For almost as long as elevators have existed, homeowners have looked for ways to incorporate lift technology into multi level homes. Residential elevators are about more than prestige or the “wow” factor; many homeowners need elevators to make areas of their home accessible to those who cannot use the stairs due to injury, illness, disability, or age. PVE offers a select line of in-home lift solutions that rely on vacuum technology instead of traditional mechanics.
Here’s why:
Traditional Lifts are Maintenance-Heavy
Old-technology lifts have a lot of moving parts. Weights, cables, pulleys, and the machines that power them all require frequent maintenance. The cost of this maintenance will add up over time, dramatically increasing the total price of the elevator. Our vacuum elevators require service only once every 15,000 lifts or four to five years. Additionally, maintenance for one of our lifts includes no toxic chemicals or lubricants.
Traditional Lifts are Energy Wasters
Lifting and lowering a traditional residential elevator requires quite a bit of electricity. Vacuum elevators, however, use only a little bit of energy when the car is raised and practically no energy when it is lowered — air does all of the work. Consider the impact a traditional residential elevator will have on your energy costs and factor that in to the lifetime price of the lift. Powering all of those weights and machines day in and day out will amount to massive energy expenditures.
Traditional Lifts are Less Safe
To be clear: Most home elevators are just as safe as their commercial counterparts in terms of fall protection. But there’s one area in which home elevators are far less safe, and that’s what happens if the lift fails in between floors. Being stuck in a home elevator means you’re at the mercy of your local company representative; if you have no way to call for help, the consequences could be dire (see this story). Vacuum elevators do not get stuck because in the event of a power failure they descend safely to the bottom floor on a cushion of air.