Overhead garage storage

Does anyone have overhead storage in your garage? I am looking for something preferably some that can go up and down. Motorized would be great but not necessary. Would like to keep it on the south side of 4 figures. Thanks

 

Just installed an Auxx-Lift for a customer a few weeks back. If I remember correctly it lifted around 400lbs or so. They had already purchased it so not 100% what they spent

 

I have a lot of eye bolts and hooks for things in my ceiling - bikes, chainsaw, hoses, ladders, back packs, etc.... depends what you want to get up there.

 

Most looking to store bins of camping stuff

 

put it in color coded stuff sacks (write contents on the bottom w/ a Sharpie) and hang it on hooks. I have a pole w/ an inverted hook on the end to reach up and get stuff down w/o the ladder

 

I just mounted an electric hoist to the ceiling in my shop. Check your construction first. Most modern roofs "push" the roof away, not support the weight. So, all those nice exposed ceiling trusses (chords) may or may not support substantial weight. Adding too much weight can collapse your entire roof.

How much weight can your ceiling support? All depends on construction.



I attached 2 steel square metal tubes to support the weight of the hoist. Because of the spacing of the ceiling chords, I could not put the frame atop the chords, and had to use lag screws to mount to the underside of the chords. When lifting/lowering, the weight is distributed across 3 chords. When stored, the weight is transferred from the hoist to camstraps attached to chords that do not support the weight of the hoist. When operating the hoist, if possible, I want the garage doors closed as the ceiling chords are supporting the weight of the garage door as well as the hoist and whatever is attached to it.



Initially, I mounted the hoist parallel to the chords - I did not like the look of that at all. I took the whole thing down, reinforced all the chords vertically and horizontally, then added the steel tubing and mounted it perpendicular to the chords.

Truth is, I still don't like it. I may rethink the whole thing and mount the hoist to the wall studs, then rig a pulley system so that when lifting and lowering, the forces are transferred to the stronger part of the construction- the walls and where the walls meet the ceiling.

Eyebolts screwed into the bottom of a chord will not handle any substantial weight - even if they are rated to do so - the failure point being the wood, not the eye bolt. Initially I used some eyebolts, but as soon as I rested any weight on them - I thought, "Nope, Nope. Nope." In the end, I used rock climbing slings wrapped around the chords and protected from abrasion. All nylon straps/slings will be replaced every couple of years and inspected often.

Having said all that, I am not an engineer or a carpenter. It was important for me to understand how angles affect forces on anchors, and avoid the "American Death Triangle".