roof lifting device for my eagle

[lqhikers]

just a idea for anyone who might be interested.made this out of scrap tubing. measurements are approx.nylon loops are just screwed on, bracket. rests on alum door sill as it extends out from wall. support block has lip on both sides where it contacts roof lifting point .i used velcro on both pieces so block stays in place.i have solar panel (2ftx4ft)on roof plus 3 bar roof rack,makes it easy to lift roof even wife can do it if i'm busy resting after a long day!(just kidding dear) could be adapted to others? pics attached .

 

[DLN]

lq,

Very nice. The simplicity is beautiful. I'll file that one for later use. Thanks for posting.

 

[pvstoy]

Easy to make, simple to use, yet another great idea. Thanks for sharing.

 

[chnlisle]

Nifty, Leverage is a beautiful thing.

 

[larry.m]

Great idea. Where is the front bottom lift point?

 

[lqhikers]

answer for larry m.

front loops are attached above front sliding window in the same manor as the rear loops,i made sure i drilled into alum frame so screws would not pull out as the stress is all at that point. drive slow and enjoy "its the journey"

 

[Coop]

Very nice, simple device there lq! Like DLN I'll file it away.

I could have used a device like that when I woke up to find ten inches of freshly fallen "wet" snow on my roof one morning. In this case, to "lower" the roof!
I was aware that snow had fallen through the night, but it never occurred to me that the same ten inches I could see on the ground was also on "my roof"!
UNTIL...I released the roof front to lower it! It came down so fast it pinned my head and shoulders fast between it and the bed. Was a struggle to squirm out from underneath! Needless to say, I could not raise the roof again.
Your device would be the thing to have if one is likely to run into those kind of conditions?
Of course, now I know, you see snow on the ground in the morning, check your roof...!
I never did figure out what roughly 84 cubic feet of wet snow might weigh?

 

[benburnett]

great lift system

LQ,

Wow, can't say enough about your lift device. After all these years it looks like you have finally shown us a device that will work for everyone that is actually easy to put together and usable. Fantastic idea.

Now for the rest of you that read about coop and the snow, please take that to heart. He is lucky that he didn't cause serious injury to himself or the camper. Very, Very lucky. If you have snow on top, please use something to brush it off or drive and let most of it blow off if possible. I have driven the campers at 80 mph with the tops up before. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS THOUGH. Slower speeds are not a problem. If the snow will not blow off, please find something, even if you have to break off a tree limb and brush off what you can before you lower the roof.

 

[DLN]

Weight of Snow

coop,

Snow is usually calc.ed at 25 pounds per cubic foot. For roof or deck design the first foot is considered frozen and weighs 50 pounds. In your case that doesn't apply. So, at 10" you had at least 1,750 pounds on the roof. Could be more depending on the water content. I'm with Ben, remove it as soon as possible before it reshapes the roof. Glad to hear neither you or the roof were damaged.

 

[Coop]

Weight On Roof

Thanks Ben. Good idea to emphasize the point with folks!
Yes! as you suggest, getting the darn stuff off the roof is a difficult job, unless you happen to carry a “6 foot step ladder” with you! What my girlfriend and I found works, to some extent, is to throw my 3 inch wide, thirty foot long recovery strap over the roof, and drag it back and forth. You can drag off a lot of the snow that way. Of course, the roof vents get in the way a bit, but you can get over them.

Thanks DLN, and thanks for the calc’s. Did darn near feel like a “ton” of bricks!

Based on your numbers DLN I did a real rough, I emphasize rough, calc’ on the lifting device.
What we’ve basically got here is a …Second Class Lever.
Based on the sketches it appears that the lengths of the lever arms, from fixed fulcrum to vertical pole pivot (load) to the handle (effort) end are approx’ the same. Therefore the actual mechanical advantage, or leverage ratio of the lifting device appears to be very near 1:1. So…a person lifting or lowering the roof, unfortunately, is still going to have to deal with very high forces. If you figure half the roof you are lowering is going to weigh approx’ 875 lbs (half the 1750 lbs), then that lever is going to see 875 lbs and could still get away from you real quick and do serious hurt…!! It figures that with the lifting device you will still be dealing with the same weight (lifting or lowering) equal to approx’ half the total weight that’s up on the roof. Assuming the load is pretty evenly distributed.
So… while the actual lifting effort may be the same with or without the device, there’s no question it’s a great idea and that it will make it a great deal more comfortable, efficient and “controllable” way to raise or lower the roof, which will make it “feel easier” to handle somewhat slightly heavier loads.
lq, if I am missing something in the numbers, or…you have differing numbers, please let us know. I am in no way intending to be critical or offend!

Regards…Coop

 

[lqhikers]

coopcoyote more lift? ok!

you are close to disproving me ,but let me try again!both distances are the same or close 20'' give or take but the single lever is an extension that slides over 9"piece making about 30" to supply lift this lever can be made longer for more lift,for my self i started with a longer lever but through trial and error (if you read some of my other posts you will see that i'm a great trail and error,error,error,till it works or i give up !! came up with a length that works for me,as i grow older the lever will become longer! i started expermenting with lifter because i have built a shelf on the front section of my camper and found it was hard to fit under the section that has the board for lifting this takes care of my problem.i see that i did not show what the top bar was in my drawing.maybe this will explain it better! i really like your input though ,and am always ready for more! drive slow and enjoy "its the journey

 

[DLN]

coop,

You're welcome. lq's response pretty well covered the lift ratio/leverage issue. I think the advantage is how the force is applied by the user. I'd say two hands pushing or pulling on the bar of the lift device would be easier on the back than squatting while lifting the roof the standard way. Either way I don't think I want to deal with 845 pounds or anything close to it without some machinery to do the work.

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

Hello lqhiker


great project !

looks perfect and simple for most folks.

for the average customer, it will work great.

thanks so much for sharing that along with the directions on how to built it.


For the other people on the thread, we usually only recommend 200 - 300 lbs. max for gear weight on the roof. If you are going to try and push up a roof with 800 lbs. of snow on it, I would suggest against it.

Amazingly the roof will hold alot of weight (as seen in some of the testimonials), but the less weight you have up there, the better.

Over the years I have seen campers come in to the service dept. with a concave roof or broken roof frame because they had WAY to much snow on the roof, or had a full load of snow on the roof when they lowered it. With the roof crashing down so fast and with so much weight on the cab-over bed, it broke the roof frame. Make sure your insurance policy is up to date if this happens

Try and dust off some snow if you can.




.