Need a way to hoist trailer off garage floor.

[Chuck Decker]

I am moving, and I need to buy a shallow, flatbed trailer for hauling plywood, etc. The problem is that the garage is too small to store the trailer and two cars at the same time. So, I am trying to find a way to hoist the trailer flat-ways to the ceiling of the garage. Or, maybe just hoisting it edge-ways against the wall.

 

I imagine a small, electric hoist anchored to the wall, with a rope or wire rope from the hoist passing through one or more pulleys. Once the trailer is up, I would need a safty block of some kind to guard against the hoist slipping, and allowing the trailer to fall.

 

Surely I'm not the first to need something like this. Any ideas from the group? I really need your help lest I do somethinng really stupid.

 

Thank you,

 

Chuck

[Rich Designs]

Try akcooltools.com and look under the hitchmaster link--works like a charm. Mention this site and u can get free shipping and handling. Hope this ok to do here, if not, I sincerely appologize. But is is a 'cool' tool.

[T Corey]

Chuck: harborfrieght.com has a trailer that the back folds up, and has some smaller caster wheels right behind the axle. You just lift the tongue til the whole trailer is on the casters and you can roll it against the wall. It is 48" x 96" so a sheet of plywood will fit on it.Its 24" x 63" standing up. It hauls 1195 lbs and has 12" wheels. Its sells for $400.00 Other places sell these but Harbor Freight might be the cheapest. The Item # is 90154-OVGA. It has some side slots so you could make some sides to stick on it. Hope this helps or gives you an idea on building one. Just my two cents. T

[T Corey]

Chuck: I think my sometimers is acting up or I need new bifocals. The price on that trailer is $340.00. Thats the first mistake I made today! NOT!!! God (and Jody) has blessed me with a 21' enclosed trailer so alot of times I leave the material in the trailer til Im ready for it. T

[Chuck Decker]

Richard, Phillip, and TC, thanks for the suggestions. That does look interesting. It would have many other uses too. When I have the keys to the new house I can get the dimensions and weight of the trailer, and the height of the ceiling. I don't even own the trailer yet.

The thing I am lacking is a strong back. In fact, I am disabled because of it. So, I have to be causcious of how much I try to lift. That is why an electric hoist would be better for me. It's the rigging that I have no experience with. I know Harbor Freight has the hoists in various load sizes. One hoist of the correct strength would be able to quickly raise the trailer all the way up to the ceiling.

I am imagining something that would have 4 hook-and-rope lines that I could lower to the floor of the trailer and connect one to each corner of the bed frame. Each line would pass up to the ceiling, and over a pulley. They would continue on to where they would eventually come together, and over another pully. Finally, they would be connected to the electric hoist, which would be mounted on a wall of the garage.

Push a button, and the trailer is pulled to the ceiling. Push another button, and it is lowered to the floor.

It is my hope that I will make two sets of bedroom furnature...using my Kreg Jig of course. But, I need to solve this problem first.

Thanks guys. I mean it!

Chuck

[Larwyn]

I did that on a much smaller scale for a very short time. I used a couple of rope and pulley systems designed for bicycles and ladders to raise the little John Deere 10P Utility Cart (approx 75 pounds empty) to the ceiling in my garage. For me it was not at all convenient as I had to move everything that was under it before lowering it to the ground. That plus the added trouble of lowering and lifting the cart every time I used it influenced my decision to just park it behind my backyard shop and leave it outside. I use it a lot more often now that all I have to do is hook it up to the tractor and go. The little cart does not look new any more but it has certainly earned it's keep. These days even the little tractor spends a lot of days outside. I have come to the conclusion that the reason I own equipment is to make life easier for me, I believe in taking reasonable care of that equipment, but no longer spend a lot of time, energy and money trying to keep that equipment looking unused. If it ain't scratched, dinged, faded and or dirty, it probably ain't earning it's keep.

[Chuck Decker]

Corey,

Funny you should mention this approach, because I did very much the same thing. That is, I bought the smallest of the HF folding trailers. It looked like a good idea in the beginning, but it didn’t work out so well for me.

It took a whole weekend to assemble that thing. Once it was assembled, I discovered that it was too heavy for me to open and close it. So, I left it open and just parked it behind my shed. In the 10 years I owned it, I only dragged it out one time.

As suggested, I only took on projects where I could have the lumber yard cut the plywood into smaller pieces that I could carry home in my car. (I managed to avoid projects that needed the whole sheet of plywood, but that’s no way to live!)

Well, we are retiring to a house where we will be members of a home-owners-association. The by laws restrict the outside storage of things like trailers. This is why I must devise a way to have a trailer and store it inside and out of sight.

The new house is much smaller than the one we are leaving. It has a 2-car garage, but just barely. There is not enough floor space to put a trailer in it too. The only way is up. The ceiling is about 2 feet taller than it needs to be, so I think I ought to be able to find a way to defy a little gravity and make use of that space.

Old age sucks!

Chuck


T Corey said:

Chuck: harborfrieght.com has a trailer that the back folds up, and has some smaller caster wheels right behind the axle. You just lift the tongue til the whole trailer is on the casters and you can roll it against the wall. It is 48" x 96" so a sheet of plywood will fit on it.Its 24" x 63" standing up. It hauls 1195 lbs and has 12" wheels. Its sells for $400.00 Other places sell these but Harbor Freight might be the cheapest. The Item # is 90154-OVGA. It has some side slots so you could make some sides to stick on it. Hope this helps or gives you an idea on building one. Just my two cents. T

[Chuck Decker]

Larwyn,

I agree. We each have different situations to work around. In my case, we are retiring to a smaller ranch style house with a 2-car garage. The garage is big enough for 2 cars, but not much more. The home-owners-association will take care of the grass and snow, so no need for lawnmowers and other things like that. I am selling off everything that I don't plan to use anymore. So, it should be easy to pull the 2 cars out of the garage and drop the trailer from the ceiling.

The association will not allow anybody to store things outside. (There is always a "dark side", isn't there?)

Chuck



Larwyn said:

I did that on a much smaller scale for a very short time. I used a couple of rope and pulley systems designed for bicycles and ladders to raise the little John Deere 10P Utility Cart (approx 75 pounds empty) to the ceiling in my garage. For me it was not at all convenient as I had to move everything that was under it before lowering it to the ground. That plus the added trouble of lowering and lifting the cart every time I used it influenced my decision to just park it behind my backyard shop and leave it outside. I use it a lot more often now that all I have to do is hook it up to the tractor and go. The little cart does not look new any more but it has certainly earned it's keep. These days even the little tractor spends a lot of days outside. I have come to the conclusion that the reason I own equipment is to make life easier for me, I believe in taking reasonable care of that equipment, but no longer spend a lot of time, energy and money trying to keep that equipment looking unused. If it ain't scratched, dinged, faded and or dirty, it probably ain't earning it's keep.

[Larwyn]

I'm very sorry to hear that you are saddled with a home owner's association. I had probably best leave it at that, my opinion of HOA's has caused plenty of lively conversation on other discussion groups.

Good luck with that.

[Chuck Decker]

Larwyn,

That makes me laugh. (I needed that.)

I think I know what you are trying to say, and I think I would agree with you. Like I said, everything has a "dark side". Our current neighborhood HOA is virtually not there. We have no meetings, no leadership, no dues, and no services. We also have no limits. We are free to do whatever and whenever we want. Sounds great.

My wife and I have lived here for 25 years (this year is our silver anniversary!). We are both suffering from chronic pain and sleep syndromes of many kinds. I have lost the sight in one eye, and I take about 2 dozen pills every day just to continue living with my many health problems. Our 5 level, split floor plan is becoming a threat to life and limb. In the first years, I would run up and down all levels just to get another screwdriver to fix something. I could do it all day long too. But things have changed. I have changed.

By moving to the new house with the HOA, we must give up the right to make some choices on our own. For example, we can't put up a basketball goal in the driveway, and no swing sets in the yard. We can’t park junk cars along the side of the house or on the street. We can’t have more than one family living in the house. We can’t have loud, late night parties. We can’t even litter the yard with beer cans, nor can we leave half empty bottles standing in the street. Yep, that’s just asking an awful lot. Man, do I hate HOA’s!

In our current home we have virtually no restrictions. But you know what, neither does anyone else. So, right now, as I write this note, people are starting to gather in the house across the street. By tomorrow afternoon cars and trucks will line both sides of the street. There will be no places left to park. At times they will completely block the flow of traffic because people will stop in the street to talk. Daylight is no reason to bring an end to the festivities either. This time it is St. Patrick’s Day, but there are many other reasons to have a party. In the summer, clothing is optional. Naked dogs and cats will be sleeping together! LOL (At least I can still laugh about it.)

I have cussed at the concept of HOA’s myself, but things have changed and so have I. I still believe that we are all entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, BUT ONLY to the extent that what I am doing does not harm or disturb others around me. For example, I like music, but I might not like to feel my bones tremble in the middle of the night from someone’s over amplified woofer. If it is contained within their own home, no problem. It just isn't right to impose it on others.

If I were young and healthy again, I would simply buy a piece of land with lots of space between houses. Unfortunately that is not an option anymore. So, I must sacrifice some of my rights, and I must pay someone to let me do it. Crazy!

Anyway, I agree with you about HOA’s. (...I think?)

Chuck



Larwyn said:

I'm very sorry to hear that you are saddled with a home owner's association. I had probably best leave it at that, my opinion of HOA's has caused plenty of lively conversation on other discussion groups.

Good luck with that.

[Larwyn]

I think I understand..........it is because your wife likes the house................LOL.

Chuck Decker said:

Larwyn,

That makes me laugh. (I needed that.)

I think I know what you are trying to say, and I think I would agree with you. Like I said, everything has a "dark side". Our current neighborhood HOA is virtually not there. We have no meetings, no leadership, no dues, and no services. We also have no limits. We are free to do whatever and whenever we want. Sounds great.

My wife and I have lived here for 25 years (this year is our silver anniversary!). We are both suffering from chronic pain and sleep syndromes of many kinds. I have lost the sight in one eye, and I take about 2 dozen pills every day just to continue living with my many health problems. Our 5 level, split floor plan is becoming a threat to life and limb. In the first years, I would run up and down all levels just to get another screwdriver to fix something. I could do it all day long too. But things have changed. I have changed.

By moving to the new house with the HOA, we must give up the right to make some choices on our own. For example, we can't put up a basketball goal in the driveway, and no swing sets in the yard. We can’t park junk cars along the side of the house or on the street. We can’t have more than one family living in the house. We can’t have loud, late night parties. We can’t even litter the yard with beer cans, nor can we leave half empty bottles standing in the street. Yep, that’s just asking an awful lot. Man, do I hate HOA’s!

In our current home we have virtually no restrictions. But you know what, neither does anyone else. So, right now, as I write this note, people are starting to gather in the house across the street. By tomorrow afternoon cars and trucks will line both sides of the street. There will be no places left to park. At times they will completely block the flow of traffic because people will stop in the street to talk. Daylight is no reason to bring an end to the festivities either. This time it is St. Patrick’s Day, but there are many other reasons to have a party. In the summer, clothing is optional. Naked dogs and cats will be sleeping together! LOL (At least I can still laugh about it.)

I have cussed at the concept of HOA’s myself, but things have changed and so have I. I still believe that we are all entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, BUT ONLY to the extent that what I am doing does not harm or disturb others around me. For example, I like music, but I might not like to feel my bones tremble in the middle of the night from someone’s over amplified woofer. If it is contained within their own home, no problem. It just isn't right to impose it on others.

If I were young and healthy again, I would simply buy a piece of land with lots of space between houses. Unfortunately that is not an option anymore. So, I must sacrifice some of my rights, and I must pay someone to let me do it. Crazy!

Anyway, I agree with you about HOA’s. (...I think?)

Chuck



Larwyn said:

I'm very sorry to hear that you are saddled with a home owner's association. I had probably best leave it at that, my opinion of HOA's has caused plenty of lively conversation on other discussion groups.

Good luck with that.

[Art S. Hamilton]

Chuck, think hard about this wish to elevate anything heavier than a canoe, and place a huge value on
everyone's safety.

First, when you find out the weight of the trailer, you then use a simple formula to calculate the lift
required. Divide the weight by the number of pulleys, and you have the pull, in pounds, needed to
raise. A two hundred pound trailer hoisted on ten combined vertical pulleys, would, in theory,
need only a twenty pound pull. On a single pulley, you would need a two hundred pound pull,
because all you are doing is changing the direction of the rope/cable. Think of a deer hoist,
but go beyond that in some really important ways.

Each pulley, or sheave as I call them, has by nature, friction losses, so your effort is higher than
the simple math. Plus, with each 'turn', you have to double the lenghth of rope used to make
the pull geometry happen.

Second, and most important, is the integrity of the anchor from the ceiling that will have to suffer
the dead load continuously. It should be spread over several trusses to allow more of the ceiling
to absorb the stress, preferably with a grid arrangement.

Third is the rigging itself. I have built a wide number of pulling and hoisting combinations, and
it can take significant time to get a balanced pull. A triangle is the most stable shape, but if the
vertical angle of pull is too flat, the strength of the rope is seriously reduced. If the vertical angle
is gradual and strong, you lose most of your usable floor-to-ceiling height.

All this, including the wall sheaves, tie-offs, and child-proof safety measures can certainly be
done, and it is a prideful accomplishment when done well.

But an acquaintance attempted just such a project without real forethought, and when standing
under the finished product, and wiggling the trailer from beneath to check it out, a rope let go,
the trailer knocked him down, the u-bolt from the spring hanger pierced his heart, and his wife
came home to a dead husband.

THINK, THINK, THINK. We want you around.

[Chuck Decker]

Art,

WOW!

Indeed, you have made me "think". Hoisting to the ceiling looks like a bad idea now.

I had already been considering that I would have to reinforce the ceiling before putting that kind of load on it, and that was looking like the wrong kind of thing for me to be doing.

So, what do you think about just hoisting the tongue of the trailer up against the wall and then chaining the trailer to the wall for safety? That way the weight would just rest on the floor on some 2x4's.

Thanks for your thinking!

Chuck


Art S. Hamilton said:

Chuck, think hard about this wish to elevate anything heavier than a canoe, and place a huge value on
everyone's safety.

First, when you find out the weight of the trailer, you then use a simple formula to calculate the lift
required. Divide the weight by the number of pulleys, and you have the pull in pounds needed to
raise. A two hundred pound trailer hoisted on ten combined vertical pulleys, would, in theory,
need only a twenty pound pull. On a single pulley, you would need a two hundred pound pull,
because all you are doing is changing the direction of the rope/cable. Think of a deer hoist,
but go beyond that in some really important ways.

Each pulley, or sheave as I call them, has by nature, friction losses, so your effort is higher than
the simple math. Plus, with each 'turn', you have to double the lenghth of rope used to make
the pull geometry happen.

Second, and most important, is the integrity of the anchor from the ceiling that will have to suffer
the dead load continuously. It should be spread over several trusses to allow more of the ceiling
to absorb the stress, preferably with a grid arrangement.

Third is the rigging itself. I have built a wide number of pulling and hoisting combinations, and
it can take significant time to get a balanced pull. A triangle is the most stable shape, but if the
vertical angle of pull is too flat, the strength of the rope is seriously reduced. If the vertical angle
is gradual and strong, you lose most of your usable floor-to-ceiling height.

All this, including the wall sheaves, tie-offs, and child-proof safety measures can certainly be
done, and it is a prideful accomplilshment when done well.

But an acquaintance attempted just such a project without real forethought, and when standing
under the finished product, and wiggling the trailer from beneath to check it out, a rope let go,
the trailer knocked him down, the u-bolt from the spring hanger pierced his heart, and his wife
came home to a dead husband.

THINK, THINK, THINK. We want you around.