How much space does
a home lift need?

Every home lift, whatever the brand, asks the house for the same things. The model you choose decides how much of each.

For SWIFT, SWIFT Pro and SWIFT Lite share the same Swedish platform, so the six sizes below apply to both. The column to plan around is the last one: the recommended size of the hole through each floor.

The smallest, XXS, is 830 by 600 millimetres, rated for 250 kilograms or two people, with a recommended 940 by 1025 millimetre opening. The largest, XL, is 1400 by 1100 millimetres, rated for 400 kilograms or five people, with a 1510 by 1525 millimetre opening. The first four sizes share an 830 millimetre width and a 940 millimetre wide opening and differ only in depth; L and XL are wider.

A conventional lift sits in a pit below the lowest floor, and digging one into a finished slab is real building work. The home lifts we sell need very little of it.

SWIFT installs 50 millimetres recessed, in line with the floor, or on top of the floor with a ramp, which is why its pit is 0 to 50 millimetres. That is the shallowest pit in our residential range, and the same constraint as on Australia's first Swift lift. Phoenix needs 100 millimetres and InDomo 120 millimetres.

Where the change of level is short, such as a porch or split level, a full home lift may not be needed. The Low-Rise platform lift covers up to 1.5 metres of travel, indoors or out, with no-pit options.

Headroom is the clearance a lift needs above its top landing. SWIFT needs 2250 millimetres, the lowest headroom figure in our residential range. Phoenix needs 2350 millimetres.

InDomo needs 2400 millimetres and is built with a low overhead, so this full-cabin lift fits under a 2.4 metre ceiling. It is the model we specify when you want a fully enclosed cabin and the ceiling at the top floor is down around that height.

SWIFT Pro, SWIFT Lite and InDomo travel up to 12 metres, about four levels. Phoenix travels up to 8 metres. Each extra level adds another floor opening, another landing and another doorway to plan for, so count every level the lift should serve, including a garage or basement.

Rated load is part of the size decision too. SWIFT goes up to 400 kilograms in its two largest sizes, InDomo up to 500 kilograms and Phoenix up to 630 kilograms. If the lift needs to carry a wheelchair user, or several people at once, say so in the brief, because it sets the minimum car size.

The doors take space in front of the lift as well as inside it. SWIFT uses double glass doors on a fully adjustable 180 degree swing, set individually for each blade, with obstacle detection, a stay-open function and adjustable door speed. That adjustability is what makes tight hallways and awkward entries workable.

InDomo is a full cabin with a choice of swing doors or automatic sliding doors, and custom car sizing to suit an opening that a standard size will not fit. Phoenix has an LED backlit shadow-line cabin with a wide range of finishes. Whatever the model, check the space in front of each landing as well as the shaft.

Space is also a question of what the house can carry. Phoenix comes standard with a self-supporting structure, so no structural modifications to the home are needed. That makes it the model for a part of the house that cannot carry a lift, such as a rear extension that cannot take the load.

SWIFT has an all-inclusive design: there is no external machine room or visible mechanical equipment to find space for, and it charges from a standard wall outlet. The architectural home retrofit needed no external machine cabinet.

There is no single smallest lift, because each model is smallest at something different. For the least floor area, the SWIFT XXS has the smallest floor opening. For the shallowest pit and the lowest headroom, it is SWIFT again. For a house that cannot carry a lift, it is the self-supporting Phoenix. For a full cabin under a 2.4 metre ceiling, or an opening no standard car fits, it is InDomo.

In a new build the shaft, slab and ceiling heights can be drawn around the lift. In an existing house it works the other way: we assess the structure first, then choose the model that needs the least change to the house.

Jobs we have already done show what that looks like. An InDomo in a stairwell void went into the only space the house had, keeping stair access. A SWIFT was retrofitted into an architecturally designed home while preserving its design. If a lift is already there, retrofit and replacement can often fit the existing shaft without major structural changes.

These figures tell you which models are worth discussing. They do not replace a tape measure. Nothing is ordered from a phone description of a stairwell: the first consultation is free, at our Braeside showroom or at your property, and it covers what the space allows and what compliance demands before a model is named. Our lifts are design registered against Australian standards, and the consultation includes help with council approval.

Bring the number of levels, the spot you have in mind, who will use the lift, and any drawings. A project manager then measures on site. At 2/226 Governor Rd, Braeside you can step into a SWIFT Pro and an InDomo first. We look after Melbourne and Geelong homes.

Plan for servicing as well: we recommend six monthly services for residential lifts, and quarterly servicing for public lifts, under a maintenance agreement. The home lift cost guide covers what all of this means for a quote.