How Many Stories Can A Residential Elevator Travel?



Apex Wheelchair LiftsCongratulations on your decision to purchase an in home elevator. Residential elevators are great for all members of your family, whether or not they require assistance climbing the stairs or not. Your guests will get a kick out of it, and great grandma will thank you for installing something that can help her access all the floors in your home. That being said, you may be wondering, "How many floors can a residential elevator service?"


Keep reading to familiarize yourself with residential elevator restrictions.



How Many Stories – So, you want to know how many stories your residential elevator will service; well, to put it simply, residential elevators are not allowed to travel, in total, more than 50 feet. Since the average home has 10 foot ceilings, that's roughly five stories. How many residential homes are more than five stories tall? Not many, so most of you will find that this restriction won't affect your decision to install a residential elevator. However, we're sure there are some of you who have more than five stories; what are your options?

Commercial option – The reason residential elevators are limited to five stories is most five-plus story buildings are intended for commercial use. If you have a home that has more than five stories, you can still install an elevator; however, it might have to be a commercial elevator. Although this option is more expensive, it will allow you to install an elevator that will service all the floors in your home uninterrupted. If you don't like the commercial solution, keep reading to discover other options.

Stair Lift or Wheelchair Lift – If you're installing a residential elevator because you or another family can no longer climb the stairs, why not consider installing a wheelchair or stair lift to service the extra floors? Your elevator can service floors one through five and then the wheelchair lift can connect you to the rest. Or, install the wheelchair or stair lift at the bottom levels and use the elevator to connect the top ones. Stair lifts and wheelchair lifts are less expensive, so if you're looking for an economical option, this could be it.

Two is Better than One – If you don't like either one of the previous options, why not install two residential elevators? Just have the second elevator pick up where the previous one stopped. This option will only work if you have a house with more than six or seven floors. Since this seems unlikely, perhaps your best bet is to go with the commercial option.


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