If you are in the market for a new car lift, understanding the foundation requirements for your lift is a critical part of the buying process.
This article explains the important foundation considerations before purchasing a car lift. We also provide a full list of the concrete thickness requirements by car lift type.
Minimum Concrete Thickness Requirements
Our smallest capacity car lifts have the following requirements:
- Level and flat continuous concrete slab with a 4 inch thickness.
- Compression strength of at least 3,000 pounds per square foot.
- Drill no closer than 8 inches from the edge of the concrete surface.
- Never install over concrete expansion seams or on top of cracked or defective concrete.
- Never install over hand mixed concrete.
- Minimum aging time of 28 days for the concrete.
What To Do if Your Concrete Does Not Meet the Minimum Requirements
Never setup a car lift on concrete that does not meet the minimum requirements. This can create a safety hazard and lead to serious injury.
The best way to address concrete that does not meet minimum requirements is to pour a new slab of concrete. Keep in mind of few key considerations:
- Make sure any new concrete has at least a 28 day cure period.
- Consider new concrete with a 4,000 PSI minimum (exceeds the 3,000 PSI required for car lifts).
Concrete Thickness Requirements By Lift Type
2 post and 4 post car lifts can only be installed on a flat and level concrete surface. Concrete thickness requirements for a car lift are directly related to the lift capacity. The higher lift capacity your car lift has, the more thickness you will need in your concrete surface.
4 post above ground car lifts typically have the option of being bolted to the ground. If you decide to bolt a 4 post car lift to the ground, you must have a minimum amount of concrete for the bolts to be fully secured.
Even if you decide not to bolt a 4 post car lift to the ground, you will still need to have a flat and level concrete surface for your lift.
Thickness by Car Lift Capacity
In general, lower car lift capacity weights need less concrete thickness. Larger capacity weight car lifts require increased concrete thickness.
Our car lifts start with 7,000 pounds of lift capacity and increase up to 16,000 pounds of lift capacity.
- 7,000 to 10,000 pounds of lift capacity typically requires a 4 inch minimum thickness.
- Greater than 10,000 pounds of lift capacity typically requires 6 inch minimum thickness.
4 Post Car Lifts with 4 Inch Concrete Thickness Requirements
The following car lifts all require at least 4 inches of concrete thickness:
- Garage Pro 7000
- Garage Pro 8000
- Garage Pro 8000 EXT Extra Tall and Long
- Garage Pro 9000
- Apex 8 (Apex 8 requires 4.25 inches of concrete thickness)
4 Post Car Lifts with 6 Inch Concrete Thickness Requirements
Each car lift listed below requires at least 6 inches of concrete thickness:
- Garage Pro 8000 EXT Extra Tall
- 408SL Super Deluxe
- Platinum 14000
- 412 12000
- 414 14000 Commercial 4 Post Lift
- 412A 1200 4 Post Alignment Lift
- 414A 14000 4 Post Alignment Lift
- Platinum PVL140F-EXT Open Front Alignment Lift
2 Post Car Lifts with 4 Inch Concrete Thickness Requirements
- BP8000 Baseplate Lift
- 9KBPX Baseplate Lift
- BP10000X Baseplate Lift
- Platinum PVL9BP Baseplate Lift (requires 4.5 inches of thickness)
- 9KOHX Overhead Lift
- 9OHSC Overhead Lift
- PV10PX Overhead Lift
- Platinum PVL10 Overhead Lift
2 Post Car Lifts with 6 Inch Concrete Thickness Requirements
Scissor Lifts with 6 Inch Concrete Thickness Requirements
For more information, see our full Car Lift Buying Guide.