# Forum Home Renovation Structural Renovation  Advice on how to lift 150kg steel beam

## jimc

Gents 
Need advice on the best way to lift a 150kg beam 3.1 metres off the ground? I was thinking two blokes at each end, but most ladders are not rated for 100kg bloke plus 75kgs of beam weight! 
Material lifts will not have enough floor space to operate properly/safely. 
The beam is only 4.4 metres long. Any ideas?

----------


## jmk89

> Gents 
> Need advice on the best way to lift a 150kg beam 3.1 metres off the ground? I was thinking two blokes at each end, but most ladders are not rated for 100kg bloke plus 75kgs of beam weight! 
> Material lifts will not have enough floor space to operate properly/safely. 
> The beam is only 4.4 metres long. Any ideas?

  Any chance of a lift point above where you want to lift it to?  If so you can use a ratchet chain pulley (Kennards hire them out by the day along with the chains) in  the middle to do the lifting.  Fasten it with shackles to the beam so that it doesn't move as you lift.  Then you just put a rope at each end to keep it straight and level.  You need at least two people (one on the chains and one on the ropes) and three is better (one on each rope).

----------


## ozwinner

If you cant get a crane in to do it you will have to construct a suitable scaffold for the men and beam. 
Al  :Smilie:

----------


## Tools

Do you have some pics to post of where you need to get the steel? 
Tools

----------


## pharmaboy2

I must be insane, so take this with agrain a salt.  I've done the saem thing onto 2 ladders with 2 guys, one end up first, rest it, then lift second up to height, connect one end and do final install (fast connectors would be good) 
If I was doing it with steel, I'd be having a hole ready for a bolt to go through steel and wall, lift just one side up, bolt then swing other end into position. 
What the problem with hoists though, a materials hoist (air con duct lifter) from  rentals will make things  a whole lot easier.  150kg isnt much for a hoist.

----------


## Shedhand

> Gents 
> Need advice on the best way to lift a 150kg beam 3.1 metres off the ground? I was thinking two blokes at each end, but most ladders are not rated for 100kg bloke plus 75kgs of beam weight! 
> Material lifts will not have enough floor space to operate properly/safely. 
> The beam is only 4.4 metres long. Any ideas?

  four men and four ladders. Weight limits sorted. :Smilie:

----------


## Gra

Very carefully..... :Biggrin:  :Biggrin:

----------


## Harry72

A engine crane will do it easy... and wheel it into place too!(use a transmission plate on top of the arm)
I've done it in my house with a 4.8m 180x60x8mm(weight unsure) C section, lifted it up inbetween 2 rows of acro's 600mm apart!
Still need a 2 helpers to steady it.

----------


## journeyman Mick

Could you get a backhoe (with an extendahoe) in close enough for the lift? Lifting things on ladders is a bit of a no-no, they're really only meant for access not a work platform, and definitely not for raising beams up. 
Mick

----------


## woodbe

A bunch of acrow props, 2 ladders and 4 men should easily do it. 
Support one end on something solid, and move from there. 
If you have the opportunity to use a block and tackle, it's even easier, you can dump some of the props and men...

----------


## Bodgy

Next time you see the council boys leaning on their shovels, in close proximity to a backhoe or drott, strike up a conversation then offer a slab of beer if the backhoe guy could return to the depot past your place. 
Don't laugh, it works. No worries.

----------


## old_picker

Any amount of ladders and blokes is insanity.
More blokes and ladders make more opportunities for a slip and someone gets hurt bad or goes off the site in a body bag. 300 kilos of steel at 60 miles an hour onto someones head. think about it.. 
Figure what sort of machine you can get into the site [backhoe crane  scissor lift] and hire it, I have seen really tall heavy lifts done with tripods and block and tackle at the simplest end but know what your are doing. It will be much cheaper than paying some bodies medical bill. 
The most difficult part of a lift is to figure what can get in to do it. If no access is possble by machinery, redesign so the lifts are more manageable.  
Just my 2c worth.

----------


## Pulse

Genie lift from Kennards - just saw it on their website. 
can lift 295kg up to 5.5 m looks a bit like a sheet lifter, $75 for 4hrs 
Cheers
Pulse

----------


## Sprog

> Gents 
> Need advice on the best way to lift a 150kg beam. Any ideas?

  Bend the knees and keep the back straight  :Biggrin:   :Biggrin:   :Biggrin:   :Biggrin:

----------


## fxst

a couple weight lifters from the conning wealth games? :Biggrin:  
Pete

----------


## Bodgy

> Bend the knees and keep the back straight

  Bennd zee kneez................ 
What has an Austrian ski instructor got to do with JMC's beam?

----------


## julianx

pulse is right, a genie lift is the way to go they look a little bit like a pallet jack only they lift a lot higher. Most hire centres wil have them.

----------


## Shedhand

> Any amount of ladders and blokes is insanity.
> More blokes and ladders make more opportunities for a slip and someone gets hurt bad or goes off the site in a body bag. 300 kilos of steel at 60 miles an hour onto someones head. think about it.. 
> Figure what sort of machine you can get into the site [backhoe crane  scissor lift] and hire it, I have seen really tall heavy lifts done with tripods and block and tackle at the simplest end but know what your are doing. It will be much cheaper than paying some bodies medical bill. 
> The most difficult part of a lift is to figure what can get in to do it. If no access is possble by machinery, redesign so the lifts are more manageable.  
> Just my 2c worth.

  I was kidding.  :Biggrin:

----------


## BobL

> Gents 
> Need advice on the best way to lift a 150kg beam 3.1 metres off the ground? I was thinking two blokes at each end, but most ladders are not rated for 100kg bloke plus 75kgs of beam weight! 
> Material lifts will not have enough floor space to operate properly/safely. 
> The beam is only 4.4 metres long. Any ideas?

  150 kg, hummm. That's pretty heavy 
It's often fairly simple to reinforce a ladder. I carried myself (120kg!) plus a heavy duty floor sander (~50kg) multiple times up a 3.3m ladder rated at 150kg using 2 x4  bracing shown in the picture, on both sides of the ladder. Basically I dragged the sander up behind me - I had good handles to hang onto and after every step I could pause and rest if i needed to. Also at the top of the ladder was a manhole and once up through the hole all was OK. I can see the beam is going to be a lot harder than this. 
If you are going to use ladders alone you need to be able to rest the weight on something at any point in time otherwise if you or your partner get buggered part way up your only option is going to be to drop it. 
I would use 4 ladders (2 side by side at each end of the beam) and two winches (one at each end). Clamp a 4 x 2 across the tops of each pair of ladders and attach the winches to that. That way you have the weight covered and your workmen can climb up and down the ladder at will independent of the beam.

----------


## TARLOX

As others have said - use a Gennie lift.  Forget about ladders etc. Why risk life and limb just to save a few dollars.

----------


## Shedhand

> As others have said - use a Gennie lift.  Forget about ladders etc. Why risk life and limb just to save a few dollars.

   G'day Tarlox, he's already said that " Material lifts will not have enough floor space to operate properly/safely." 
I guess the question should be, where is he doing the work that makes it so difficult? Some pics of the location might help with a solution.
Cheers :Wink:

----------


## TARLOX

Yeah maybe access is restricted? But if you can get the beam, a couple of ladders and four big blokes in there.....you could maybe also fit a Gennie lift?

----------


## jimc

Access restriction caused by limited floor space...as in not enough room for the material lift's stabilizing legs.
The idea of rope/block and tackle will be a possible work around. I will investigate the possibilities tonight as the beam has to go in tomorrow. 
thanks for the tips

----------


## Zedd

you need to post pictures so I/we can look at the environment. however build an "A" frame and suitable anchor points. get a turfer and or block and tackle. you can do it yourself if your clever. 
i'vedone it - be careful dont die.

----------


## robatman

I just put a 7m beam, around 200kg's in our back room. 
As we werent removing the roof a hoist was no go, and similarly couldnt get a small lift in due to restricted access. Only had to raise it to ceiling height (2.4m). We ended up hiring some scaffolding and a few acrow props, and got 8 guys to help. Even then it was heavier than i thought. We just got one end in and then lifted the other end. 
I thought 8 guys was overkill but went ahead anyway and it meant noone was really struggling. Best to share the load!!
Robert

----------


## jimc

I ended up sourcing a material hiopst with a smaller footprint, made some additional paltform area for the less weighted outrigger and lifted the beam slightly off centre...although it was lashed to the forks. 
I had already anchored one of the legs to the concrete pad bolted the beam to this. Once this was done, I bolted the other upright to the beam, got it plumb, then anchored this as well. 
The only hiccup during the complete process was co-ordinating 4 blokes to pickup and move the beam onto the forks...and drilling 14mm holes through 18mm of steel!

----------

