A scissor lift is the machine you rent when the work is straight up: lighting, sprinkler heads, ductwork, racking, signage, ceiling grid, painting a warehouse wall. The photo above is a Skyjack SJ4632 chained down on our float, headed out to a job in the west GTA. That machine, a 32 ft platform on a 46 in wide deck, is about the most-booked lift in the fleet, but it is not the right answer for every job. Here is how to pick.
Lift models are named by platform height, the height of the deck under your feet. Your working height is roughly 6 ft above that. So a 19 ft scissor puts your hands at about 25 ft, a 26 ft at about 32 ft, and so on. Measure the ceiling or the work, subtract 6, and rent the lowest platform that still gets you there. Lower machines are lighter, cheaper and fit through more doors.
Every scissor in the electric fleet comes in one of two widths. The 32 in units, the LGMG 1932E2 and 2632E2 and the Skyjack SJ3219 and SJ3226, roll through a standard 36 in door and into most passenger elevators, which is what makes them the pick for offices, retail and occupied buildings. The 46 in units, the LGMG 4626E2, 4632E2 and 4640E2 and the Skyjack SJ4626 and SJ4632, give you a bigger deck and more reach, and they need a double door, a roll-up or an open warehouse to get in. Tell us the narrowest point on the route from the truck to the work and we will send a machine that fits.
Electric scissors run on batteries, roll on non-marking tires and are quiet enough for a store that is open. They want a flat, hard floor: slab, polished concrete, finished warehouse deck. If the machine is going outside onto gravel, grass, a torn-up lot or a slab-on-grade site that is not finished yet, it needs a rough terrain scissor: 4WD, outriggers, a diesel or dual-fuel engine, and platform heights to 50 ft. If the work is up and over something, a parked line, a roof edge, a tree, that is a boom lift, and we wrote up scissor lift vs. boom lift for exactly that call.
Warehouses and distribution centres. Racking installs, sprinkler and lighting work, conveyor and dock door repairs along the industrial strips in Mississauga, Milton and Burlington. Usually the 26 and 32 ft machines.
Retail and commercial fit-outs. Ceiling grid, HVAC, signage, storefront work in plazas and malls, where the 19 and 26 ft narrow units are the ones that fit through the door.
Facility maintenance. Changing high-bay lights, painting, cleaning, camera installs. A 19 ft electric on a weekly rate is one of the cheapest things on our price list.
Trades on new builds. Electricians, sprinkler fitters, drywallers and glaziers running a scissor for the length of the job, which is where the monthly rate comes in.
Ontario requires elevating work platform training to operate any scissor lift, and most general contractors check for it at the gate. If your crew is trained, bring the cards. If not, tell us when you book and we will point you at a course before delivery day. Two other things worth knowing: an electric scissor weighs anywhere from about 3,000 lb for a 19 ft unit to over 7,000 lb for a 40 ft, so mezzanines, raised floors and older slabs need a look before the machine goes on them, and every unit has a platform capacity, typically 500 to 800 lb, which includes the people on it.
Scissors rent by the day, week or month, and the weekly rate is usually the better math once you need it three days or more. Delivery is by float from the yard on Speers Road in Oakville, quoted up front with the machine, with same-day and next-morning drops across Oakville, Burlington, Mississauga, Milton and Toronto. Every unit goes out annually certified and dealer-maintained. If you want a machine for longer than a season, ask about leasing.
Not sure which one? Tell us the ceiling height, the tightest door and what the floor is made of. That is enough for us to match a lift to the job. Request a quote and we will get back to you within the hour during yard hours.
Need a machine this week? Request a quote or call (905) 580-7368 and we will get the float moving.
Daily, weekly and monthly rates on a fleet that's inspected after every rental. Quotes back fast, with delivery across the GTA.