A car lift for storage is one of the most practical upgrades a Waukee homeowner or small shop owner can make, but the used-versus-new decision trips up almost everyone we talk to. We just booked a job where a customer had us move his four-post storage lift from a house in West Des Moines to his new place in Waukee, then a few weeks later we quoted a completely different customer a brand-new unit for the same use case. Same goal, two different paths. As an Iowa-based installer and parts supplier, we’ve set up both used and new configurations dozens of times, and we want to walk you through exactly how we’d weigh the decision if it were our own garage.
Browse four-post and two-post storage lift options built for garages, then call us for install pricing specific to your Waukee address and ceiling height.
Configuration One: A Used Four-Post Lift Relocated Into Your Garage
This is exactly the scenario we ran in Waukee this summer. A customer had a four-post storage lift already installed in his previous home and wanted it moved rather than sold off before the move. We came out, disassembled it, hauled it on our trailer, and reinstalled it at the new address. The whole thing took two visits because the first date got rescheduled, but the job wrapped in about two weeks total once concrete and clearance were confirmed at the new garage.
The appeal of going used, whether it’s your own equipment or one you’re buying secondhand, is straightforward: you skip the manufacturer lead time and often save real money versus ordering new. But there are tradeoffs. We inspect cables, hydraulic lines, and locking mechanisms on every used unit we move, because a car lift for storage that sat in a garage for years can have worn safety locks or corroded hardware you won’t notice until it’s under load. We also see used four-post units advertised with vague weight capacities — one caller described his unit as “probably a storage lift” rated around 7,500 lbs without a spec sheet in hand. If you’re buying used, get the actual capacity plate confirmed before you commit.
Configuration Two: A New Storage Lift Ordered and Installed From Scratch
The other path is ordering new. This gives you a warranty, current safety certifications, and no guesswork about hidden wear. For a car lift for storage that’s going to sit loaded for months at a time — say, a convertible or a snowmobile trailer parked over the winter — that peace of mind matters more than it does for a lift you’re using daily in a working bay.
New installs also mean we control the timeline from the start: we confirm concrete thickness, ceiling height, and door clearance before the unit ever ships, so there’s no surprise on install day. The downside is lead time. Storage lifts, like most lift equipment right now, often have to be ordered rather than pulled off a shelf, and that can push a project out several weeks depending on the manufacturer. If you need storage capacity by a specific date — before winter, before a move-in — factor that lead time into your decision early rather than after you’ve already committed to a timeline.
Two-Post vs Four-Post for Storage: Which Fits Waukee Garages Better
Most residential storage setups we install in the Ames-to-Waukee corridor lean four-post, and there’s a practical reason: a four-post drive-on design doesn’t require lifting points under the frame, which makes it far easier to park a second vehicle up and out of the way without fiddling with adapters. Two-post lifts can work for storage too, but they’re better suited to shops that also need working access underneath the vehicle, not just elevated parking.
If your garage ceiling height is tight, that’s the first measurement we ask about on every storage lift call, whether the caller is in Waukee, Ankeny, or anywhere else in central Iowa. A four-post storage lift needs enough clearance for the vehicle plus the platform height, and we’ve had to talk customers out of units that simply wouldn’t clear their rafters. Get that number before you shop used or new.
What a Used Car Lift for Storage Actually Costs You Beyond the Sticker
Buying used almost always looks cheaper on paper, but the real cost includes disassembly, transport, and reinstallation labor if the unit isn’t already local. In the Waukee relocation job we handled, the customer paid for the move itself — trailer, labor, reinstall — not just the lift. That’s a cost line people forget when they’re comparing a used unit’s asking price to a new unit’s quoted price.
We also factor in oil, hydraulic hose condition, and cable wear when we quote a used relocation or resale unit. Cables and hoses are wear items regardless of brand, and a used car lift for storage that’s five or more years old is a reasonable candidate for at least a cable inspection before it goes back into service. We stock replacement cables and can quote that work alongside the reinstall so you’re not caught mid-project waiting on parts.
What a New Car Lift for Storage Costs You in Time, Not Just Money
New units carry a higher upfront number but a lower risk profile. You’re not inheriting someone else’s maintenance history, and the warranty covers manufacturer defects that would otherwise come out of your pocket. For BendPak and Atlas home-storage lifts, which is where we point most residential customers, the tradeoff is almost entirely about patience: confirm your timeline, place the order, and let the lead time run its course.
We tell every customer the same thing whether they’re in Waukee or Carlisle: don’t order a new car lift for storage the week before you need it. Ordering with a buffer of a month or more gives us room to schedule the site visit, confirm the garage will actually clear the unit, and install it without rushing anyone.
Site Readiness Questions We Ask Before Either Configuration
Whether you’re going used or new, we ask the same handful of questions upfront: is there a forklift or equivalent on-site for unloading, what’s your concrete thickness and age, is there a pit or is this a surface mount, and what’s your overhead clearance. These questions matter just as much for a relocated used lift as they do for a brand-new unit, because the install process — anchoring, leveling, cable routing — is nearly identical either way.
We also ask about garage width and door swing, especially in newer Waukee subdivisions where garages are sometimes narrower than owners expect once you account for the lift’s footprint plus walking clearance on both sides. A quick site assessment, which we can schedule directly, answers all of this before equipment or money changes hands.
How We’d Decide If It Were Our Own Garage
If we already owned a working car lift for storage and were moving houses, we’d relocate it, the same way we did for the customer moving from West Des Moines to Waukee. It’s proven equipment, and the relocation cost is almost always less than buying new outright. But if we were starting from zero with no existing unit, we’d lean new for a garage lift that’s going to sit loaded through an Iowa winter, simply because the warranty and current safety hardware outweigh the savings for a piece of equipment holding a vehicle up unattended for months.
The honest answer is that neither configuration is universally right. It depends on whether you’re relocating equipment you trust, buying an unknown used unit from a stranger, or starting fresh. Talk through your specific situation with us before you decide — we’d rather spend fifteen minutes on the phone than have you install the wrong setup for your garage.
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