too. In fact, Chubby set up a new closed group Facebook page for the old-timer Eggheads. I know you would be a welcome participant if you aren't one already. Some folks actually came out of the woodwork to post there. I haven't checked it lately. Here's the link: facebook.com/groups/2038269233086830/ We're now living in a 55 and older community in Covington, Louisiana. Yes, in the heart of Cajun/Creole cooking country. Our next project is to build a new outdoor kitchen. The foundation is poured, and all the pipes and power are in. Just waiting on me to say 'go.' If you find yourself anywhere within a thousand miles or so of New Orleans, we're in that circle. Come see us. I'm betting we could muster up a party. Great hearing from you. Judy sends her best too.
Hi Bobby. I know a lot of Bobby's but not all of them know about my forum sign-offs way back when. If you're the Bobby everyone in our circle knew, I hope you are doing well. Your name came up in a conversation a few months back. They asked if I had heard from you . I seem to recall I told them you won the lottery and ran off to the islands with a ... a... a..... Darn... I forgot what I told 'em.
45" width, 38" depth, 41" height. That being said, keep in mind that my ceiling joists 2” X 12”s on 12” centers, and the elevator frame had to clear both outside joists. The depth was strictly a judgment call based upon what I thought I might need to carry me and some cargo. Any more depth would have required additional bracing and, therefore, additional weight and cost. The height of the elevator’s back had to fit into the space between the elevator’s highest point of travel and the hoist motor that was mounted to the underside of a steel beam. I could have mounted the steel beam and hoist motor higher but that would make replacing the hoist more difficult. I’ve already replaced it three times. It’s not exactly easy to do by yourself, especially when you are approaching 80 years old. I should also mention that the weight of the elevator frame should be taken into account when purchasing the hoist motor. To be safe, I estimated the frame to weigh 200 pounds total (includes the flooring, bottom panel, carpet, and track-dollies. Add me at almost 300 pounds fully dressed wearing a tool belt and boots and the weight without freight is already approaching 500 pounds. Add a couple hundred pounds of freight and it becomes just that much more of a strain for the hoist motor. I purchased one with a 1,250-pound capacity when double-looped back up to the hoist. It’s slower by fast enough for me and handles the weight well. One guy came by to see it in person and to ask questions. He wanted to install a larger one in his garage/workshop to handle considerably larger and heavier loads, but when I mentioned the weight limit of his attic he stopped cold. He had not given that any thought. He concluded that it wouldn’t work for him without considerable reinforcement of his garage. Also keep in mind that it may require some type of permit in your county, especially if you plan to carry passengers. I ride mine but I also have my fold-down stairs as my regular attic access route. So far everything has gone well and I’m glad I installed it. Otherwise, I would have to rent a shed to store the boxes of Christmas, Mardi Gras, and Halloween decorations, along with my rarely used wheelbarrow, pressure washer, luggage, ice chests, and my 9’ tall Christmas tree (fully decorated and ready to be rolled down, plugged in, and admired.) Good luck with yours.
I always get nervous when you see ceiling joist being cut The weight that is on the three joist are being supported be screws from the two uncut joist into the 2x12.the three joists are attached to. Not a lot of strength. You might want to have a pull down ladder to this area. Power failure, motor failure and no way to egress and no way to get help up there.
Thanks for your concern. We actually considered the joist-strength loss when cutting the hole, and we doubled the cut endplates A number of structural-savvy people, including engineers, took a look and claimed it to be more than sufficiently strong to accommodate the elevator's primary purpose - to transport items into the attic where they will be distributed to other areas of the attic that were designed for storage. But one should also take into account the alternative transport method - the pull-down folding ladder which had a number of obvious built-in safety flaws. Not only was it weak by design, but also unsafe for the same reason. These alone automatically generated anxiety when I needed to climb into the attic to change the HVAC filter or drain the water heater tank. Also, the physical and emotional stress was greatly increased by my having to carry a wide range of items that varied in weight and size. Any large heavy items were greatly dependent on the maximum weight-rating of the ladder and the size of the ceiling hole. Consider also, that I would have to climb a shaky ladder with both hands full. Retrieval of the same items was equally or more hazardous. Given that I am almost 80 years old, weigh 280 pounds, and recently underwent quintuple open heart surgery, the elevator was clearly the only reasonable choice I had.
@@leroymcmillin If this is the only way to get in the attic I would make two additions. As mentioned a second way to egress the area. Power failure or equipment failure leaves one trapped. The fire department will cut a hole to get you out. That is if you have a phone to call them. Most important for a people lift is some form of fall arrester. Cable break or gear failure will cause an eight foot fall. Weather on a platform or in free air eight feet is eight feet. At our age a four foot fall can be a bone breaking problem. Elevators never went high until Otis invented a fall prevention system for elevators, It will probably the biggest expense of the system. You have 4 years and 60 pounds on me and a surgery to boot.. Take care.
Honestly, the best video I've seen on building a elevator, simple and made with love............PRICELESS
Thank you. And definitely "priceless" for us. I'll soon be 81 years old and my wife 76. We bagged our 8' Christmas tree, lights and decorations still on, rolled it out the front door to the garage, onto the elevator, off in the attic and parked it until next year. Took almost ten minutes with a brief pause. I rode up with it. I'll reverse the process about ten days before next Christmas. Yes to Priceless...
A lot like mine. With the barn door tracks and dolly I found the bottom dollies only keep things 'in place'. The wheels are designed for downward action. When there is weight on the front the bottom of the metal frame is riding on the metal tracks. I mounted some UHMW plastic on the frame to keep from having metal on metal.
Top Job Brother. an excellent marriage of different trades. nice end statements in relation to safety. Cheers from Michael, Australia.
Great video. Those fold down ladders are super sketchy, I can't believe we still use them anywhere. Even without safety brakes, that is nicely overbuilt, just enough. Tastefully, one could say.
Thank you. I probably use my elevator an average of ten to twelve times a week to go up and down. But I also lower it down to about 3' off the floor to use as a handy work-shelf. I also saved a large lawn mower cardboard box to serve as a paint booth. I just open the flaps to keep the spray inside the box, paint one side and rotate it to paint the other. If I want it to dry overnight, I just shoot the elevator, paint box and all up higher, or even into the attic. Each Christmas, we just roll our fully decorated 9' tree (bagged) down, roll it outside around to the entrance, and inside the door to where it looks best. Then remove the cover, plug it in and wait for Santa. Takes less than ten minutes each way. Sometimes, I even hear my 77-year-old wife riding up to get something from the attic. She can't even pull down the folding stairs, much less climb them. We both trust the elevator way more than the pull-down stairs.
Thank you. Like most decisions involving anything at all, one must weigh safety against practically. If we don't want to be injured or killed in an automobile accident, we can remain home the rest of our lives. Even then, if we live near a busy street, it is very possible that a runaway car might come through our bedroom while we're sleeping. The same holds true fro claiming ladders, especially while carrying items up or down. Every rung of the ladder increases your chances of injury or death should you slip, or the ladder breaks, or you experience a physical problem from the exertion. Although safety was a major factor in my design and construction, I knew I would be safer using my freight elevator than climbing a ladder at my age (83). I now go up and down sometimes three or four times a day. I even park my 9' Christmas tree, with all its decorations in place, in the attic after the holidays. It only takes a few minutes to roll it down and to the living room next season. Given that my A/C filter change requires me to go into the attic, and the some items need to be stored there, avoiding going into the attic is not an option. Now I don't give it a second thought. And If the power goes off, I have an automatic whole-house natural gas generator that starts up immediately and the power is back on for as long as it takes.
Great project, Leroy! I'm building a new house and your idea inspired me to include in my house design. I ordered 2 pieces of 20-foot long unistrut to use for the tracks.
Thanks. It certainly changed our lives here for the better. I wish I had ordered the 20' sections. All they had in the store were 12' sections. Sometimes there is a loud snap when the dolly wheels cross the joint crooked. I'm working on it.
@@leroymcmillin SwiftKey
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Good job, Leroy. Very handy, very useful but very dangerous. If there’s a material failure with any component in the lift linkage the consequences could be devastating. Unobservable Mfg flaw (fatigue) in the eyebolt, unobservable crack in the cable crimp fitting, the list goes on. A second winch with separate hardware and termination points on the carriage will seem like a perfectly reasonable addition in the event a material failure sends the carriage crashing to the floor. And ounce of prevention ...
(There’s some videos describing the Otis elevator brake mechanism. Very interesting.)
Thank you. I completely understand and appreciate your concern for material failure or any other danger it presents, but so do the fold-down stairs offer many other elements of danger. I weighed all these factors before deciding to go with the more practical hoist/elevator. It is used daily and the cable is inspected each time I ride it. And at my age (81) and weight (290), I'm more likely to die from age and weight issues than a hoist only lifting 15'.
@@leroymcmillin HaHa!! Point taken, Leroy. You made me laugh! I totally get it. As a retired engineer I think about things like that and just hate to see you crash and burn prematurely. Best wishes you old 81 yr old intrepid soul!
U R AWESOME!
😂👍🏻
Great South Louisiana minds think alike! I am going to put one of these in my garage attic.
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@@bradbakke8046 hello, man u there?
That is a nice lift. I would install a drop stop if the cable ever breaks it acts like a seat belt. They are relatively inexpensive and offer peace of mind.
Thank you. I'm good..
Great project video.
Best video and design which I’ve seen. Didn’t enjoy the funeral music though. :)
Really good job.
Well done
Enjoy watching
Thank you.
Great video. We installed one several years ago. Ours is very similar to yours. We also have a video showcasing this as well. Thanks.
I'm not sure I could or would live without my elevator. Best investment ever.
Hey Leroy its JoJo AKA Firetruck. Love the lift. was considering doing one of those myself in the house Dollie and I just built. Glad to see y'all getting along well!!
Hey Jo Jo. Sorry it took so long to reply back. The elevator is a life-saver for me. I'm too old to climb those shaky pull-down attic stairs, especially while carrying a box of something. Hi to Dollie.
Hey JoJo. Long time... Judy mentioned y'all some time back. We were just talking about all the really nice people we met over the years due to the Big Green Egg. That was back in the days when it was easy to make friends because we all shared a common love for the Big Green Egg. Y'all were on the list to swing by in our Motor Home and say hello. Maybe even cook something. But we briefly tried Motor Homing, and quickly discovered we were not cut out for it. So all those people we were going to visit .........Hi toDollie. I'm sure she is still as good looking as last we saw y'all.
Thats so awesome! I will also let my wife test it first! LOL 😂
😆😆
Great vid. One observation - you have baseboard in your garage! That's pretty fancy!
Ha.... Good eye you have for detail.
Excellent work!im planning the same basic lift for my attic too. Have you considered the dbl nano lok. You can add one for less than $200 and it will hold over 800lbs if your hoist cable breaks. Just a thought since you have occasional riders.
When I designed my lift I wanted it to haul me and any items I may want to move to or from the attic. During the time I've had it, I seriously doubt that it ever had over 500 pounds on it, me included, at any one time. Add the weight of the lift frame and flooring and it might hit 650 pounds. The hoist motor is capable of 1,250 pounds with the double loop setup. That's strong enough and fast enough for me and well within the limits of the lift equipment. I toyed with emergency stop ideas but could not come up with anything simple and affordable enough to work for me. But you are correct, it would be a lot safer with something like you suggested. The newness has pretty much worn off by now and I take if for granted. And I do inspect the cable often. I'm still thinking my riders would feel safer with a good 'fail-safe system.' Thanks.
Since some of you may still be looking for information before installing your own elevator, I thought I would add this information so that you won't be disappointed later on. Last week I changed out the hoist motor for the sixth time. And no, it was not the fault of the hoists, but the cables. Each cable gradually developed a problem, usually starting with an annoying 'snapping' sound and bump as the cabled wound back on the hoist's drum. The snap was caused by the cable not tracking properly. There is no device to keep it winding evenly side to side. I didn't consider the bump a safety issue, but I began to notice the cable was showing wear in the exact spot it crossed the other cables. Eventually, I decided to take advantage of my Harbor Freight Extended Warranty. So I took the first hoist down and returned it to Harbor Freight. They gave me a new one and I took out another extended warranty. After the second hoist did the same thing I thought maybe I could just replace the cable easier than replacing the entire unit. Well, they manual said nothing about cable replacement, so I went to CZcams to see ifothers had done it. I found nothing for the Harbor Freight hoist, but other brands treated the cable as a regular wear and tear repair for the owner. Replacement cables were inexpensive, but considerably cheaper in money and time than replacing the entire unit. But since I paid for a full replacement with the extended warranty, I always opted for the replacement. Besides, it appeared that I would have to take the hoist apart to change the cable. I sure didn't want to do that. This last time I decided to search for a different brand Hoist and found one for about the same price as Harbor Freight but had a lift capacity of over 1,700 pounds when looped through the snatch-block. I ordered it and installed it within an hour after arrival. The cable was larger but overall, the unit was very similar to the Harbor Freight hoist. The hand-held remote controller also has a large red emergency STOP button, but that's totally unnecessary on a "dead-man' switch type controller. No matter. It looks and works fine. But the larger cable really makes it difficult to wind up smoothly side to side, especially if I do not stop the down movement in time to keep the cable tight. The slack cable now goes back up and crosses the other cable on the drum just like the Harbor Freight hoist, but the larger cable makes for a larger and louder bump. Annoying but not unsafe. So now I'm trying to come up with a 'soft-landing' solution that will keep the cable tight. If I stop before it lands on the floor, all is well. But stopping less than an inch is not easy when you only have one eye. I'll come up with something. Meanwhile, Harbor Freiight replaced the last hoist and I decided not to purchase the extended warranty. Instead, if the new one needs a cable, I will try that first. And I can always install the back-up Harbor Freight hoist. I'll never need to life 1,700 pounds anyway. Just thought you guys would like to know this. Although there are a few 'kinks' in the cable (pun intended), this is still a worthwhile project, not to mention convenient and safer one than the fold-down ladder. LM
I'm not suggesting you do this, you know, legally speaking, but if I were in your shoes, I'd consider switching to a synthetic line, and shorten it to the point where you leave about 8-10 wraps on the drum, maybe less. I there's a rule, you can look it up somewhere. But the synthetic lines are supposed to be much smoother when comes to not overlapping like that. I think, partly due to them being thicker, they fall into place easier.
As for the coasting to a stop... That's tricky with something like a hoist or winch without a load. I think the best you can do is just get good at letting of the button at the right time.
Oh, and I'd seriously consider a safety brake of some sort. Especially if you modify the cable and/or still use it for people. Check out the channel called The Elevator, that guy has some great examples on his. If not for safety's sake, it's at least a fun project.
@@AlexR_44 I looked into the synthetic line and may do it if this cable ever wears out. It has settled down and I never give it another thought. until I decide to inspect the cable on the way up. No broken wires so far. As for a brake, I've considered several designs I found online, and some I came up with myself. They all have at least one flaw or undesirable quality about their performance or reliability. I even considered mounting a smaller hoist that was capable of handling the weight and wiring it so that the smaller hoist motor would only bear part of the weight just to keep the cable tight. But there seemed to be a syncretization problem in that setup. I have an automatic whole-house generator, so I'm not concerned about power loss. And the hoist motors are very good at stopping when the button is released, or the lift touches the limiter. Cable breakage, I have learned, is rarely due to a complete cut through a cable that instantly drops the elevator. Instead, the cable becomes frayed, usually from wear. Frequent inspections would notice this problem long before total failure, and appropriate steps could be taken. One braking idea I've been working on is a caliper-driven mechanism that does not instantly stop the elevator in place, but instead, slows the downward 'fall' of the elevator until it reaches the floor. This idea solves two problems: safely lowering the passengers, while also making it easier to service the problem without the elevator stuck somewhere inaccessible. We'll see. Thanks for your comments and suggestions. I think a lot of folks appreciate the thought that goes into such a project. And it helps to get independent input to consider.
cool cool.
and yea, I wouldn't worry about cable breakage either, way more concerned with the quality of the internal components of a HF hoist allowing it to freewheel down, but it seems like they've been selling these for a while now and I haven't heard any stories of broken shear pins or anything yet, so, godspeed. 👍
Mr McMillin, I to am gettiing where the attic access is formidable at my age (69) and multiple knee repacemets (5 and counting). I to live in Covington and with my wife in a wheelchair it is just me retrieving or placing seasonal decorations in the attic. Plus the garage ceiling height of 12' means a long climb on those questionable attic ladders. Looking on line for the rollers you used, as they offer a small pivot point instead of a ridgid connection. Have all the hardware even fixed point rollers but would prefer the ones you used. If you still have the supplier that would be great. Will look for your reply, thanks for the video, and follow on advice about the hoist.
Thank you. I will be 83 in three months. I know the problems of climbing into the attic on those scary pull-down ladders, especially if you carry something bulky or heavy. I solved the problem with parts and dollies from Tractor Supply, a Hoist motor from Harbor Freight, and the platform made by a local welder. The attic framing was figured out by my nephew. The power was already in place. It has never failed me. I can take 4'x8' sheets of plywood up and bring them back down with ease. Out 9' Christmas Tree rolls from the living room, hout the front door, down the sidewalk, into the garage and onto the elevator, and parked out of way until next year. We're old, so it takes about ten minutes. A youngster of 69 could do it eight minutes easy. The video shows everything you will need to consider in order to design your own. There's a lot of talk about safety issues, and rightfully so. All I can say is that it is much safer than the pull-down ladder.. I occasionally get suggestions to improve the safety of it, but so far, it does exactly what I want it to do with no concerns on my part. Even my wife goes up alone to take stuff up or bring stuff down. She may call me if it's heavy. As for the payload of the ceiling, my ceiling joist ore 2"x12"s on 12" center. I may have 500 to 700 pounds of stuff up there but it spread over 300 square feet. I'm not the least bit worried that the ceiling will fall in. Potentially dangerous, yes. But not nearly as potentially dangerous as the Pull-down ladder. I consider the "Potential" danger very low compared to many other things in life. But I am trying to lose a few pounds to soften the fall if the cable breaks.
Very nice! A cheap retractable lanyard would make a nice safety addition if people are going to ride it.
Fit a couple of fall arresters and all good.
Mike
a super work.....
And worth every Penney... Thanks
hi Leroy, amazing work thanks for sharing, by the way have you found a solution to the cable problem?
Thanks Alvin. Yes I finally did. After my 6th Harbor Freight swap using the extended warranty option, I found another hoist online that looked similar to Harbor Freight's hoists, but it had a larger payload and slightly larger cable. It wasn't as good 'a quality as Harbor Freight's hoists, but it was less expensive. And it fit my needs well. So far, one year later, it is still working fine. This one also states in the manual to "replace the cable when worn." There was no instruction or obvious provision for replacing the cable in the Harbor Freight hoist. The replacement Harbor Freight hoist is still in the box if I need it. Thank you for asking. It's a good point to keep in mind when selecting a hoist motor. Also, don't confuse "Hoists" with "Winches" like those on the fronts of Jeeps and such. Huge difference... L
Yes, I made it a policy to never take elephants into the attic. Problem solved.
Seems to work great.
Yes it does. So much so that it's easy to access anything stored in the attic in about one minute. That's very handy for items used occasionally. Such as the pressure washer, wheelbarrow, wood planer, extra lumber, Christmas decorations, including the fully decorated 9' tree on wheels, Mardi Grass and Halloween decorations, luggage, ice chests, etc. My garage is no longer used to store anything. I even keep a large empty cardboard box up there for when I need to spray paint something. Just bring the box down to counter height, place the item inside and paint. It's the best investment we made when we built the house. The builder would not do the job so I let my nephew and brother-in-law do it. Took 2 days.
What did you use for the metal frame for lift platform?
Steel, as recommended by the welding shop for loads not exceeding 2,000 pounds including the weight of the elevator, cargo and any passengers. The hoist motor and cable has a 1,300 pound limit when looped through a snatch-block, lifting approximately 12'. Works perfectly for mine.
Hi Leroy-great project! In your video you show and say “The plywood backing is to reinforce the wall and tracks where the elevator is mounted.” A couple of questions: are the tracks mounted just to the plywood or are there studs behind the wall that the tracks are also screwed into? What size thickness of plywood did you use?
I do not have studs that align with where I need to attach the tracks, so I’m trying to decide if plywood over the drywall would provide sufficient support for the tracks, or if I will need 2x4 studs to drill the track to.
Thanks very much!
Thanks for asking. I believe I mentioned about the plywood backing two or three years ago, but I'll gladly do it again. The 3/4" cabinet grade (a lot cheaper back then) plywood is mounted over the drywall and into the studs. The tracks are mounted to the plywood. One stud was off by a few inches, so attachment was only on three studs. Not to worry, the tracks carry no weight and only serve as guides for the carriage dollies that roll freely inside the tracks while the hoist lifts upward pretty much straight up. But I placed the hoist motor back about 1° off plumb so that the upper dollies would tend to remain toward the back of the track. If I had it to do over, I probably would make it 2° to compensate for me standing on the front side of the platform when I'm taking stuff up or down. I'm 300 pounds and considering the change in center of gravity, the upper dollies tend to lean forward. Even so, it has not caused a problem in over six years of almost daily use. And if there's no cargo on board, I usually stand in the center. As simple as the design is, there's always room for improvement. I'm working on a sort of friction clutch or brake to simply slow the drop-speed in case of a cable break. My experience with cables "breaking" is that it is mostly a strand at a time, thereby giving me enough warning that I should land the thing and replace the cable. I continue to feel much safer using the elevator instead of the fold-down stair-ladder that scares the crap out of me. I hope this answered your question.
@@leroymcmillin thanks for the prompt and thorough reply. Very helpful!
How are you supporting the joists that you cut to enlarge the opening?
A double plate across the end with the cuts we took out. My nephew to do that.
Beautiful....but, who made your metal platform frame?? That seems to be a mandatory piece with every video I've seen of this, but this also seems to be something that has to be custom made, as well.
Thanks Phil. Beautiful is a nice word. I like it. In my mind, 'Functional' is probably a more practical word for it. But all that you see there is a composite of a lot of ideas from others who wanted/needed an elevator that would handle their specific needs. Each of them came up with novel ideas to address their specific situation. Some were fairly basic, but some were very creative. All were useful in my design process. I took my drawings and photos to my local welder and within minutes he knew exactly what would work. He could have 'over-built' it but he didn't and probably saved me money and even grief down the road. He loved the video when I showed it to him. I should point out one issue. I've replaced the hoist five times in four years. I had purchased the extended warranty, so it was just a swap-out. The hoist was fine, but the cable would eventually get to the point where it would 'Bump' as it got crossed on the hoist drum. Eventually, the cable would start to develop 'knots' where the cable rubbed the other cable. There was no instruction in the User Manual as to how to replace the cable, and Harbor Freight's Customer Service didn't offer any advice or instructions as to what to do. I suspect they didn't want someone to screw up the replacement instructions and then blame them for any damage or injuries. I'm fine with that. I personally do not want to take the hoist motor apart to replace the wire cable, so I just returned it for a new hoist. Even at 80 years old, it only takes me about half an hour to take it down and put it back up. And yes, people wanting to see my elevator always come when the cable is making that annoying 'SNAP' that shakes the elevator. The replacement rides smoothly most of the time , depending on where I'm standing on the deck. My nephew who actually did all the framing and installation was here yesterday and we talked about it. We both agree on the cable issue, so next time we just might try replacing the cable. By the way, a lot of folks have left comments and asked questions. If you are thinking about installing a similar lifting device, you would do yourself a favor by reading some of those questions and comments. If nothing else, it will satisfy your mind about construction and safety issues before you invest time and money in it. Thanks for your comments and questions.
Now LeRoy you could have saved a bunch of time and money and just had Judy climb the ladder and you just pitch stuff up to her. I miss you guys and think about you often. I was trying to think of a great sign off for you involving "Spring finally found a way out of work Chicken"...lol seriously though...glad you both are doing well.
What a nice surprise! We think of you often too. In fact, Chubby set up a new closed group Facebook page for the old-timer Eggheads. I know you would be a welcome participant if you aren't one already. Some folks actually came out of the woodwork to post there. I haven't checked it lately. Here's the link: facebook.com/groups/2038269233086830/ We're now living in a 55 and older community in Covington, Louisiana. Yes, in the heart of Cajun/Creole cooking country. Our next project is to build a new outdoor kitchen. The foundation is poured, and all the pipes and power are in. Just waiting on me to say 'go.' If you find yourself anywhere within a thousand miles or so of New Orleans, we're in that circle. Come see us. I'm betting we could muster up a party. Great hearing from you. Judy sends her best too.
Hi Bobby. I know a lot of Bobby's but not all of them know about my forum sign-offs way back when. If you're the Bobby everyone in our circle knew, I hope you are doing well. Your name came up in a conversation a few months back. They asked if I had heard from you . I seem to recall I told them you won the lottery and ran off to the islands with a ... a... a..... Darn... I forgot what I told 'em.
Dimension of platform?
45" width, 38" depth, 41" height. That being said, keep in mind that my ceiling joists 2” X 12”s on 12” centers, and the elevator frame had to clear both outside joists.
The depth was strictly a judgment call based upon what I thought I might need to carry me and some cargo. Any more depth would have required additional bracing and, therefore, additional weight and cost.
The height of the elevator’s back had to fit into the space between the elevator’s highest point of travel and the hoist motor that was mounted to the underside of a steel beam. I could have mounted the steel beam and hoist motor higher but that would make replacing the hoist more difficult. I’ve already replaced it three times. It’s not exactly easy to do by yourself, especially when you are approaching 80 years old.
I should also mention that the weight of the elevator frame should be taken into account when purchasing the hoist motor. To be safe, I estimated the frame to weigh 200 pounds total (includes the flooring, bottom panel, carpet, and track-dollies. Add me at almost 300 pounds fully dressed wearing a tool belt and boots and the weight without freight is already approaching 500 pounds. Add a couple hundred pounds of freight and it becomes just that much more of a strain for the hoist motor. I purchased one with a 1,250-pound capacity when double-looped back up to the hoist. It’s slower by fast enough for me and handles the weight well.
One guy came by to see it in person and to ask questions. He wanted to install a larger one in his garage/workshop to handle considerably larger and heavier loads, but when I mentioned the weight limit of his attic he stopped cold. He had not given that any thought. He concluded that it wouldn’t work for him without considerable reinforcement of his garage.
Also keep in mind that it may require some type of permit in your county, especially if you plan to carry passengers. I ride mine but I also have my fold-down stairs as my regular attic access route. So far everything has gone well and I’m glad I installed it. Otherwise, I would have to rent a shed to store the boxes of Christmas, Mardi Gras, and Halloween decorations, along with my rarely used wheelbarrow, pressure washer, luggage, ice chests, and my 9’ tall Christmas tree (fully decorated and ready to be rolled down, plugged in, and admired.)
Good luck with yours.
I always get nervous when you see ceiling joist being cut The weight that is on the three joist are being supported be screws from the two uncut joist into the 2x12.the three joists are attached to. Not a lot of strength. You might want to have a pull down ladder to this area. Power failure, motor failure and no way to egress and no way to get help up there.
Thanks for your concern. We actually considered the joist-strength loss when cutting the hole, and we doubled the cut endplates A number of structural-savvy people, including engineers, took a look and claimed it to be more than sufficiently strong to accommodate the elevator's primary purpose - to transport items into the attic where they will be distributed to other areas of the attic that were designed for storage.
But one should also take into account the alternative transport method - the pull-down folding ladder which had a number of obvious built-in safety flaws. Not only was it weak by design, but also unsafe for the same reason. These alone automatically generated anxiety when I needed to climb into the attic to change the HVAC filter or drain the water heater tank.
Also, the physical and emotional stress was greatly increased by my having to carry a wide range of items that varied in weight and size. Any large heavy items were greatly dependent on the maximum weight-rating of the ladder and the size of the ceiling hole.
Consider also, that I would have to climb a shaky ladder with both hands full. Retrieval of the same items was equally or more hazardous.
Given that I am almost 80 years old, weigh 280 pounds, and recently underwent quintuple open heart surgery, the elevator was clearly the only reasonable choice I had.
@@leroymcmillin If this is the only way to get in the attic I would make two additions.
As mentioned a second way to egress the area. Power failure or equipment failure leaves one trapped. The fire department will cut a hole to get you out. That is if you have a phone to call them.
Most important for a people lift is some form of fall arrester. Cable break or gear failure will cause an eight foot fall. Weather on a platform or in free air eight feet is eight feet. At our age a four foot fall can be a bone breaking problem. Elevators never went high until Otis invented a fall prevention system for elevators, It will probably the biggest expense of the system. You have 4 years and 60 pounds on me and a surgery to boot.. Take care.
Music is a bit depressing but good job