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home elevator safety

Home Elevator Safety-Are Home Elevators Safe?

Elevators in the home are highly beneficial as well as safe. Residential elevators provide ease of access to other floors in the home, provide a safer route for carrying things from floor to floor, and adds significant value to your house.

Are Home Elevators Safe?

Yes they are. Aside from the best quality and durability of our manufacturers’ products, they’re equipped with features that prevent injury and misuse. Home elevator regulations cover everything from the construction of the elevator shaftway, weight limit, speed, and travel distance.

Safety Features of a Residential Elevator

While each state has different rules and regulations, they all require safety mechanisms and codes to meet in order to pass inspection.

Door Interlocks

Many states including Connecticut require door interlocks at each landing to prevent any door accessing the elevator from being open if the cab is not at that particular landing.

Safety Sensors

There are two main types of safety sensors for home elevators: door sensors and pit sensors.

Door Sensor

Door sensors prevent the elevator doors from closing if an object is detected. They use infrared or LED lighting to create a curtain of sorts, illuminating the entry way to the elevator cab at the landing.

Pit Sensor

Elevator pit sensors detect anything that might be in the pit and if something is detected, the elevator will not operate.

Fire Alarm

Fire alarms are required for operation. They must be installed in the shaftway.

3″ Rule

The 3″ rule as it applies to home elevators refers to the space at the footing between the elevator and the landing. The rule says that the space cannot exceed 3″. This ensures that people and small pets do not fall through and trap them.

Elevator Phone

A landline must be active and connected to the cab phone inside the elevator.

Emergency Backup

An uninterruptible power supply is required for home elevators and is located inside the machine room. In the event of a power failure (power outage or shortage), the battery backup activates and lowers the cab to the first stop so you can exit safely.

 

Applicable Elevator Codes:

The Uniform Building Code (UBC) references the IBC (International Building Code) which references ASME A17.1.

Residential elevators are addressed in Part 5.3 of the ASME A17.1 code.

  • 5.3.1 Private Residence Electric Elevators
  • 5.3.2 Private Residence Hydraulic Elevators

This 2012 edition provides updated cross-references and additional guidelines to coordinate with A17.1-2007.  It also features new guidelines on machine room-less (MRL) configurations.

Local jurisdictions need to be reviewed for additional compliance items and local regulations.

Example : California has its own set of Safety orders for elevators.

  • Division of Occupational Safety and Health – Title 8 regulations
  • Division 1. Department of Industrial Relations
  • Chapter 4. Division of Industrial Safety
  • Subchapter 6. Elevator Safety Orders
  • Group 4
  • Article 41
home elevators

Only way to go is up!

When it comes to modern day home building, more and more architects and home builders are designing homes with multiple stories. Square footage for homes have doubled since 1973. With lot sizes dramatically decreasing, and the demand for larger homes increasing, building vertically is the best answer to building a [new] home. New construction can cost up to 10% less per square foot when building vertically as opposed to building out. This saves on space, saves on land costs, and can easily accommodate an elevator. The trend in home elevators continues to expand every year. In Massachusetts alone, the number of home elevators have increased 29% since 2011 (Boston Globe).

According to the Census Bureau, Characteristics of New Homes Completed SOC data, 2 story homes have increased 33% and 3 story homes by 43% since 2009. The number of 4,000 square feet homes have increased 51% since 2011.

This trend in verticality is a trend to keep in mind when planning to build a new home. In the end, you can save yourself money, space, and have and even plan for an elevator if you build ‘up’ versus ‘out’.

homes big enough for an elevator

 

 

custom home elevators

Customize Your Home Elevator

Customizing Your Home Elevator

Home Elevators

That’s right-home elevators. Architects and builders are finding their projects to include a home elevators or setting up the home for a future elevator by pre-creating a shaftway out of closets stacked in line. Having an elevator in your home can help you in several ways as a home owner.

Closet Shaftway

Converting Stacked Closets to Elevator Shaft

If a home elevator is something works with your home, you have endless options.

 

Conventional Elevator vs. PVE

Conventional elevators are placed in a shaftway built by a contractor. Pneumatic Vacuum Elevators (PVE) do not need a shaftway. The “tubes” come premanufactured and only require assembly. Since the shape is cylindrical, a round hole should be cut out of a ceiling, or a half-moon platform should be constructed at the landing if the tube is not going through a ceiling.

tube elevator

Pneumatic Vacuum Elevator

 

 

The Cab of Your Home Elevator

Cabs can be customized with a wide variety of interior walls, tile, and fixtures. Most manufacturers provide various wood, metal, stone, and other standard design options, as well as customizable ones.

Residential Elevator Cab

 

Home Elevator Gates

The elevator gate (located inside the door), is a required safety fixture. Options for gates include scissor gate, accordion, and enterprise.

 

Home Elevator Gates

Home Elevator Gates

 

 

Elevator Configurations