Homeowner reference library
A lift inside your own house. We build the shaft, install the lift and finish everything around it.
Discuss your home lifts project →Start here · Buying guide
Compare home-lift suitability, landing space, building works, quotations, BCA owner duties and ongoing care before choosing a system.
Compare your options
Compare your options
Compare your options
Quick answers for a single decision, practical guides for planning, and detailed references when you need the full picture.
Practical guide · 8 min read
Before buying a house with a lift, check its operating permit, maintenance history and the arrangements for taking over ownership and servicing. A comfortable test ride only shows how it performed at that moment. Records help you understand unresolved work and upcoming responsibilities before the lift becomes part of the home you own.
Detailed reference · 8 min read
Before accepting a home lift quotation, check seven parts of the cost and responsibility: the equipment and access it provides, building preparation, installation work and the remaining items detailed below. A cheaper lift is not necessarily a cheaper project. Compare all the work required for the same house and users, including what happens at handover and afterwards.
Detailed reference · 7 min read
A no-pit lift may avoid a conventional recessed pit, but it still needs a suitable base, entrance and space around it. Some installations use a raised platform or ramp; other models require a shallow recess. Compare the actual entrance arrangement and building work before assuming that “no pit” means no changes to the house.
Detailed reference · 12 min read
When a home lift won't move, beeps, jerks or has someone stuck inside, keep everyone off it, note what happened, use the alarm button if someone is inside, and leave faults and resets to the service company's technician.
Detailed reference · 9 min read
Retrofitting a home lift means fitting equipment and its supporting work into a finished house. Hydraulic and traction models can require different space, excavation and structural arrangements. Compare those requirements against the actual site, including access during construction and the work to restore surrounding rooms, before choosing the lift system.
Detailed reference · 9 min read
If a home lift is part of your long-term plans, decide what to prepare while the house is already being built or renovated. Installing now, reserving suitable space and retrofitting later involve different costs and disruption. An empty corner alone is not enough preparation: the future lift also needs suitable structural support, access and services.
Detailed reference · 9 min read
For a modular home-lift system offered in Singapore, allow 4 to 8 weeks for production, followed by shipping and normally 2 to 4 days for installation. Those timings apply to the linked system, and fitting is only part of the wait. Your first-use date also depends on design, building preparation, testing and the Singapore permit process. The schedule needs to include all of them before your household relies on the lift being ready.
Detailed reference · 8 min read
The first question when comparing a wheelchair platform lift and a seated stairlift is whether the user can and wants to transfer out of the wheelchair. Staying in the wheelchair changes the space needed for boarding and turning. Compare that complete journey, including help at each end, before deciding from the size of the lift alone.
Detailed reference · 8 min read
A wheelchair-accessible lift needs enough usable space for the person and their wheelchair to approach, enter and leave at every floor. Cabin dimensions alone do not establish that. Check door openings, turning space, controls and assistance needs together, using the actual wheelchair where possible, before selecting a model.
Detailed reference · 6 min read
If a lift will be close to a bedroom, consider where sound and vibration can travel before fixing the layout. Hydraulic and traction systems differ, but the particular model, equipment location and building connections also matter. Ask how the proposed installation addresses nearby sleeping spaces and, where possible, hear a comparable lift operating.
Detailed reference · 9 min read
Neither HDB's EASE nor EASE (Private) pays for a stairlift or home lift between floors. Here's what each scheme does cover, what HDB's entrance wheelchair lifter costs you, who qualifies and how to apply.
Detailed reference · 8 min read
Your home lift's running budget includes electricity, servicing, annual inspection and testing, permit-related work and repairs. To estimate your electricity bill, use your lift's travel and standby consumption with the tariff you pay. Price the maintenance and excluded repairs separately for your chosen lift.
Detailed reference · 7 min read
A lift can sometimes be added within or beside an existing staircase, but it must leave a workable route upstairs and suitable space at every landing. The survey needs to consider the full lift structure, doors and building changes, not only the cabin. Compare layouts before choosing a model that appears to fit the central opening.
Detailed reference · 5 min read
A home lift carries people between floors; a dumbwaiter carries goods and must not be used for passengers. Start with what your household needs to move. Sending meals or laundry upstairs is a different requirement from providing access for a family member, and a house may have a reason to plan for both.
Detailed reference · 8 min read
To find out whether a home lift fits, distinguish the cabin space from the space needed to install it. The shaft, building opening, doors and landings each have their own dimensions. A brochure footprint is a starting point; the coordinated installation drawing is what the project team needs before altering floors or confirming the layout.
Detailed reference · 9 min read
Singapore installers advertise home lift maintenance from about S$800 to S$2,000 a year on their own websites (checked October 2026). Those are starting prices, not quotes, and more servicing visits or cover for parts and repairs raises your bill. Any lift rising a metre or more also needs a yearly test and permit renewal.
Detailed reference · 5 min read
Home lift installation follows six main steps: assess the site, settle the quotation and required submissions, prepare the structure, install the lift, complete testing and operating requirements, then hand it over with owner training. The stages depend on one another. Planning them together helps you understand both what happens inside your home and what must be ready before the next team starts.
Detailed reference · 5 min read
A glass home lift can preserve views and bring a more open appearance to an installation. Whether that is worth the extra cost depends on where the lift sits and how you feel about privacy, sun exposure and cleaning. Compare the actual glazed design with a suitable alternative, including the work around the lift, before deciding what the premium buys you.
Detailed reference · 9 min read
For a tight home-lift budget, start by comparing suitable equipment in a location that needs little alteration. A compact platform lift, a wheelchair-capable lift and a stairlift solve different access needs.
Detailed reference · 7 min read
Vacuum and hydraulic home lifts offer different cabin layouts, operating systems and installation requirements. Compare them through the trips your household will make, including carrying belongings or using mobility aids. The useful choice needs to fit the people, the space at each floor and the building work your home can accommodate.
Detailed reference · 13 min read
Find out when a hydraulic lift suits your home, and when a traction, vacuum or screw-driven lift fits better, with real pit, headroom and machinery sizes from four published models.
Detailed reference · 7 min read
A home lift project can involve approval for the lift, permission for associated building work and the Permit to Operate before use. Those are separate responsibilities, even when one team coordinates them. Identify who handles each part and which documents you will receive, so equipment delivery is not mistaken for a completed, ready-to-use installation.
Detailed reference · 8 min read
Stannah, Aritco and Cibes overlap more than their brand images suggest: the Stannah Midilift PL2, Aritco HomeLift Access and Cibes A5000 are all screw-driven platform lifts. The practical differences include how many floors they can serve, the shape of the usable platform and the available controls. Aritco’s Access range includes longer platforms and non-European control options; Cibes A5000 has closely specified shaft and floor-opening sizes; Stannah PL2 offers a comparable platform but its current Singapore supply needs confirmation. There is no supported reason to name one brand the smoothest or cheapest.
Detailed reference · 5 min read
A home lift company should help you understand how the proposed lift fits your family and your house, then explain who will handle the surrounding work. Equipment supply, structural openings, electrical work and servicing are not automatically one package. Compare the actual model and the complete project responsibility before using brand familiarity or price to make the decision.