Racor - PHL-R, Garage Ceiling Storage Rack Lift

This is a great product. I highly recommend it for its intended use, as well as for its use in my "modified" fashion (that I will explain below).First of all, if you have the space in your garage to install one, you should, because we all know how full a garage gets with extraneous items. This way, you can store the off-season items you don't need, and rotate it out for things you do. That's what most people do.For me, I wanted a place to store my jeep soft top parts when I had the hard top on. These parts are fragile and expensive, so I wanted them safe and out of the way. As a bonus, I also found a way to hang the hard top, but I'll get to that later. First, the installation.You "could" conceivably do this alone, but it would be a challenge. Better to get a friend (or two) to help. I had my father in law and a buddy, and it went up in a snap. Assembling the shelf is a snap. Where it gets tricky is installing the mounts into the ceiling joists. Make sure you've got a stud finder. The mounts need to go into the studs with 10 screws per mount, evenly spaced. So if you want to install it in a particular orientation and the joists run the other way, you'll have to put up 2x4s first, on the ceiling, and then install the mounts.Luckily for me, the joists ran the correct way for me to install my Racor, which had to be oriented with the winch mechanism on the side (so that I could pull my jeep in and still access it). Think about that orientation before you start installing.Anyway, having a friend help you by holding the mount as you drill pilot holes and insert the screws is very helpful. Went up quick that way. Make sure you do drill pilot holes first, else it will be a lot more work. Also, make sure you measure correctly when installing the second mount, so that it lines up properly.Once the mounts are installed, snaking the cables and attaching to the shelf is no problem. The winch mechanism can be used by hand, but you'll get a real workout, particularly with a load. A drill works great to automate that task, and I highly recommend it.So, for me, I did some mods. I wrapped the edges of the Racor in pipe insulation to provide padding and weight distribution. Then I wove some cam buckle straps through the flooring, leaving the hooks hanging down the sides.So with these hooks, I can "grab" the Jeep hardtop when I back up my jeep right underneath the Racor. One person can then undo the roof bolts, lift each corner, and hook up the Cam strap. Once all 4 are hooked up, I raise the Racor a few inches, and drive the Jeep out. Then I lower the Racor again, adjust and tighten up the straps, and raise it to the ceiling, giving me Hardtop storage without sacrificing valuable square footage in the garage.Bonus that I can store my Jeep soft top parts on the shelf, out of the way, in the winter when the hardtop is on.You can spend more to buy a "custom" jeep roof system that gives you no other storage, or use this with some mods and have a dual purpose system. The roof only weighs ~125 lbs, so plenty of margin for safety.Highly recommend this versatile product.

I researched this for a long time before I bought it. Mostly I was worried about the difficulty with the installation. Necessity finally dictated that I give it a try. We were given a 12' artificial Christmas tree that is stored in two huge boxes. These were too heavy and bulky to lift up and down a ladder to store on my Hyloft garage ceiling shelves.I read the instruction and decided to modify it so that I can install this myself. All told it took about five hours but I took my time measuring everything and was being extra careful.The key to a one-person installation is to NOT assemble the arms with the T fitting on the ground. The entire arm assembly is just too heavy to lift overhead and to drill the pilot holes.I first made sure I had an unobstructed part of the garage ceiling, AND that there were studs 48" apart fairly centered within that space.Then using a stud finder, I mapped out the two studs to which I will be installing this. I rough assembled the arms and took the length measurement. From this, I marked where the ends of the assembled arms should be.I used a laser guide anchored and projected down the centerline of the stud I'm working on. I found this very helpful.I started on one end. I took one unassembled arm and lined up the outer edge (end with the pulley) to the mark. Then I used the laser guide to help me keep the arm centered to the stud. This way I was able to hold the arm steady against the ceiling and mark my drill holes keeping them centered.Then I was able to fill my pilot holes using the 1/8" bit as instructed.HERE IS A TRICK--put a tiny bit of liquid dish detergent on the lag screw. You don't have to go nuts. A tiny bit will do. I had no trouble putting these in through the pilot holes using a manual ratchet socket, and not one of these lag screws broke.With the pilot holes drilled, I put up the first unassembled arm with the four lag screws. DO NOT TIGHTEN. Once I felt the lag screw has entered the wood, I gave a few turns. This was enough to keep it from falling.Then I rough assembled the T fitting to the arm with the two little bolts. This allowed me to push it up against the ceiling and mark the two drill holes. Again the laser guide helped me keep the whole thing centered. I took off the T fitting and drilled my pilot holes. Then assembled the T fitting to the arm with the bolts and nuts and loosely anchored into the studs with the two lag screws.Repeat the same with the second arm. Once the entire arm assembly is attached and loosely anchored to the ceiling, I made sure everything fitted together and the placement was correct. Then I tightened all of the lag bolts.Repeat the whole process for the other arm.Although this took more time, there was not one pilot hole that did not match with to the assembly.The rest of the assembly was straight forward per instruction. It took me awhile but it was worth it and I really like how this thing functions.Good luck to you.

I use this to store a roof top tent and bed rack that during warmer seasons sits on the bed of my truck for camping. I did not use the entire tray, just the side bars to keep the cables even and straight. Total weight being stored is about 150 lbs., and it lifts it easily using the hand crank.First, make sure you have a good spot for it that does not interfere with the garage door, lighting, etc.Installation was relatively easy, although working on a ladder above your head is kind of a pain. The instructions were clear and easy to follow. I am pretty meticulous, and it took me a couple of hours to install once I added additional bracing in the attic and relocated a bracket for the garage door opener (see why you should check your mounting location first?). I had one of the cable ends assembled wrong and had to take it back apart once, so check your work closely as you go. That mistake only took 10 minutes to correct, though. The 4 bolts at the end of each bracket are somewhat blocked by the pulley, so those took me a while with a wrench. I just remembered that I have some wobble sockets, that might have been easier.Since I am using this as a hoist, I needed to raise it quite a bit before attaching it to the load (like you would with a truck shell, Jeep hard top, etc.). You need to put some weight on the cables to get them to wind correctly until they are attached to your load. I just used a board and a bucket of random heavy stuff sitting around and that was enough to keep the cables winding correctly.Great product, perfect for what I needed.