Is a lift necessary?

[69Nova]

Well guys I'm sitting here at work trying to figure out the best way to spend the money I saved for my garage. It looks like Its either a lift or a pro coming in a coating my floor.

I'm trying to decided is a lift is really needed. I spent most of last week hanging around DSE and playing tourrist at NASCAR shops and can only remember seeing one 2 post lift the whole time. Most everything in view at the NASCAR shops was done on jackstands and the cars at DSE were either on those huge tables or the wooden stands.

Right now I'm leaning towards garage floor coating since my old man has a lift and my garage would look way better with a nice floor.

Thoughts??

[JEFFTATE]

I'd like to have a lift.
It would save me a bunch of time and effort ( not to mention a sore back , ass , and knees ) if I could just turn around and walk out from under my vehicles instead of having to crawl to get a new tool.

Plus , you can get more leverage if you are standing instead of laying on your back.

I'd love to have a lift.

[jy211]

start with the floor. You can always add a lift. Just keep an eye on craigslist. Sometime they pop up for cheap. You could always do the floor yourself and get the lift as well....damn decisions....lol

[parsonsj]

I'm getting a lift now. Too many years of crawling around underneath my car. My floor is still natural concrete...

jp

[Rick Dorion]

I bought a 4-post lift years ago and love it. My floors are natural concrete. The more I use it, the more I love it. Anything I do on a vehicle can be at the exact height I want to do it easiest. I also bought a hydraulic sliding lift so I can raise either end of a car for more ease of use.

[CraigMorrison]

It's not necessary, but man oh man will it make your life easier!

[Andrew McBride]

we have a 2 post in our shop and still talk about why we never had one sooner. Best $ ever spent. I do like the coated flooring too but it would be hard to beat a lift.

[oestek]

Lift.

[f1shman]

Has anyone mentioned getting a lift yet?

Epoxy floors are nice, but a lift is a tool you can actually use. If you have the space and budget for one there's really no reason to take a floor coating over a good lift.

[David Sloan]

Lift.

Yep X2

[mach1stang]

If you have the SPACE and budget for one there's really no reason to take a floor coating over a good lift.

My shop is 30x50 and I have 2 post lift and I hate it. It is a great thing to have when you need it but when you don't it just seems to get in your way. I am in the process of trying to epoxy my floors and I wish I would have done from the get go.

Kody

[69Nova]

I hear you guys on the lift. I cant help but want to have my shop this organized and clean..



How much should I be spending on a lift to get a good quality lift. I'm wating to hear back from one guy that does garage floor coating and polishing. I guess that will help me make up my mind.

[dadto2jays]

Being that I have a shop with over 20 rotary lifts in it I would have to say a lift is a "HUGE" advantage....

[69Nova]

My shop is 30x50 and I have 2 post lift and I hate it. It is a great thing to have when you need it but when you don't it just seems to get in your way. I am in the process of trying to epoxy my floors and I wish I would have done from the get go.

Kody

My shop is the same size. I'm gonna post a few pics later of how it is layed out now to give you guys an idea.

Plus my big thing on the floor is that I already coated the floor when I built it 3 years ago and 75 percent of the floor has came up. It looks horrible.

[jy211]

http://staugustine.craigslist.org/for/1389475427.html

[jy211]

http://daytona.craigslist.org/pts/1398810374.html

[joemac]

I would do the floor. It will make it nicer to work in, be easier to keep clean and make it nicer to roll around on a creeper. Fluids come right up too.

I would love to have a lift too really but think the nicer the shop is the more time you will want to spend in it.

[DarkBuddha]

I say do the floor yourself and buy the lift. You can get totally pro quality epoxy coatings from higher end paint stores; just skip the crap you can get at Home Depot or Lowes. I went to our local Benjamin Moore store and they had several very nice floor coating samples with all the bells and whistles (like texture, metal flake, etc.) if want 'em. As with all painting, the real end result is all in the preparation and patience of the process. Don't cut corners and don't rush the job. And you should save enough to be able to buy a used lift with the money you save from doing it yourself.

BTW...

I hear you guys on the lift. I cant help but want to have my shop this organized and clean..

That is a illusion... I see a ton of cars there but not one tool, not one car actually disassembled, not one part sitting out on a cart or bench, not one spec of dirt or grease. In my mind that just isn't a working shop, especially for the usual home shop. Hell, if I had a garage that size, it would have donor cars, project cars, motors on stands, etc. And sure as hell, I would have a lift or two. Besides, NASCAR shops (or any other race shop) have cars that are designed to be serviced without a lift, while most of us don't have cars where the tranny can be swapped in 15 minutes or diffs that can have the gears swapped in 10.

[Tony_SS]

My shop is the same size. I'm gonna post a few pics later of how it is layed out now to give you guys an idea.

Plus my big thing on the floor is that I already coated the floor when I built it 3 years ago and 75 percent of the floor has came up. It looks horrible.

I would do the floor. I used a Rustoleum kit from Lowes and its flawless over the past 2 years, and on the cheap. Its all in the prep. No expensive kit needed in my case.

After that maybe youll have money for the lift still.

[GRNOVA]

If you have the money now get the lift. I worked on my back, gravel floor in my old garage no creepers just cardboard and masonite(it sucked)