Lift or mechanic's pit for new garage?

[LilTractrThatCould]

I spent 6 yrs wrenching in various auto dealerships. Two post is the easiest to work around. Toyota had 15 lifts. Two were 4 post. One was for undercoating vehicles other was rarely used other than storage. Unless it was a specific task, most techs would avoid the 4 post. Get a rig on it for something like a fuel pump. Upsell a brake job, now you're losing money because all this steel is in your way. If I was given a 4p, I would sell it and buy a 2p. Most of wear and tear is brakes, suspension, and tires. Why spend money on something that makes those components harder to get to?

 

[vagem55]

I built a pit in my garage at a former house. It sure helped changing my Explorer transmission and fluid changes on everything. Upfront cost, no maintenance or electricity. It was approved by the building inspector, but I had installed curbs to keep from driving in and a six-inch tube to the outside with a fan to blow INTO the pit to remove trapped gasses. The lights needed to be explosion proof. It needs to be long enough to get in and out, with steps. It needs to be deep enough for you to work standing up, with a sump and possibly a drain pump (we hadn't sealed the 12-inch block walls from seeping). It isn't fun if you don't have everything you need in the pit, as going in and out is a pain.
The curbs and anything you use (like plywood or steel plate) to cover the hole when not in use to keep from falling in also create a trip hazard.
I will need a high lift kit for one my garage doors on my new shop, but I've decided on a four post for safety and storage of vehicles, with a caster kit to move it to different bays for different vehicles from a 1984 Corvette to a 2012 Airstream Interstate on a Sprinter 3500 dually.
It will have drip trays and the jack tray.
It is more in the way doing under vehicle work, but much safer for me, anyway.
It's not the best for rotating tires front to back, but I have an air jack for that and am getting too old to lift the wheels much anyway.

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[Mudfarmer]

Built the new garage over the footprint of the ancient shop that we tore down. We elected to keep the pit (as well as the 1962 Bomb Shelter) but have yet to use it other than for storage these last ten years. It's wood covered and usually under a parked trailer. Never been a safety concern. Has been a good conversation piece.

 

[CliffordK]

I spent 6 yrs wrenching in various auto dealerships. Two post is the easiest to work around. Toyota had 15 lifts. Two were 4 post. One was for undercoating vehicles other was rarely used other than storage. Unless it was a specific task, most techs would avoid the 4 post. Get a rig on it for something like a fuel pump. Upsell a brake job, now you're losing money because all this steel is in your way. If I was given a 4p, I would sell it and buy a 2p. Most of wear and tear is brakes, suspension, and tires. Why spend money on something that makes those components harder to get to?

I've wondered about overall access. You can get a bridge jack to lift any part of the vehicle, but still you would have to work around the platforms. A tractor seems as if it could be awkward for a 2 post lift.

Most lifts would require a fairly high ceiling, although the MaxJax is designed to be more or less seated under the vehicle, and in theory the lift can be unbolted from the floor and moved.

The pit might not require as high of a garage.

 

[CliffordK]

I've wondered about installing a single post in ground car lift. When lowered it would be mostly out of the way, although usually they are a few inches above the shop floor, however if one is pouring a new floor, one might be able to recess it even further.

Trip hazard?