A car floor jack is a must have if you are a car enthusiast or a professional mechanic. A car floor jack is definitely a must have tool both in your garage or the trunk of your car. Imagine having a flat tire during a family trip and you don’t have any mechanic shops nearby, this is where having a car jack in your trunk can be a life saver. Changing a flat tire requires you to definitely have this tool in your car without which it is almost impossible. Let us start with first discussing what actually a car jack is.
What is a Car Jack?
A carjack is a mechanical device used as a lifter to lift heavy loads or to apply great force. A mechanical jack works through a screw thread for lifting heavy equipment. While a hydraulic jack uses hydraulic power. Following are the types of 2 to 3ton of car floor jacks available in the market if you plan to buy one for yourself:
- Hydraulic Floor Jack : This comes with a hydraulic cylinder, just slide it under your car and pump a long handle to lift your car.
- Bottle Jack : This one is used to lift around fifty tons of load its single piston raises the load when you pump its arm.
- Scissor Jack : This one is commonly used for cars, they are lightweight and don’t have a lot of lifting capacity but are ideal for road side car repairs.
How to Safely Use a Car Jack:
As the topic of our article suggests ‘safety’ should be the number one priority at all times while using this tool because cars are quiet heavy objects and can be very dangerous if not handled with extreme caution. Below is a step by step guide on how to use a car jack lifter safely:
- Your car should be properly parked in a safe flat surfaced spot. Also make sure your car floor jack is in proper working condition and doesn’t have any sort of leakages or broken ends.
- Next position the saddle of your car jack under that area of your car which needs to be lifted above the ground which is usually the Crossmember . This is the most important step of all, as positioning of car jack ensures safety of both the person changing the tire and the vehicle itself so it doesn’t accidently fall back. The lifting points of your car are also mentioned in your car’s manual if you have difficulty in identifying them.
- Next push downward on the jack’s lever to lift the saddle upward so that it contacts with the cars lifting point. As the saddle is nearly touching the vehicle adjust it once again to confirm it is accurately placed below the lifting point, continue pushing downward on the lever to lift the car upward.
- Lift the car up until your desired height so that you can safely slide below if required. Put the jack stand below so that they take the weight of your vehicle when you lower it on them. Once the stands fully take the weight of the car remove the jack completely.
- When you are done working under your car or changing your tire, you are ready to remove the stands. Firstly clear your working area and make sure there is no one under the car.
- Now again repeat the step 3 to position the jack under your car once the weight of your car is on the jack, remove the stand. Gently push the lever of the jack stand up and down to lower your car, don’t rush this step as this can damage your car.
- Once your car touches the ground, safely remove the jack and you are done.
Precautions while using Car Jack
- Always use jack stands if you intend to work under your car, to avoid the danger of getting crushed.
- Place blocks behind the car’s wheels before lifting it to keep it from rolling.
- Always park your car on a safe spot with leveled and clear ground before lifting it to change your tire.
- Make sure your parking brakes are engaged before jacking up the vehicle.