Ask most people to picture a home elevator and they imagine a building site: walls opened up, a pit dug, weeks of dust. The shaftless home elevator was invented to avoid all of that. Here is how one goes into a house that is already finished and furnished.
The concept
The elevator consists of a compact cab and a pair of upright rails. The rails stand against a wall and pass through an opening in the floor above. The cab rides up and down them. Nothing is built around it.
Step 1, pick the spot
You need a place on the lower floor with clear ceiling above and a suitable landing spot upstairs. Favorite choices:
- Living room corner to master bedroom
- Dining room to upstairs hall
- Kitchen or main hall to a finished basement
Step 2, check the structure
The floor joists are examined to see how the opening should be framed. In most homes this is routine carpentry.
Step 3, make the opening
A carpenter cuts the floor and trims it out. This is the only real building work in the project.
Step 4, install and test
The rails, drive and cab are assembled and connected to power, and every safety function is tested.
Daily use
- Call the cab from either floor
- Step or roll in, close the door and hold the control
- When the cab is parked upstairs, the space below is free
- When it is parked downstairs, the opening above is covered
Its limits
- Two levels only
- A compact cab
- A gentle travel speed
Who it suits best
Couples who want to keep their upstairs bedroom, families with a parent moving in, and anyone who would choose a stair lift but wants something the whole household can use.
If you need more
For three floors or a bigger cab, look at the other home elevators we install.
See whether it fits
Details are on our LUMA page. Nationwide Lifts of Pennsylvania will check your home at a free assessment. Call 570-217-8426 or contact us.