Is this a sound lumber storage idea?

[dan sherman]

OK I'm getting more into wood working, and I need more lumber storage space than I have now. My garage is already stuffed with my tools, cars, yard tools etc.

while looking for a creative way to store extra wood I found this.

http://www.garagestorage-solutions.com/Store/images/Ceiling/Heavy%20Lift.jpg

Do you thing the lowering platform is a sound idea?

All I would need is some MDF, angle iron, pulleys, and some rope, and I would have a nice flat storage surface.

[Brian Lindenlaub]

I don't know what the weight rating is for those kind of things, but I wouldn't trust them for something as heavy as lumber. Especially if a nice car, family member, etc. could be underneath.

Brian

[glenn bradley]

I would think it would work great if you put some other stuff on it to make room for the lumber. Hardwood gets heavy real quick. JMHO.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

I second Brian's comment/concern about the weight. sorting holiday decorations or a bike is one things; storing all sorts of heavy lumber is something else.

[David DeCristoforo]

"My garage is already stuffed with ...cars, yard tools etc."

To begin with these things have no business being in a workshop. The first thing you need to do is to banish all of this to the yard or driveway. If you cannot do this I would seriously question your commitment. Having said that, I would have to agree with the other posters. That is much too lightweight for overhead lumber storage. You really need to watch some episodes of "Tool Time" in order to make the attitude adjustment necessary to transform yourself into a true "shop guy".

[dan sherman]

I was thinking something like 4' x 8' x 3/4" sheet of MDF supported by 2" angle iron. For attachment points I was thinking 1/2" eye bolts for attachments.

[Eric Larsen]

I'm a big fan of overhead storage. It makes a lot of sense for those of us who are confined to a garage.

But hardwood won't work. It's simply too heavy. The screws will rip out of the studs, and if you're lucky you'll just damage the wood and maybe a car or two.

Better to put all the (lighter-weight) junk you seldom use overhead and make room for the lumber instead. I hope your garage ceilings are 10'2". Mine are 9'0", and I'd give damned near anything for just one more foot. All my lumber is in 10' lengths, and I hate to cut a perfectly good foot off my stock just so I can stand it up. So I have as much as possible vertical, and the rest horizontal in a nice, tight stack. I can fit (barely) one car in the garage, which is moved prior to any woodworking.

I wish I had enough yard to build a proper workshop. But even if I had the room, the temperature is above 100f for a good chunk of the year and I'd go broke cooling it.

I'll be building some overhead racks Very Soon Now (TM), to store boxes of sanding belts, soda coolers, lightweight gardening supplies, furniture blankets, and other bulky yet light things. Every square foot counts.

[Alan Schaffter]

I had a wall hung wood rack, but I tore it down and am now using a vertical stack rack. Here is the thread (http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/f29/lumber-rack-take-two-w-pics-6495) with a discussion of why- it was more than a weight issue.

p.s. Since this picture was taken, I added safety chains to the ends of the pipes.

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/data/500/medium/P9240002.JPG

[Tom Veatch]

...
Do you thing the lowering platform is a sound idea?
...

The concept is fine.

I don't know what the load rating is on the device you referenced, but for planning purposes, I usually assume the volume of wood I'm going to store is the equivalent of water - 62.4 #/cu.ft (5.2 #/bd.ft.). Since most wood floats in water, that value is conservative on the high side. After you've estimated the volume and load you'll have to consider at least three things.

First, will the platform that holds the lumber support the weight?

Second, will the lift/lower mechanism support the weight?

Third, will the ceiling/roof structure attached to the mechanism support the weight. That load was almost certainly not considered in the design of the ceiling support structure. I believe roof trusses are usually engineered to accommodate a 200# load at the center of their bottom chord in addition to the ceiling dead load - but I'm not certain of that so don't take that figure as gospel.

Knowing no more about it that what you posted, I don't know the answer to any of those questions, but if they can't be confidently answered in the affirmative with a reasonable safety factor, you're risking trouble. If they can be answered in the affirmative, looks like a great idea.

[Dave Chrudimsky]

I have one of those overhead storage devices. If I remember the instructions correctly, it had a load rating of only 200 pounds. Even so, I'm not sure I really want to load it all the way to two hundred. I suppose if I used through bolts instead of lag screws I might trust it more, but the connection between basket and cable is not the best, so that probably wouldn't up the load spec in my mind. I use it to hold stuff that David DeCristoforo stores on his driveway... :-)

-chrud

[Tim Freeman]

In a word, No

[dan sherman]

I guess I should provide some additional details.

Currently I'm renting a house in a neighbor hood with a homeowners association, an I already know building a shed isn't for yard tools isn't going to happen. My car has not spent a night in the garage in month, Rebecca on the other hand is very insistent on her car not sitting out for long periods of time, so completely taking over the garage is out.

would storing my extra lumber in the attic rafters be Ok, or would the environmental extremes be an issue?

[Russell Tribby]

I don't have a picture of my set up but I can take one and send it to you if necessary. I bolted three 8' 2X6's to the ceiling running parallel to each other spaced about 3 1/2 ' apart. I then attached two 1" flanges to each 2x6 spacae about 5' apart. I came down from the flanges with 2' pieces of pipe, put an elbow on each end and joined them together with 5' pieces of pipe. This holds all of my sheet goods so it can take a lot of weight. The wood is support on each end and in the middle.

[Scott Schwake]

I don't have a picture of my set up but I can take one and send it to you if necessary.

Russell,

I'm interesed in seeing your set-up, this sounds similar to something I am thinking about building. If you could post a picture that would be great!

Thanks, Scott

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

I would not be willing to stand under it.

[Murray Roblin]

All the other comments re: safety are valid.

I'd also be concerned about functionality. 1st - you need enough ceiling height to give you decent clearance. I mounted a few fixed overhead bins in my last garage with an 81/2' ceiling. Though the base of the overheads was at 6.5', I always found myself ducking - it was uncomfortable.

2nd - raising and lowering is a pain. In another iteration of overhead storage, I did a similar homebrew, but it didn't work too well. Balance was important and continually raising and lowering was annoying.