motorcycle trailer storage solution - my attempt

[Yorkee]

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As many of us want as much garage space as possible, having an unfoldable trailer is a pita. I used to be able to lift the trailer and lean it against the wall physically, but when I get older, it's tougher to do so. It's not financially advisable to paid my chiropractor everytime I use my trailer. So I decide to setup something like this:

Sorry for the phone camera pictures. Basically, I setup a hoist 45 degrees and have it pull up the trailer. It's not yet finish, but functional so far.

 

[acernec]

That is a fantastic idea.

 

[-D-]

great idea
I am sure you can do this with just pulleys and no electrical hoist required.
If I may suggest this to you, why not use that electrical hoist to maximize your space if needed.
Meaning lift the trailer to the ceiling but if you have ample space then my suggested is moot.

 

[sid_for_speed]

great idea
I am sure you can do this with just pulleys and no electrical hoist required.
If I may suggest this to you, why not use that electrical hoist to maximize your space if needed.
Meaning lift the trailer to the ceiling but if you have ample space then my suggested is moot.

**The roof should be capable to holding the entire trailer's weight... Currently,it is not holding that.

If you plan to go -D-'s route, then maybe call a structural engineer...

 

[coyo]

This is my 2nd house where I've had a similar setup. The 1st version in the 1st house was a simple pulley system but then after doing some mods to the trailer, it became too heavy to hoist it safely. The 2nd version, which is the same that I have in my current house, is using a hoist. I think it's the same hoist you have but, as I got it at Princess Auto, it's Power Fist yellow.

Panoramic of the garage from a couple of months ago.

 

[Craneopbru]

.....Meaning lift the trailer to the ceiling ....

That would be a VERY bad idea. Those "hoists" are just ATV winches re-labeled as hoists. I would not trust those things to lift anything at all. Also, having the ceiling covered with drywall means that you actually have no idea what you're trusting to hold the weight of the trailer. If you have a drywalled ceiling in your garage, the odds are that the ceiling is a drop ceiling and is probably being held up by a dozen nails and a couple of 2x4s.

 

[BMWWW]

Very cool.

 

[Red_Liner740]

That would be a VERY bad idea. Those "hoists" are just ATV winches re-labeled as hoists. I would not trust those things to lift anything at all. Also, having the ceiling covered with drywall means that you actually have no idea what you're trusting to hold the weight of the trailer. If you have a drywalled ceiling in your garage, the odds are that the ceiling is a drop ceiling and is probably being held up by a dozen nails and a couple of 2x4s.

Interesting, i had no idea that ATV winches, which run on 12V DC can magically run on 120V AC as well...

BTW, i use the 440lbs rated Powerfist winch with a pulley system to double its torque rating to lift and swap engine out. So far, its lifted out a DOHC BMW 3L and 4L V8 engines, a Land Rover 4.0L V8, a Jetta TDI engine mated to a 4x4 transmission. 6 years now i've had it.

Ofcourse not off the joists. I built an A-frame for it, but to say the winches are not able to lift jack is misleading.

 

[-D-]

That would be a VERY bad idea. Those "hoists" are just ATV winches re-labeled as hoists. I would not trust those things to lift anything at all. Also, having the ceiling covered with drywall means that you actually have no idea what you're trusting to hold the weight of the trailer. If you have a drywalled ceiling in your garage, the odds are that the ceiling is a drop ceiling and is probably being held up by a dozen nails and a couple of 2x4s.

You are right but I was not thinking of lifting some heavy a** trailer either. I was thinking of a single bike simple light weight trailer.

Actually if your garage is tall enough then you would lift it to the ceiling by essentially bolting some support posts into the walls (lag bolts) to the weight is dispersed by the side walls and the ceiling is used as a centering point, just saying.

Nice setup Coyo, you made it with just a few inches to spare

 

[coyo]

BTW, i use the 440lbs rated Powerfist winch with a pulley system to double its torque rating to lift and swap engine out.

Same hoist I'm using with the pully for 880lbs lift capability.

You are right but I was not thinking of lifting some heavy a** trailer either. I was thinking of a single bike simple light weight trailer.

Actually if your garage is tall enough then you would lift it to the ceiling by essentially bolting some support posts into the walls (lag bolts) to the weight is dispersed by the side walls and the ceiling is used as a centering point, just saying.

Nice setup Coyo, you made it with just a few inches to spare

My previous house had 12' ceilings so lots of room (and better angles for the lift). When I bought this house I measured the garage ceiling and knew it would fit ON ITS END but due to the angles during the lift, wasn't sure until I tried it that it would fit.

This guy has the ultimate setup;

http://panofish.net/garage-trailer-lift/

 

[-D-]

Same hoist I'm using with the pully for 880lbs lift capability.



My previous house had 12' ceilings so lots of room (and better angles for the lift). When I bought this house I measured the garage ceiling and knew it would fit ON ITS END but due to the angles during the lift, wasn't sure until I tried it that it would fit.

This guy has the ultimate setup;

http://panofish.net/garage-trailer-lift/

HA! For the naysayers saying it being too heavy for the ceiling.
He could reduce the weight being suspended by putting the trailer sides on the wall when he stores it.

I like this, well done.
[video=youtube_share;faVubwlisoE]http://youtu.be/faVubwlisoE[/video]

 

[Yorkee]

Thanks you guys!


Craneopbru is right. Mine is a dropped ceiling and its held by 2x4s. I had put some thought and calculation before deciding to do it this way. Basically a 2x4s can safely support 200lbs static weight, it might be more (or maybe less) depends rather you put weight on the middle or at the end, and also how beat up that piece of 2x4 is. the hoist rated 440lbs. As you can see in the picture, I have a 4-5 feet 1 3/4 metal beams across the ceiling to distributed the weight throughout 3 beams. And I placed it at the end of the beam so its taking advantage of the max weight the beam (or the wall itself) can support.
I also put some 4.5" bolt mounting the beam to the side wall not only to distributed the weight, but also to keep the beam and the column in the same angle under weight. The last thing I did is to reenforce the 2x4 beam on the ceiling along with the truss to make sure the wood won't be degraded after putting a 3/8 hole in it. Yes, its a bit over engineering. But I don't want the hoist to pull down my whole garage. I don't even want the setup to put any crack on my drywall.


I have seen the video of lifting the whole trailer up the ceiling. While it is cool, I will have a hard time sleeping at night knowing there is a 500lb trailer on top of my car/bikes holding by cables. (I know... its just me!) Of course there are some way to make myself feel safer and securer than cables and make me comfortable with it (i.e. square side beams act as a gate lock to lock the trailer after its in ceiling) , but it will cost a lot more. I look at my solution is a compromise of safety, cost and amount of space saving.

If anyone want to do something like this, make sure the wall and the beams are capable to handle the weight. The last thing one want is the hoist pull down some roof.


Coyo, great mind think alike!

 

[Craneopbru]

Interesting, i had no idea that ATV winches, which run on 12V DC can magically run on 120V AC as well...

These "hoists" are not running the 12 volt DC motors used in atv winches; they have 120 volt AC motors. But thanks for pointing out the obvious. I might have missed that fact if you hadn't pointed it out.

BTW, i use the 440lbs rated Powerfist winch with a pulley system to double its torque rating...

Actually, the pulley does not double it's torque rating. Whether you lift 440 lbs in single part or 880 lbs in two part line, the motor sees the exact same load.

......So far, its lifted out a DOHC BMW 3L and 4L V8 engines, a Land Rover 4.0L V8, a Jetta TDI engine mated to a 4x4 transmission. 6 years now i've had it......... but to say the winches are not able to lift jack is misleading.

Hey, if feel confortable pushing that thing to it's limit, then go ahead; it's your life, not mine. I never said that it CAN'T lift anything, I said I wouldn't TRUST it to lift anything.

I've seen a 2 ton electric hoist literally blow apart. The motor mounting bolts snapped and the motor flew right off the side. The almost 2 ton steel bar on the hook started freewheeling down and by the time the guy on the control reacted to all this and let go of the button, there was too much momentum and when the brake came on, the hook holding the load snapped. The 50 foot long steel bar fell down through the building 10 floors before it hit concrete. It punched a hole through 4 concrete floors before it finally stopped.

That was a high quality, japanese made, purpose built hoist that was lifting the rated load. How much faith do you have in the build quality of that chinese made hunk of junk ? What happens if you are pulling out an engine and a bolt snags ? Now all of a sudden you've gone from lifting within capacity to overloading the hoist by 20 or 30 percent, maybe more. Still trust the quality of powerfist tools ?

You want to school me on motorcycles ? Go ahead, I'm new to this and have plenty to learn. But do you REALLY want to argue about electric hoists and lifting with a Hoisting Engineer ?

 

[-D-]

double post

 

[-D-]

These "hoists" are not running the 12 volt DC motors used in atv winches; they have 120 volt AC motors. But thanks for pointing out the obvious. I might have missed that fact if you hadn't pointed it out.




Actually, the pulley does not double it's torque rating. Whether you lift 440 lbs in single part or 880 lbs in two part line, the motor sees the exact same load.




Hey, if feel confortable pushing that thing to it's limit, then go ahead; it's your life, not mine. I never said that it CAN'T lift anything, I said I wouldn't TRUST it to lift anything.

I've seen a 2 ton electric hoist literally blow apart. The motor mounting bolts snapped and the motor flew right off the side. The almost 2 ton steel bar on the hook started freewheeling down and by the time the guy on the control reacted to all this and let go of the button, there was too much momentum and when the brake came on, the hook holding the load snapped. The 50 foot long steel bar fell down through the building 10 floors before it hit concrete. It punched a hole through 4 concrete floors before it finally stopped.

That was a high quality, japanese made, purpose built hoist that was lifting the rated load. How much faith do you have in the build quality of that chinese made hunk of junk ? What happens if you are pulling out an engine and a bolt snags ? Now all of a sudden you've gone from lifting within capacity to overloading the hoist by 20 or 30 percent, maybe more. Still trust the quality of powerfist tools ?

You want to school me on motorcycles ? Go ahead, I'm new to this and have plenty to learn. But do you REALLY want to argue about electric hoists and lifting with a Hoisting Engineer ?

639 × 426 - xrv.org.uk

 

[Red_Liner740]

Sigh.....so in one sentence you bash the power fist hoist, which i just told you have been in use for years with no issues, then go on to tell me about a hoist failure of a name brand, quality hoist. So whats your point? That Powerfist winches are **** or that winces in general can fail?

The Powerfist hoist is a POS, no doubt about it, but the price reflects it and i take every precaution i can.
Why are you getting your knots in a bunch? Cuz i called you out when you said they are rebadged ATV winches? If they are rebadged winches, then they would have the same 12V motors, which they dont, so obviously they arent rebadged....if you meant they are the same as in they work the same way, then i would agree...but they are not, and in fact i'd rather use an ATV winch as they have built in brakes and planetary reduction gearing vs the powerfists PLASTIC geared pair and no internal brake mechanism.

and am i supposed to be impressed with your title?

These "hoists" are not running the 12 volt DC motors used in atv winches; they have 120 volt AC motors. But thanks for pointing out the obvious. I might have missed that fact if you hadn't pointed it out.




Actually, the pulley does not double it's torque rating. Whether you lift 440 lbs in single part or 880 lbs in two part line, the motor sees the exact same load.




Hey, if feel confortable pushing that thing to it's limit, then go ahead; it's your life, not mine. I never said that it CAN'T lift anything, I said I wouldn't TRUST it to lift anything.

I've seen a 2 ton electric hoist literally blow apart. The motor mounting bolts snapped and the motor flew right off the side. The almost 2 ton steel bar on the hook started freewheeling down and by the time the guy on the control reacted to all this and let go of the button, there was too much momentum and when the brake came on, the hook holding the load snapped. The 50 foot long steel bar fell down through the building 10 floors before it hit concrete. It punched a hole through 4 concrete floors before it finally stopped.

That was a high quality, japanese made, purpose built hoist that was lifting the rated load. How much faith do you have in the build quality of that chinese made hunk of junk ? What happens if you are pulling out an engine and a bolt snags ? Now all of a sudden you've gone from lifting within capacity to overloading the hoist by 20 or 30 percent, maybe more. Still trust the quality of powerfist tools ?

You want to school me on motorcycles ? Go ahead, I'm new to this and have plenty to learn. But do you REALLY want to argue about electric hoists and lifting with a Hoisting Engineer ?

 

[oomis]

He's saying that *&^% happens and a smart engineer plans for failure.

and am i supposed to be impressed with your title?

Yes. I think the answer is probably yes.

 

[CafeRay]

jeez...

I did this once. I used a cheap compound hand pulley and it worked fine for years.
You are not lifting the trailer, you are tilting it.

Trailer for bikes all seem to be made out of battleship plate steel and weigh a ton. There are better designs, but they are hard to find.

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