Home Lift Buying Guide: Choosing a Lift for Your Bungalow
Planning a home lift for your bungalow? Learn about pit, headroom, shaft options, lift types, IS 17900, power backup and finishes before you buy.
- Measure pit depth, headroom and shaft space first; they decide which home lift fits.
- MRL traction suits most new bungalows; hydraulic suits low rise with shallow pits.
- Ask how the lift meets IS 17900, mandatory for new installations since December 2025.
- An Automatic Rescue Device is essential wherever power cuts are common.
A home lift is a small passenger lift designed for a private house, bungalow or duplex. To choose the right one, start with your building: the space for the shaft, the pit depth below the lowest floor and the headroom above the top floor decide which types of bungalow lift will fit. After that, choose the drive, safety features and finish that suit your family and budget.
More families in Patna, Sasaram, Varanasi and across Bihar and Eastern UP are adding lifts to new and existing homes, often for elderly parents or to make upper floors easier to use. This guide walks you through each decision in plain language.
Why Install a Home Lift?
- Ageing in place: elderly parents can use every floor without climbing stairs.
- Accessibility: easier movement for anyone using a wheelchair or walker, or recovering from surgery.
- Everyday convenience: moving shopping, luggage and heavy items between floors.
- Better use of upper floors: rooms on the second or third floor become practical to live in.
- Property value: a well-planned lift makes a multi-storey home more attractive to future buyers.
Step 1: Check Pit, Headroom and Shaft Space
Before you look at brochures, ask a lift engineer to survey your home. Three measurements decide almost everything.
Pit
The pit is the space below the lowest landing. Conventional traction lifts usually need a deeper pit, while many home lift designs are made to work with a shallow pit. In an existing house, digging a deep pit can be difficult, so this measurement often decides the lift type. The pit must be dry and waterproofed, which matters in low-lying areas during the monsoon.
Headroom
Headroom (also called overhead) is the clear height from the top floor level to the underside of the roof slab of the shaft. It must leave room for the car and equipment. If your top floor has a low roof, tell the engineer early.
Shaft options
- RCC or brick shaft: built with the house. Best when you plan the lift during construction.
- Steel structure shaft: a self-supporting frame, often clad with glass or panels. Useful when adding a lift to an existing home, in a courtyard, stairwell or outside wall.
- Glass shaft: looks open and modern, but costs more and needs careful cleaning.
Step 2: Choose the Right Home Lift Type
Most home lifts in India fall into three groups. The best choice depends on your building, not on which type is fashionable.
| Feature | Hydraulic | Traction with machine room | MRL traction |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it moves | Oil-driven piston or cylinder pushes the car | Steel ropes or belts over a machine above the shaft | Compact machine mounted inside the shaft |
| Machine room | Small pump unit, usually near the shaft | Yes, above the shaft | No |
| Pit requirement | Usually shallow | Usually deeper | Depends on model; often moderate |
| Best for | Low-rise homes, two to three stops | Taller homes where a machine room is easy to build | Most new bungalows and duplexes |
| Ride and energy | Smooth; uses more power on the way up | Smooth with a V3F drive | Smooth and efficient with a V3F drive and gearless machine |
| Things to watch | Oil checks and possible leaks; limited travel height | Extra civil work and space for the machine room | Maintenance access is inside the shaft |
For a detailed comparison of the two main drive systems, read hydraulic vs traction elevators. If you are weighing up a machine room, our guide to MRL vs machine-room elevators covers the trade-offs.
Step 3: Insist on Safety and Standards (IS 17900)
A home lift carries your family every day, so safety must come first. According to BIS, IS 17900, the Indian lift safety standard harmonised with EN 81-20 and EN 81-50, became mandatory for new installations from 22 December 2025. It replaces older codes, including IS 15259, which earlier covered home lifts. The new standard puts strong emphasis on:
- UCMP (unintended car movement protection), which stops the car if it moves away from a floor with the doors open.
- ACOP (ascending car overspeed protection), which prevents the car from moving upward too fast.
- ARD (automatic rescue device), which brings the car to a floor and opens the doors when power fails.
Ask your supplier in writing how the lift complies, and confirm the current rules with BIS or your local authority. Also look for these everyday safety features:
- Light curtain or door sensor that stops doors closing on a person
- Overload sensor with alarm or voice prompt
- Intercom and emergency alarm button inside the car
- Emergency light in the cabin
- Child-safe landing doors that open only when the car is at that floor
Step 4: Plan Power Supply and Backup
Power cuts are still common in many parts of Bihar and Eastern UP. A lift stuck between floors with an elderly person inside is the situation every family wants to avoid.
- ARD: treat it as essential, not optional.
- Dedicated supply: a separate circuit with proper earthing and protection, as specified by the lift supplier.
- Generator or inverter: if you want to use the lift during outages, size the backup for the lift's load. Discuss this with the lift engineer, not just the electrician.
- V3F drive: reduces starting current and energy use, which helps when backup capacity is limited.
Step 5: Choose Size, Doors and Finishes
Car size and capacity
Think about who will use the lift. If a wheelchair user, a walker or a caregiver must fit, choose a larger car. A slightly bigger car now is cheaper than rebuilding later.
Doors
- Automatic sliding doors: easiest for elderly users and wheelchairs.
- Manual swing doors: save space and cost, but need effort to open.
Cabin finishes
- Stainless steel hairline: durable and easy to clean.
- Mirror or gold-tone steel: premium look, shows fingerprints.
- Glass panels: open feel, higher cost.
- Wood-look or laminated panels: warm finish to match home interiors.
Finish choices are one of the biggest swings in cost. See our lift price in India guide for how each choice affects the budget.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
We see the same problems again and again when families plan a home lift late or in a hurry. Avoid these and you will save time, money and stress.
- Planning the lift after the structure is complete. Leaving a shaft space and pit during construction is far cheaper than cutting slabs later.
- Choosing the smallest car to save money. If a wheelchair or caregiver cannot fit, the lift fails its main purpose.
- Ignoring the pit. A pit that collects water in the monsoon damages equipment. Waterproof it properly.
- Skipping ARD. Without it, a power cut can leave someone trapped between floors.
- Comparing only the total price. One quote may include automatic doors, a steel structure and ARD, while another does not.
- Forgetting maintenance. Ask about the service team, response time and AMC cost before you buy, not after.
A short conversation with a lift engineer at the planning stage prevents almost all of these.
Home Lift Buying Checklist
- Book a site survey to measure shaft, pit and headroom.
- Decide the number of stops and who will use the lift.
- Choose the lift type that fits your building.
- Get written confirmation of IS 17900 compliance and the full safety list.
- Plan the electrical supply, ARD and power backup.
- Select car size, doors and finish.
- Compare line-item quotes, warranty terms and AMC cost after warranty.
- Confirm where the nearest service team is and how fast they respond.
Why Choose Eldeal Engineers for Your Bungalow Lift
Eldeal Engineers supplies, installs and maintains home lifts across Bihar, Eastern UP and Delhi NCR, with offices in Sasaram, Patna, Varanasi and Bhagalpur. Our lifts use V3F drives and come with ARD, overload sensor with voice prompt, intercom, emergency light and door protection. We inspect every stage of installation and provide 24/7 support, so help is close when you need it.
Book a Free Home Survey
Every home is different, and the right lift starts with the right measurements. Book a free site survey and our engineer will check your pit, headroom and shaft space, suggest suitable options and give you a clear quote. Call or WhatsApp +91 84489 44342 or email info@eldealengineers.com.
