garage ceiling height - lift - Page 2

racemor · 12-09-2005, 05:35 AM

The good thing is that if I can't get high enough ceilings in the new detached garage, the attached 2 1/2 car already has 14' to work with. We'd have to reconfigure the garage door, but it's an option. I know I'm building from scratch and have a clean slate, but I'm trying to avoid building a garage that dominates the house visually. It's already got a big footprint (24x30) so I'm trying to minimize by not going too high.

Thanks for the help.

sweet97m3 · 12-09-2005, 06:50 AM

I have a 12' ceiling in my garage and I had the door tracks on my 3rd bay designed for the high lift profile that hugs the ceiling. Normal garage door, does not look any different than the other two. I ran the wiring to support a wall mounted, direct-drive motor that works from the side of the door versus the standard overhead mount. This way I can utilize the full 12' of clearance without motor clearance concerns. The side/wall mounted motor is the way to go for this set-up although my contractor did say that these motors tend to not have as long a life-span as the standard set-up. They cost a bit more too. I designed the garage with a lift in mind and glad I did it upfront, to include the proper electric service to the lift if I wanted to go heavy-duty. As for the side-mount - my logic was/is - I am not going to use the motor nearly as much as the other two so the life on it should be pretty good.

ruf-porsche · ruf-porsche's Garage

There are building codes restriction on the height of a structure, and if you are building in a residentail area (Zone for residence use only) most communities have max. height and size requirement for garage to prevent people from operating a commerical business in a residential neighborhood.

Check with you building dept and determine what code they are using or perhaps check with a company that build detach garages. They will know how big you can build in a given location.

Fast82930 · Fast82930's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by makaio
Lyall, is that 10.5 to the very highest peak in your garage? What is the highest measurement with your 930 on the lift?

makaio,

The height is 10.5' at the center peak.

Like everyone else says, higher is better.

I had to "settle" and ended up with what you see.

tom1394racing · 12-10-2005, 12:32 PM

Here's my setup with the 2 post lift, 10 1/2 ft ceilings and my daughter's Honda Civic parked underneath my RSR clone. 10 1/2 ft barely gives enough room for working underneath my RSR. Get 14 ft if you can.

JeremyD · JeremyD's Garage

Anymore examples out there

mackskibum · 01-06-2006, 12:30 PM

Here's mine

real550A · real550A's Garage

I built mine with 12' ceiling in the bay with the 2 post lift. It allows the lift to take the car to the top. Very nice for valve adjust, exhaust work, etc.
s2per- I also installed the Wayne Dalton opener. That thing is great!

Jim Williams · 01-06-2006, 03:54 PM

Here's another recommendation for a 12' ceiling if you can work it. I have a 2-post asyemmetric lift which extends to about 11 1/2'. Fully raised, I can standup under the Porsche. Makes a big difference in the comfort level as opposed to stooping.

Here's one view:

And from another angle:

unclebilly · unclebilly's Garage

Depends on if you want to part a landcruiser under it...

arrivederci · 01-08-2006, 07:29 AM

Also, to help with clearance around the garage door opener, take a look at this type of opener:

http://www.wayne-dalton.com/idrive_Torsion.asp

unclebilly · unclebilly's Garage

Except that they won't work for a 9' or bigger door (that's what I wanted)...

stevej37 · 01-08-2006, 06:15 PM

I use the Wayne Dalton torsion drive openers on both of my 9' doors. They work great. On a larger door, they just won't raise it the entire distance.

Clay Perrine · 01-09-2006, 05:38 AM

I have a 10' ceiling in my garage, and a 2 post lift. It works fine for my Porsches, but anything bigger and I have to sit on a stool underneath.

The company that made the lift shortened the crossbar on top and the lift cables. I removed the garage door opener, that bay is not used on a daily basis and it makes for more clearance.

I can actually stand under the lift comfortably, but I am only 5'6" tall..... YMMV.

Flipseat · 06:02 AM

I have 12' ceilings. I had to cut my lift down 8" to fit it in. It will still lift to max lift, but not if I have a tall car on there. I can't stand up under the bus, but I can stand up under the 911 and most other cars. I'm 6'3". I need to move my garage door opener to the wall when I put a new door on and move some lights around for more clearance. Pardon the mess... I had just put it in and moved some things around.

Jgordon · 01-09-2006, 07:20 AM

Jim,

What kind of shelving and storage is that? do you have a source? looks good.

Thanks.

DougM · 01-09-2006, 08:26 AM

When building our house, I had "my" garage done with the cornice raised an additional 18". You can see it in the pics at the gutter line. My ceiling height is almost 16'. The garage opener is a typical unit but fabricated as a side pull. This way the rails can hug the ceiling. It pulls the door from the side and from the bottom attached to a brace.

Jim Williams · 01-09-2006, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jgordon
Jim,

What kind of shelving and storage is that? do you have a source? looks good.

Thanks.

Except for the castered shelving in the background of the top photo, the rest is sorta home-made.

The metal storage racks in the background came from Costco. I've also seen them in other membership type stores. Cost was about $75 for a 6' tall by 4' wide by 18" deep, with casters. I bought 4, (two of them were rolled inside closets for the photo) and have never been sorry about the purchase.

Here's a better view of the shelf. (This one was in a closet when the earlier photo was taken).

The other storage, on the right in the top photo, consists of two surplus aluminum storage cabinets from a gov't surplus sale, a bookshelf from a garage sale, and a 8' length of kitchen counter top bought on a closeout from Lowe's. The under-counter piece with the sliding doors is the bottom part of a store fixture which had a display rack on top. You can see what wonders painting everything the same color can do. I painted everything "Equipment Gray" using Krylon rattle cans from the hardware store.

RayM · 01-22-2006, 03:19 AM

Thanks for all the great ideas especially the side pull with a regular opener. I only have 10' unfortunately. Stevej37, have you had any issues with the I-drive system? In So Cal they are sold by Lowes and they said they've had so much troube they won't install them anymore.

Also any tips on lifts. So far the backyard Buddy looked to be well constructed. I like the idea of square tubing supports without an open channel running the length of the post. I also heard there is a reputable company in Downey calif. but haven't located them yet.

Did most everyone here install themselves or pay a contactor?- labor cost?

Thanks

stevej37 · 01-22-2006, 05:33 AM

RayM..The Wayne Dalton torsion drive opener is easy to install- it straddles the the torsion bar and is bolted to the header. It opens the door by turning the torsion bar. It's quiet and fast. The only issue I've had is the wireless light doesn't want to work all the time. I would have installed standard openers, but there isn't enough clearance above the door for the rail or track when open.