It’s a common theme in my household and my life to keep things tidy. Not everyone shares this same objective, I know. Michele and the kids always have their bikes scattered everywhere, which drives me nuts. So, I came across the Top Shelf Lift 400 that has solved this problem.
I joined a Kickstarter in late 2020 or early 2021, where my new friend Tabb (founder of Top Shelf Storage Solutions) saw a need for a lift solution, not just for bikes but also for any other cargo you may want to keep off the ground, and created this masterpiece. You don’t realize how important it is to have something like this in your garage until you start laying things out and begin to see the space-saving opportunities.
If you’re handy with tools, you can complete this installation in under an hour. Mike did it in 20-minutes. From my observation and reading the instructions, it’s a really simple install. We first put my bike on and raised it where it barely touched the ceiling. My initial reaction was, “this is freaking sweet.” Whether you have one vehicle or multiple vehicles, I found that I can easily park my cars underneath it.
You’ll have five different sizes to choose from; what you decide to go with will depend solely on the height of your garage. When we installed mine, we positioned the base of it right above the baseboard. This gave us enough clearance towards the top, where the box with all of the components inside went—a really clean look.
I’m incredibly pleased with this product and how it turned out in my garage. I know for a fact that I’ll be installing several of these in my future homes.
Safety Features
- The Lift Motor has an electronic brake when not in use to keep The Lift from moving
- The Lift stops quickly if the gear being lifted or attachment comes into contact with something
- The controller includes a child safety lockout that must be turned to release
- The Up/Down button on the controller must be held down for The Lift to move in either direction (this keeps the user out of harm's way and attention focused on the movement of The Lift)
- A channel safety pin is provided to provide extra security that The Lift will not come down when not in use
- A hitch receiver safety pin is provided to secure the attachment into The Lift's hitch receiver
- The Lift is secured to the wall utilizing 12 lag screws (provided)
- A cargo net or tie-down straps are required to secure items to attachment when being lifted
- The Lift wire cable is aircraft-grade w/breaking strength of 2,000lbs
Warranty
Top Shelf Storage Solutions handles all warranty claims themselves. You can contact them here.