Backyard Buddy Free Standing Car Lift Blog

What Separates Backyard Buddy from Others?

Quality.  Safety.  American-made.  This is the Backyard Buddy difference.  Let us look at some of the areas that separate Backyard Buddy from the rest of the competition.

Safe and Stable Auto Lift Design – Safety is of the utmost importance to us.  So much so that we recently added a new automatic back-up lock in case of slack in the cable (which to this day, has never happened with a Backyard Buddy lift).

Standard 5 year Warranty – We are committed to standing by our product. North American Made Structural Grade Steel – Backyard Buddy does not compromise by using cheap imported steel, which typically does not meet strict U.S. steel quality standards.  Even the electric power unit and hydraulics are American made.

Fully Free-Standing Auto Lift – Backyard Buddy lifts do not need to be bolted to the floor!  Our lifts are easy to roll around, even while holding a car.  Our large phenolic casters do not cause any damage to your garage floor either.
Size – The compact size of the Backyard Buddy lift allows it to fit into most home garages where commercial lifts do not. 

Packaging and Assembly – Down to the smallest of details, Backyard Buddy is keeping YOU in mind.  We package your lift in steel end crates for easy off-loading, and it arrives as ready-to-bolt together factory assembled sub-assemblies.  You can be up and running in less than a day.

Factory Direct Only – Leave out the middleman!  While others show “free” freight costs that are averaged into the price of the list or a “delivered” price, which means you pay the same shipping costs no matter where you live, we show your freight charges upfront, along with the maximum savings available by shipping from point to point.   If you live near our factory and want to forgo freight charges altogether, you are welcome to pull up your car trailer and pick up the lift yourself. 
 
It is clear that when you choose Backyard Buddy, you are purchasing the finest car lift on the market at the best value.  Need further proof?  Go and see the difference for yourself!  In an effort to illustrate the superiority of their lifts, Backyard Buddy purchased several competitors’ units and put them through intense testing, scrutiny, and comparison.  Stop by Backyard Buddy’s factory showroom where the competitor car lifts are on display for you to compare the differences in construction, quality, and safety.  The showroom is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.  No appointment is necessary.

The Unique Safety Features of the Backyard Buddy Car Lifts

Backyard Buddy has two core foundational values within their business.  The first is the quality of their auto lifts and the second is the highest safety features implemented into their auto lifts.  The Backyard Buddy auto lifts are the top-of-the-line quality products made from North American structural grade steel and hardware.  Backyard Buddy’s unique safety features have surpassed their competitors in this area.  Let us focus on these unique features now.

Large Diameter Ram - Backyard Buddy uses a 3” hydraulic cylinder with a 1-¼” ram.  This large diameter ram maintains proper alignment when it is fully extended.  This results in a longer seal life.  Competitors use a ¾ ram that can sag when fully extended causing it to be misaligned as it is pulled back into the cylinder and therefore dragging on the seal.  This will cause a premature wear on the seal that will result in a leak.

Flow Restrictor - The second unique feature that is only used by Back yard Buddy is a flow restrictor.  This part ensures that the lift can only come down at the same speed that it goes up.  Other competitors use only a coupler which can cause the lift to slam down instantaneously.

Steel Line - Backyard Buddy uses a steel line to protect the hose and to prevent it from getting worn down.   Competitors on the other hand allow the hose to be exposed leading to undo wear and tear.

Lock Design – Backyard Buddy uses large steel sleeves that capture the lock within the slots.  These slots are cut into each corner post on their auto lifts.   However, competitors only use a small welded-on block to prevent any slippage.

Back-Up Lock Design – This extra safety feature automatically engages if there is any slack in a cable.  Although there has never been a case of any cable failure within a Backyard Buddy lift, this back-up lock is added insurance and safety.

Sliders – Another unique feature within the Backyard Buddy auto lifts are the sliders that they utilize.  These ensure that the auto lift cannot wobble and disengage from the locks.  Competitors use an open channel post that allows for the unit to be unstable and to wobble.

As one can quickly see, Backyard Buddy auto lifts are the safest and best made lifts in the industry.  These lifts continue to outshine their competition year after year.  Individuals who are looking into installing a car lift inside of their garage have the opportunity to come to the Backyard Buddy show room.  Within the show room, Backyard Buddy not only provides their own auto lifts, but also most of their popular competitor’s lifts.  Now, one is able to not only see, feel, and experience the Backyard Buddy auto lifts, but also make comparisons with their competitors.  You will quickly see for yourself why Backyard Buddy exceeds all their competition.  The showroom is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.  No appointment is necessary.

Who is Johnny Five at Backyard Buddy?

Backyard Buddy has recently acquired a new member to their production team.  It is a new robot who is named Johnny Five.  This new robot is a state of the art equipment piece that welds parts of the auto lifts.  Johnny Five is located at the manufacturing facility in Warren, Ohio.  

Backyard Buddy has been utilizing Johnny Five for the last several months.  This addition to Backyard Buddy has thrust the company forward above their competitors.  Johnny Five can accomplish in 51 minutes what it would take an experience production team to accomplish in six hours thus allowing a greater productivity and output of auto lifts in a shorter period of time.  This innovative technology, along with the increase in productivity, has improved their customer service by decreasing the wait time from order to delivery.

The heart of Backyard Buddy is that all lifts, as well as, all the parts for these lifts are made from North American structural grade steel including the power units and hydraulics.  But equally as important as the quality of the steel, is the quality of the weld that holds these units together.  With top of the line welding provided by Johnny Five, Backyard Buddy guarantees a safe and dependable product.

Johnny Five is a labor saving device, but Backyard Buddy does not want this technology to be a deterrent for hiring new employees.   Instead, Backyard Buddy wants to utilize this technology to expand their horizons for increased productivity causing an increase in available jobs.  Johnny Five is always overseen and supervised by certified welders which allows for job security, as well as, guaranteed quality production.

The success found at Backyard Buddy over the last three decades is due to high quality products, to customer loyalty, and timely unit production.  This acquired success has allowed for the investment of the Johnny Five robot which is estimated to pay for itself within a year of obtaining it.

Individuals who are looking into installing a car lift inside of their garage have the opportunity to come to the Backyard Buddy show room.  The showroom is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.  No appointment is necessary

See the robot in action below:

The Heart of Backyard Buddy Corp.

Walking around Backyard Buddy Corp, one will quickly be inspired on so many different levels.  From the kindness that meets you at the front door, to the highest level of quality throughout the complex, to the ease at which the personnel make you feel.  This is beyond a doubt the heart of America at its truest form. 

Over 30 years ago, much time was given to locate a car lift that could be utilized inside standard garages.  This journey only led to the discovery of poorly designed products and ultimately frustration.  Desire and necessity became the mother of invention.  Backyard Buddy was created for a few key reasons.  One of the rudimentary reasons is it allows individuals easily access underneath vehicles in order to repair or work on them.   Another key reason is that it allows for the utilization of the dead space above vehicles within their garages.   This adds numerous possibilities for additional storage opportunities.   Another vital reason that Backyard Buddy’s came into being is the desire for the highest quality and safest lift around.

Backyard Buddy is one of the oldest and largest freestanding auto lift manufacturers in the country.  Their car lifts may be a little more expensive than lifts that are imported from around the world, but Backyard Buddy truly has set themselves apart from these other companies.    They pride themselves in their top line quality of products, their North American structural grade steel and hardware, and their unique safety features.

Walking through the halls of Backyard Buddy, you will see this passage on their wall.  It was written almost two hundred years ago, but truly sets the foundation to describe the vital difference when choosing quality products and the difference between value and price:

 “It’s unwise to pay too much, but it’s worse to pay too little.  When you pay too little you sometime lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do.  The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot – it can’t be done.  If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk that you run, and if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better.”  John Ruskin (1819-1900)

Individuals who are looking into installing a car lift inside of their garage have the opportunity to come to the Backyard Buddy show room.  The showroom is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.  No appointment is necessary.

Backyard Buddy Auto Lift Stands Up to 5.8 Virginia Earthquake

On August 23, 2011, Dr. Edward Boas Jr.'s house in Chesapeake Maryland was shaking. The 5.8 Virginia earthquake was in full swing. He also noticed that his four Backyard Buddy lifts were also shaking. He uses the car lifts to store vehicles above and below. After all the shaking was done, he was happy to report that all of his vehicled were undamaged.

Larry Gross, owner at Backyard Buddy said "We were not surprised to hear Ed's story, our lifts are built with American Steel and built to withstand three times their weight capacity."

This is why, when you are looking for a auto lift, you must not look at just the price. You must also look at how well it will hold up your very valuable vehicles. You never know what will happen and you must do as much as you can to protect what drives you.

Check out our comparison page.

The good news and bad news about the Steel Industry

The good news: The American economy is starting to rebound. Unemployment is down and the stock market is doing getting better.

The bad news: The domestic steel mills are going to start changing more for their steel because their order books are full!

What does this mean for the good people that are considering buying an auto lift? On March 1 Backyard Buddy will have to raise prices.

Car Lift Cables

Flexibility, strength, and intelligent design. Good cables come with plenty of each and bad cables come with none at all. The problem for customers is that you cannot “see” a bad cable. In fact, a junk cable will look just like the best cable to a novice. So how is a guy supposed to tell? Simple. Look for a few very specific things.

1. Flexibility- This matters. Since most lifts have a 4 or a 5 inch pulley, the cable is required to take a series of pretty sharp turns. A rigid cable (637cable for example) will not provide the kind of flexibility to keep the cable on the pulley when it is not under tension. This leads to accidents as people do not always check before lifting. Also, this will create premature wear. If the cable is designed to be “bent” at a certain angle and it is, it will wear quickly. The Chinese made lifts all come with very cheap, rigid cables that do not last. Ours all come with 937 wire rope.
2. Strength- For obvious reasons, this matters. If a cable is working hard to lift the weight of your car, it will wear out faster. Plain and simple: cheap lifts come with weak cables. Period. There are no exceptions to this. The certifications usually mean it has been tested to less of a standard, albeit a standard. Most certifications only require 1 ½ times lifting capacity while we demand cables that are tested to 3 times their capacity. Safety and durability are affected here.
3. Intelligent design- How can you tell if the cable has been swedged properly or if it is holding? All of the imported stuff has end caps over the cables because that is a cheaper way to weld the ends. Ours are open in the ends. That way you can look and see if it has slipped or if it is moving at all. While more expensive, it is a much safer and more durable way to do things. The cables are just another important component to the lift that makes a great deal of difference in its ease of use and safety. We do not believe that cutting corners in these areas is worth the risk to our customers. Unfortunately, many off-shore brands could care less about these issues as evidenced by the components they use.

If safety and durability matter, our lift is the only one to buy!

Compare the American Made Backyard Buddy Automotive Lift to the Lower Quality Imported Lifts

You Get What You Pay For with Car Lifts and Life!

When you buy something, do you look at the price or the value?

A smart shopper will look at both.

When you buy tires for your car, are you looking for the cheapest set that you can find? Or do you do research and find the best tires for the money! Of course you do the research! Why? Because your family and friends are riding with you in that car and you want them to be safe.

Safety is a big factor! We need to break the habit where we are just looking at price. Life is very important. At the end of the day you want to be sure that you are safe when you put 5000 pounds above your head. After all, you are very important to your family.

Here is how Backyard Buddy is superior to the other lifts.

• Our Mounting Foot and Leg Construction are superior!
• Our Slider and Leg Construction are superior!
• Our Runway Construction is superior!
• Our Hydraulic Connections are superior!
• Our Locking System is superior!

You can read the details here.

Price is important but so is saefty.
We know that these days times are hard, but don't go cheap on this.

Give us a call 800 837-9353.

The Auto Lift Power Unit

Very few components speak more to durability than the power unit. When we talk about the power unit we are actually talking about dozens of smaller components all working together to lift a car. The quality of material matters a great deal due to the complexity of its job as well as the size of each component. The smaller the piece, the more important the craftsmanship and quality becomes. Especially when you consider that there aren’t a dozen mechanics in town that work on this thing. That is why at Backyard buddy, we only use Baldor motors. Made in Michigan, these motors are top quality and are built to last. That is why Baldor offers the kind of warranty they do. The windings, fittings, and material are all made in this country to ensure that these motors will last. When you shop for a lift, ask what kind of warranty is offered on the power unit. Anything less than the 5 year warranty we offer is simply not good enough. Let’s face it, companies offer a warranty based on the period of time that they KNOW they will not have any liability issue. So what does it say when the Chinese made lifts only offer 90 days on their power units? To me, that says that they are unsure how long their product will last…at best. If they aren’t sure, how can you be?

If you don’t think power unit quality is important, picture this scenario. You push the button to engage the power unit and begin lifting your car. As you get close to the height you need you let go. The motor keeps running and before you know it, your coupe is a convertible. What happened? It’s simple. You have a Chinese made power unit that contains a Chinese made switch that just failed to shut off. What do you do now? You bought your lift from a “distributor” and that “distributor” has no liability except to give you a phone number……In China! Good luck with that! Why take the chance? Why buy something you already know seems too good to be true price wise… Quality matters and we here these kinds of stories about Chinese made products and lifts everyday. Why take the chance? Give us a call today and find out why quality matters!

What kind of Hydraulic Cylinder is on the Best Automotive Lift?

This is a part of the car lift that most car lift consumers pay little attention to and it is also a part of the car lift that will determine the longevity and reliability the most.  Conventional wisdom might have you believe that a hydraulic cylinder is a hydraulic cylinder but nothing could be further from the truth. These days we deal with Chinese made products and products that do not undergo safety testing of any kind.  Caution: The cylinder matters a great deal!

With a Backyard Buddy car lift, you can be assured that the hydraulic cylinder is three things:

1.       American made- on a product like this, US made matters a great deal. The steel’s integrity will often determine a lot. We have it, the Chinese do not. It really matters when you are talking about the ram sticking out as far as 84” (depending on which model). Stronger steel will not sag and cause the seal to get out of alignment. The lesser, foreign made steel will do just that. Also, the inside of the barrel has no finish so junk steel will rust quickly. How long are their warranties?

2.      Heavy Duty- Our rams are all an inch and a quarter in diameter. That gives them enough strength to prevent sagging. The other guys all use ¾” rams. Way too wimpy and certainly skinny enough to cause sagging.

 3.      Under warranty- Backyard Buddy offers a 5 year warranty and that includes the hydraulic cylinder. Other companies only offer a 1 year or a 90 day warranty. The ones with a better warranty expect you to dismantle the cylinder and send it in for testing. Only after they conclude it was defective do they take care of it. Our customers expect better and we deliver!

We don’t offer a better cylinder because it sells product. We do it because it is the safe and right thing to do. That is the case with so many components on these car lifts and that is why we feel it necessary to explain each and every one of them! We don’t cut corners because our customers stand under our products. Quality matters to our customers and our customers matter to us!

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