Lift The Biggest Vehicles With The Best Floor Jack Professionals Use
What’s the best floor jack in the market today? Are these floor jacks what professionals use? What’s the largest vehicle these jacks can lift?
Floor jacks are the oft-overlooked equipment in garages, and yet, they are one of the essential things you have to have around.
Without one, you wouldn’t be able to do something as simple as a tire change. That’s a basic thing that everyone should be able to do in their garage or out on the road—no need to call Triple A services because they have their hands full doing something more important.
What’s A Floor Jack?
The best floor jack is a mechanical lifting device that can handle any job you need to accomplish. There are two types of floor jacks that you can use in your garage: a mechanical jack or a hydraulic jack. The latter is the most commonly used in professional settings.
The more common jacks you can find in anyone’s car boot are the stock car jacks, conventional floor jacks, or the odd garage jack (in larger vehicles like SUVs and minivans). These can be used in various ways, from replacing a car tire or checking the chassis’ condition after going off-road.
All of these uses are related to lifting.
Types Of Floor Jacks
Jackscrew
Jackscrews are the simplest kinds of car jacks still used today. You operate this by turning a lever clockwise to raise the arm and lower it by turning it counter-clockwise.
Scissor Jack
There are two types of scissor jacks: manual and electrical.
Manual scissor jacks can be operated in the same manner as a screw jack or a hydraulic jack.
Scissor jacks, on the other hand, require a 12-volt power source. Most cars have lighter outlets in a car that produce that type of energy, making it convenient for roadside repairs.
Hydraulic Jack
A hydraulic jack is the best floor jack you can have in your garage for its versatility in usage. Because of their size, these are usually left in the garage instead of inside a car’s trunk.
Hydraulic jacks proved superior to the screw jack and eventually replaced those due to their improved strength and usability.
Hydraulic jacks use oil within a pressure chamber when the plunger is pushed through it. A pressure valve then prevents the liquid from seeping out and keeps the extended arm out until it is depressed again.
Bottle Jack
Bottle jacks earned their name largely because of the way they look. They can belong to the screw jack or hydraulic jack category. You operate bottle jacks by turning the handle or by pumping the lever to the desired height.
Bottle jacks may look simple, but they are one of the strongest floor jacks available to regular consumers. One bottle jack can lift to 50 tons! Now if that doesn’t make this product the best floor jack, I don’t know what will!
Types Of Floor Jack Construction
There are three types of construction for floor jacks.
Steel Floor Jack
Steel is the heaviest material typically used to build a floor jack. It makes for solid, sturdy jacks that are hard to move outside of one garage. Since steel is cheaper than aluminum, this also means that steel floor jacks are more affordable than others in the market today.
Aluminum Floor Jack
The only problem with aluminum floor jacks is that they are less durable than steel floor jacks, although much more expensive.
So why would you want one?
Aluminum floor jacks are lighter than steel floor jacks. These floor jacks are highly portable, that’s why you’ll find them in car trunks. Limit the use of these aluminum floor jacks for emergency purposes only.
Hybrid/Combination Floor Jack
Hybrid or combination floor jacks come with both steel and aluminum parts. This is done to ensure that the floor jack has maximum strength for the mechanical parts and aluminum for the housing. This cuts down on the total weight.
Plastic parts may also be used for the handles or the sides.
Choose this one if you want portability and strength in one package.
What to Consider When Buying a Floor Jack
There are many things you need to consider when getting a floor jack. Weight capacity, height range, and saddle size are most important. Here’s why:
Weight Capacity
The most important thing that one should know about the best floor jack in the market is the maximum weight capacity it can handle.
As a general rule of thumb, you should always get a floor jack that can handle more weight than you would normally use it for. If you have a 2-ton sedan, a 3.5-ton floor jack is a good investment.
Height Range
Floor jacks have a minimum and maximum height. The minimum height is the lowest the jack can get. The maximum height is how far off the ground you can lift your vehicle.
Since we’re talking about getting the best floor jack for professional use, you’ll want one that can lift your car at least a foot off the ground. This is enough to get anything done from changing tires to install an exhaust system without any issues. You can even replace off-road tires with a floor jack like this.
Get extenders if you regularly work with trucks or vans.
A floor jack has both a minimum and a maximum height. Many come with extenders that can raise both heights for bigger trucks and vans. Make sure you also measure your car’s ground clearance to ensure you can get a floor jack that fits underneath while the tires are deflated.
Related Article: This Is Why Racing Cars Are Broad And Low
Saddle Size
Platform (or saddle) size is important as this is the main area of your jack that comes in contact with the underside of the object you’re planning to lift. A bigger platform will ensure more contact area, thereby leading to a more stable lift.
The drawback to having a large platform is finding an area under your car that’s big enough to fit.
If you’re planning to lift your vehicle at least 16 inches off the ground, get a jack that has a bigger platform. The higher off the ground, the more stable it should be. For regular use, just get an appropriate-size bottle jack for easy use and storage.
Safety Tip:
Floor jacks may be simple to use but that doesn’t mean they can’t be dangerous. Make sure you place your floor jack on a flat surface before jacking your vehicle up. Ensure that the saddle is directly under the strongest surface underneath your car to reduce the risk of damaging the body.
Adjust the jack if it doesn’t look stable enough or placed correctly underneath the vehicle.
And now that you have all that information let’s get on with the list.
Top Floor Jacks Professionals Use
These floor jacks are what professionals use because of their weight capacity and versatility in use.
#1: BlackHawk B6350/Red Fast Lift Service Jack – 3.5 Ton Capacity – best floor jack
The Blackhawk B6350 Black is a professional floor jack with a 3.5-ton lifting capacity. It can lift vehicles within that weight range to a maximum height of 22 inches. It is designed for quick contact with the underside of any vehicle.
- Built-in internal safety valve and vent plug ensures safe operation
- Swivel saddle provides easy jack positioning and user safety.Saddle Diameter: 4 inch
For added safety, there is a bypass system that ensures safe operation at all times. The durable steel body ensures maximum strength.
The only downside to this floor jack is it is not suitable for lowered vehicles with its 5.5-inch saddle height.
#2: Big Red TAM83012 Torin Pro Series Hydraulic Floor Jack – best floor jack
The Big Red TAM83012 is very similar to the BlackHawk B6350 in weight capacity and maximum height range. Its simplistic design and ease-of-use make it a staple equipment in a lot of garages.
- This hydraulic car floor jack is designed to lift 3.5 ton(7,000 lb) with minimal effort(not designed to support vehicles)
- The portable 3.5 ton floor jack can lift from 5-11/16" to 19-11/16",which allows you to gain easy access under most vehicles
#3: Hi-Lift Jack XT485 48-Inch Hi-Lift X-TREME Jack – best floor jack
If you work with off-road vehicles, then the Hi-Lift Jack XT485 48-Inch Hi-Lift X-TREME Jack is the one you should have in your garage. It can easily lift 3.5 tons off the ground to a height of 48 inches. There is also a 60-inch variant for off-road vehicles that have a higher ground clearance.
- The Hi-Lift Jack X-TREME jack is our top of the line, all-cast jack that includes many special features
- Unique gold zinc-coated winch/clamp/spreader attachment ensures the greatest rust resistance from extreme use for all the hardware
#4: Arcan 2-Ton Extra Long Reach Low Profile Steel Floor Jack – best floor jack
Although lifting less than the other examples we have on this list, the Arcan 2-Ton is perfect for vehicles with lower ground clearances. Its 2-ton weight capacity is more than enough to lift bigger sedans and lighter SUVs.
- COLORS MAY VARY: XL2T = A20016
- LIFT RANGE Provides the lowest low height (2 75”) and the highest high height (24”) compared to the average jack
Conclusion
The only reason why floor jacks aren’t mentioned quite often is that these are sturdy pieces of equipment that serve a purpose and require very little preventive maintenance or replacement.
Getting the best floor jack will help you save a lot of money and accomplish a lot of things like lifting the biggest vehicles in your garage.
Related Questions
I Have A Ford F450. Is There Any Floor Jack That Can Handle Its Weight?
Ford F450s are used for industrial purposes. Therefore, what you’ll need is an industrial level floor jack that can handle its 8,600-pound curb weight. Other SUVs have a curb weight of around 6,000 pounds, which is easy to handle for the other floor jacks we’ve included in the list.
How Do You Bleed A Floor Jack?
Even the best floor jack needs to be bled every once in a while. Air bubbles can get trapped within the system. When this happens, your floor jack is going to struggle with lifting even a light load. All you need is a flat screw to turn the bleed valve counterclockwise before lowering the jack fully. Remove the oil fill plug and then pump the jack 10 to 20 times until all the air is removed.
Is It Worth The Money To Invest In Jack Stands As Well?
Yes. Jack stands are fixed and more stable than even the best floor jack in the market today. Because it is a solid piece of equipment, there is no risk of it accidentally depressing and crushing whatever is underneath the vehicle during the time it is used.