160 is generally not a lotof weight, but then add to it the weight of
the chain and block and tackle, etc and you're over 200 maybe going
toward 250. The only concern I would have is that being a truss roof
it is engineered to support a load from the top, not necessarily from
the bottom. A truss is one of those things where whole is stronger
than the the sum of the parts. I would suggest trying to put the
support beam above the ceiling joists and to have the support beam span
as many beams as you can (at least 2-3 on each side). This will spread
the load more evenly among the beams. I also suggest you use a doube
2x4 or double 2x6 with boards on edge as your support as the wood is
much stronger on edge than flat. Its probably over-engineering, but
even a little flex will crack your sheetrock on the ceiling.

John 'Shaggy' Kolesar wrote:
On 5 Sep 2006 11:08:31 -0700, wrote:
To save my back when lifting half barrels on and off my pickup truck I
am trying to rig a hoist. I am planning to run a 2x6 across several
joists attached via lag bolts in my garage with a heavy duty eye hook
in the center. I will then use a 500lb capacity chain hoist connected
to the 2x6, connected to a custom bracket that fits between the handles
on the keg. The keg will only be suspended by the hook for a couple
minutes at most to give time to either pull the truck out when
unloading a keg, or pull the truck underneath the keg when loading.
In both cases it will be cranked up just enough to hover a couple
inches above the truck bed and then be lowered to the floor. The full
weight of a full 1/2 barrel is about 160lbs.

Does anyone see any reason to be concerned with the structure of the
home? The joists are the bottom of trusses in the attic that support
the roof.

I don't know, but I'm not a structural engineer. However, have you thought
about using an engine hoist? They're designed to handle much more weight
than just a keg, and are not that expensive. The only question would be
whether the engine hoist would be able to lift the keg high enough to
get it in the back of your truck.


John.