Best Chain Hoists for Workshops and Garages

The XtremepowerUS Chain Hoist is equipped with a ratchet lever, which makes it an excellent purchase for warehouses, storage facilities, and for using on construction sites.

The bonus feature of the model is that it can be used both vertically when lifting the load up and horizontally when pulling things with a tractor or a car. Keep in mind, though, it's not too lightweight. Therefore, it might not be suitable for pulling another car on the road. The horizontal position is still useful for unrooting stubs from the ground or winching a fallen tree up the road.

Both hooks swivel and feature the OSHA-recommended self-closing safety latches, which allows its secure fixation and versatility of use.

The links are made of 20MN2 premium alloy steel with a heat-treated black oxide coating that adds to the corrosion resistance properties of the chain. Depending on the model, the capacity of the XtremepowerUS chain may vary within the range from 3/4 to 6 tons. The built-in brake system also allows you to lift up and suspend the load so that you could drive a truck underneath and lower the cargo back in without external assistance.

We also liked the fact that it has a comparatively long lever with a rubberized handle so that you could easily reach it above your head. A single crank of the ratchet lifts the cargo about 1" up. There's also a free-wheeling feature that allows you to manually pull the slacked chain.

The Neiko 02182A Chain Hoist is capable of lifting up to 1 ton at up to 15 ft. height, which comes handy in a wide range of commercial applications. The links are made of the heat-treated 20MN2 steel of high strength and wear-resistance which makes it a good choice for warehouses, mines, docks, and storehouses. The hoist also features a black oxide coating for enhanced stress resistance. Both hooks have OSHA-recommended safety latches. The gear block also features a simple mechanical brake to help you lift up and suspend the load but nothing too fancy.

Note, the lifting length of 15 feet limits the usage of the chain to the places where it is possible to set it high above the floor. Otherwise, you may end up with a huge pile of steel lying on the floor and bearing a potential hazard to workers and equipment. The reducer has 1:45 reduction ratio, meaning that in order to lift 2000 lbs up, you'd need to apply as much force as you'd've done lifting 44 lbs only. 

Concluding, this is a good choice for the facilities that require a heavy-duty, low-maintenance manual lift puller for working up to 1-ton loads.

The Torin TR9010 is a fine example of a reliable puller ready for some heavy duty. It will work best in a car workshop or a garage, where it'll be used to quickly lift up engines and other objects that weigh up to 1 ton.

The 8 ft. lifting capacity is long enough to use it for many different purposes. The presence of the OSHA-approved safety latches on both hooks allow you to securely fix the chain to the beam and cargo. However, keep in mind that the upper hook's arc is not too wide on the inside - only 1" or so. Anyhow, you can simply throw another chain around the beam and hang the block on its ends instead.

The load sheave with four precision machined chain pockets is built around roller bearings that deliver smooth and reliable performance and prevent the gear from wearing too quickly.

Overall, it's a fine choice for home garage, warehouse or workshop where you can use it for repairs, maintenance, or attaching the cutting decks to tractors or lawn mowers. 

If you were looking for a compact, lightweight hoist, here it is. This Roughneck manual puller with a lever has only 5-5/6 ft. lifting capacity, but is also incredibly lightweight - only 4.8 lbs.

Its head with a hook requires only 12" of space and the beam to hang it on, which makes it suitable for small rooms and confined premises. Additionally, it comes with a carrying bag for storage and transportation. Thus, you can keep it in a truck if you often go to the sites where you have to load/unload heavy objects like construction materials, packs of water bottles, and other things at up to 1/4-ton weight. Furthermore, this puller is very easy to handle. The free end of the chain is equipped with a special stopper that prevents it from sliding all the way out. The block has a ratchet lever that allows you to lift or lower the load without making much effort.

All in all, this small manual pulley is a fine solution for lifting average-weight materials at up to 1/4 tons.

The CHOI1 has a 1-ton carrying capacity and can boast relatively small weight when compared to most other models with the same capacity. Owing to a fine gear ratio, with this chain, it's very easy to lift up large and heavy cargos, exerting a minimum force for doing this. It has become possible due to the additional integral tackle inside the head. This small change in the standard design reduces the force necessary to lift the load almost two times compared to the classical chain hoists. However, this solution has one slight disadvantage - the operational speed is also reduced by half. Thus, this model is more suitable for places where the speed of lifting the load up and down is less important than the ability to lift heavy weight with ease, like, for example, engines, tractors, snow blowers etc.