Install eng. chain hoist in garage ceiling ?

[Jerry Clayton]

I like the I beam and trolley--setup sideways to car bay--you can roll car forward or back and trolley from side to side for alignment---also works in shorter work spaces, lowering is easier and more safe than the hydraulic cherry pickers--also doesn't have clearance issues for legs under neath and/or from the front end

[FUNFER2]

We have and use cherry pickers for most every engine change at the shop, where room is not an issue. Here at my house, I have a single garage and driveway. Plus, the boom on the cherry picker is not long enough, to reach the engine from the front !

At the shop, we come in from the side. Driving the cobra out to the sprint car shop, which is in the country and all gravel roads, will never happen. In the past, I have unloaded everything in the enclosed sprint car trailer, put the cobra in, put everything back in for the sprint racing, and all over again when the engine work was done with the cobra. Not doing that anymore, it's time consuming and a BIG hassle.

I don't think there's any need to get extreme of figuring out the engineering, with the 600-700 lb. load the engine will put on the ceiling joists. Especially with the side wall top.bottom plate's and headers on the the outside wall and the apposing inside wall going downstairs in the house. The span is short. I don't believe that the attic area in a home can not handle the weight. How many people put hundreds if not thousands of weight of junk up there with no issues. As long as the weight of a timber is long enough to spread the weigh, it should be fine.

If I were pulling many engines out year around, I would build a better working system, but since this is once in a great while, it shouldn't be a problem. The trolley is great, but not for a small home garage.

Hot Rodders and car guys have been doing this in their home garage's for eon's.

Bob, how long is your boom ?

I agree that the chain hoist is better for control, just straight up and not trying to move the cherry picker around. That's a better piece of mind for me.

[FUNFER2]

I also like the 1 Ton Telescoping Gantry Crane mentioned before, but unless you build it yourself out of scrap, it's expensive.
$600 + the trolley. Plus, I wouldn't use it enough and you have to store it somewhere.

The sprint car shop was hit by a tornado and the structural integrity is a concern. He's been fighting the insurance company for a year.

We leave everything we can inside the sprint trailer,..... outside of the shop.