The typical house in the Capital Region and the Hudson Valley has two floors, with the bedrooms upstairs. If you want an elevator that links those two levels, you have three realistic options, and one of them almost certainly fits your home.
Option 1: a shaftless elevator
Designed specifically for two floors, this elevator travels through an opening cut in the ceiling of one room into the room above. It needs no shaft, no pit and no machine room.
- Best for: finished homes where disruption must be kept to a minimum
- Space: a corner of a living room below a bedroom is a typical location
- Keep in mind: a smaller cab, and two stops only
Option 2: a pneumatic elevator
A freestanding clear tube that moves the cab on air pressure. It also needs no pit or machine room.
- Best for: open-plan homes and anyone who likes the look
- Space: a round footprint that suits a stairwell or a corner
- Keep in mind: it is always on display, and it can be extended to a third stop if needed
Option 3: a traditional elevator
A cab running in an enclosed hoistway behind ordinary-looking doors.
- Best for: the largest cab, a wheelchair with a companion, and a concealed installation
- Space: two closets, one above the other, are often converted
- Keep in mind: the most building work of the three
Finding the spot
Walk through the house and look for places where upstairs and downstairs line up: stacked closets, a hall above a hall, a bedroom over the dining room. An addition on an outside wall is another route when nothing lines up inside.
What about the basement?
If you also want to reach a basement or an attic, tell your installer at the start. That makes it a three-stop project and rules out a shaftless model.
See what fits
Nationwide Lifts of New York surveys homes around Albany, Glens Falls and Poughkeepsie and shows you which options work. Call 888-323-8755.