One of the most common questions we receive at Stiltz Home Elevators is how much space does a Stiltz lift take up in the home? All of the answers to these types of questions are often listed in our FAQs page, but here at Stiltz, we thought it would be useful for potential customers to put together a more comprehensive response to this familiar question.
Do I have room for a home elevator?
A traditional hydraulic home elevator needs space and plenty of it. If you have already looked into this type of elevator then you are probably well aware of the add-ons that come with these. You need a machine room, a pit and of course the elevator shaft. Even the shaft itself takes up a good deal of space. These lifts are bulky, there can often be a lot of cabling and this can make them almost impossible to install in a home where space is limited. Also, the complex hydraulics required mean that the location will be dictated by the load bearing walls in the home, which will be needed to site the elevator appropriately. So not only do you need a good deal of space, you need to have this space in just the right place too. One of the biggest concerns customers have when they approach Stiltz is whether or not they can accommodate a home elevator, given what they know about how much space a traditional style elevator needs.
What about a Stiltz home elevator?
However, having a home elevator need not be a pipe dream. When it comes to space requirements, a Stiltz home elevator is a completely different ball game. All Stiltz Home Elevators are operated using their own unique dual rail system, which results in a completely self-supporting structure. When you look at a Stiltz home elevator, what you see in front of you, is basically all that is needed. Our innovative residential elevators do not require hydraulics or need fixing to walls. So, that means there is no machine room, no huge elevator shaft with a pit beneath, and instead everything is contained within the elevator itself. Even the cabling is completely unobtrusive, in fact it is simply a power cable connecting into the nearest regular domestic power socket. As well as the benefits from a space perspective, the lack of hydraulics also means our home elevators are quiet and far easier to install and maintain.
So how much space is enough?
So just how much space do you need to make a Stiltz home elevator possible in your home? Of course, the model you choose will depend on your specific requirements and for example whether you need to have enough room in the elevator to accommodate a walking frame or a wheelchair, (in which case, look no further than the Stiltz Trio Home Elevator) but if not, if you have a space to stand and turn around in the room that you would like a lift installed in, then there is a good chance that you have the room for one of our home elevators.
For the Stiltz Duo Home Elevator, one of the smallest residential lifts available on the market, the requirement is less than 7sf of surface area. Many of our customers find that their new home lift can fit quite easily into, say, the corner of a room, or the space taken up by a linen closet, or even next to the stairs in a more central location. In fact, thanks to their self-supporting structure, Stiltz can put one of our home elevators just about anywhere and have proudly done so many times in homes across Canada.