Thanks for aq great idea. I took that idea and ran with it. I have a bad knee and was having a great deal of difficulty getting groceries up the stairs in my split level house. I had been reaseraching ideas and saw this. I used a 3/4 Craftsman opener I puchased on ebay.
Used just the track it came with. Had a friend cut a hole in the floor and run supports for joist that were removed. It runs from the garage up to the spare bedroom closet. Framed it in right next to door going from garage to basement where stairs are located. It works fabulous-grocerices goes up-garbaqe comes down.
Every dumbwaiter we build is custom made to your specifications, unlike other manufacturers who provide an off-the-shelf product, forcing you to design your life around the limitations of their product. We offer a 5 year warranty on all residential dumbwaiters, and a 2 year warranty on all commercial dumbwaiters and mezzanine lifts.
Just used the two remotes-one at the top and one at the bottom. The opener doesn’t allow you to just bypass the photocells–so just pointed them at each other. If something in the basket hits-just like the door, it reverses. As far as fire is concerned, this opening is a lot smaller than the open staircase that goes upstairs–and of course the staircase has no firedoor. All of the protection and adjustments are built into the opener itself–I controlled the raise and lower with these controls. Jim B Says.
Well I like the dumb waiter idea and not the advertisement for the winch (versa life). I don’t want my groceries in the atic–near the kitchen would be nice. This was really a simple solution to help me with the problems with my kinees I am beginning to have. Really, it installs the same way a garage door does.
You have the adjustment for travel which is usally on the opener itself. You can install limit switches or other protections such has the door has to be closed if you so desire. The possibilites are limitless. Thanks Danny for a great idea that gives me something to run with. Hi – I too would like some kind of detailed plans. How do you build the shaft?
Plans To Build A Dumbwaiter
How do you build the dumbwaiter car? How do you put it all together? What about safety features?
I saw the response to Kathi, but based on the number of requests for plans it must not be quite as easy as it seems – especially for those of us who are not mechanically knowledgeable 🙂 I have friends who can help, but would love to have some plans to get started with. Any chance you could put together some kind of plans for those of us without a clue how to start?. Ben Erickson Says. Danny, I had considered using a garage door opener to power a lift in my own home and was glad to find your article while doing my research. I assume it is better to use the quiet motor type opener. Did you use a chain drive or a screw drive?
How did you create the stops? Are there any plans available for the eletricat components. I realize that every installation application will be different because of height and size ranges as well as weight constraints. Thanks for any information that you can provide. Ben Erickson Says.
I think that is a great solution to a real problem. More people are hurt each year by going up and down stairs carrying stuff than most anything else. When ever you have children you need to add extra protection. Keeping the doors locked is a good safe idea. I enjoyed reading this article and am thankful there are people that use the good sense God gave them to make their lives easier. Thanks for sharing a good idea.
And for those that are worried about being sued. Anyone at any time can sue you.
It matters not what you have done to prevent it from happening. So don’t worry be happy! Mark Jones. Says. AL: The parts and sizes would be different for everyone since the size of the opening, closet or what have you would be different for every home owner.
Therefore it would have to be adapted to your own specifications. I have a pantry in my kitchen that I no longer use that is nothing more than a “closet”. It is directly above the laundry room which is attached to the garage and the door that opens from the house to the garage is right there. So for me, that would be the ideal place to put it. I would build a “tray” the size of the opening I made in the floor of my pantry, ( or a little smaller so as not to get stuck) with high edges to hold grocery bags and the like and then attach that to the garage door system.
Anyone ever wonder why they were called dumb waiters and not stupid waitresses??? Lol. Deb T Says.
From what I took from the video itself it seemed to be a simple installation of a garage door opener, attached to a home made “tray” if you will. Fire of course is always a worry however, that is just one more reason to make sure you have those batteries checked on a regular basis for those of yoiu that don’t have a home security system that notifies a security company. Myself living in a three story home I will give this idea alot of thought, since my son moved out three years ago and my husband isnt always home to help me carry in groceries it would be a godsend. I think the suppplies needed could be purchased at any home center.