I want to hang a 1,000 lb manual chain hoist in an unfinished area of my basement, intending never to lift more than 500 lbs or so.I understand that I shouldn't hang it from the existing rafters, so I'm intending to install some sort of a beam for this purpose.The beam will need to be 7 feet long.One end of the beam will rest on the sill plate atop the poured concrete foundation.The other end of the beam will rest on the top of an interior 2x6-framed wall, which can be reinforced, if necessary.I'm open to building up a laminated wooden beam, buying a metal I-beam, or whatever else might be appropriate and wise.I'm guessing a metal pipe won't do the trick, but a pipe does sound like the most practical thing to buy locally and install easily.Can someone help me spec out precisely what I need, with an appropriate safety margin?
Someday...when you least expect it... someone is going to try to lift 1500 lbs with that hoist. Better to be safe than sorry. You are more likely to get accurate specs with a metal or laminated I beam than a homemade one. Might even find something online?? 7 feet is quite a span for a pipe though. Good Luck
Brian, A pipe will work well. I think a heavy wall 4 would be enough. To be safe you should ask a structural engineer. It should not cost very much to get an experts opinion on the size of pipe and support specs. Better safe than sorry.
