Overhead Storage System

I bought 3 of these, and after I checked out online, I had second thoughts and started to think about just building something like this on my own. But after it arrived and I installed one of them, that thought quickly left my mind.The whole item was packaged very well. Each item was tied down and there wasn't any rattling (no nicks or scratches either). All of the screws, bolts, and nuts were in a plastic package all labled with the corresponding letters in the instructions. May not seem like a big deal, but it's really helpful and saves a lot of time compared to companies that just send a hundred misc. nuts and bolts in a plastic baggy and you have to sort them all out.The quality of the parts were very good. There is a heavy coat of enamel paint that appears to be very scratc resistant- not so much for cosmetics, but for rust prevention in the long term. Nice long lag screws hold the brackets in place. For the 150 lbs capacity these have, the screws were overkill, but it really made me feel confident about the product and safety considerations given to the product. Everything lined up and fit as they were supposed to- nothing needed to be forced on.Assembly wasn't too bad- about 30 minutes per unit if you have a couple of drill/drivers and the right tools. I think the lag screws that go into the joists are 1/4" x 3", so if you're screwing these things down by hand, it will take a lot longer with an adjustable wrench (espcially since you'll be working on a ladder up in the air). I used my drill driver with a 7/16 nut driver and that saved a ton of time.The only reason that I give it a 4 star rating vs. a 5 star rating is because the instructions were mediocre and they use the same instructions for the big unit as they do for the small ones. On the instructions, the ones I had said to use nails that were included to install the brackets to the joists, but there were none, so I can only assume that these were for the larger model and weren't needed for this model.Despite the cost of these, the quality and build makes it easily worth the money. These are sturdy and are very usefull to store those awkward items in your garage that can't be shelved or hung. I'd recommend these in a second!

Bought 3 of these for my garage and like them so much that I bought another 3. However, like other reviews have said, you will need to know where your ceiling joists are in order to plan your layout and to be able to hang these. Luckily, even though there is drywall in my garage, it is not painted, so I was able to see where the screws to secure the drywall were anchored into the joists, and I just followed the leaders. I can see how people say that this can be wobbly if you're only installing one; however, by joining 2 or more together makes it pretty solid - also, I have mine against a wall.Installation Tips: Once you have found your joists, first time installation may yield not so great results. My installation of the 2nd set of 3 turned out better than my first. Again, the horizontal support rail will run parallel with your ceiling joists so plan accordingly. In addition, be sure to measure the 36" exactly between the vertical supports - this will be from the inside of the supports. For example, install the right vertical support first and then put the end of your tape measure on the inside of that support and measure out 36" and make a small line on the ceiling. At this line is where the inside of the left vertical support should line up. this will allow for the shelf (comes in 2 parts) to fit perfectly while keeping the vertical supports perfectly vertical. Also, if you're connecting more than 1 side-by-side, make sure that the lower half of the vertical support (each support consists of 2 pieces) is on the inside. You'll see what I mean once you install more than one. Be sure to zip tie the adjacent supports together to get that aforementioned, added stability. Getting the supports in the correct position are the foundation to a great installation. The rest of the installation of the horizontal support rails and the shelves are easy after you get the support per the above instructions.Time to Install: It took me about one hour to install one with a power drill and a manual ratchet, but then I discovered that I had a drill attachment for my sockets which reduced the time to install to about 40 minutes. Recommend that you drill pilot holes where the securing screws go (I think I used a 3/16" drill bit); don't use too wide a drill bit our you may have to change your layout another inch.Hope this helps.

Hyloft Jr is a quality product. I have installed about 10 of the full sized units and this is my first Jr. I just looked at the pictures on the website and I noticed that the first 2 pictures must be the old Jr. and the last few are the new one. The new Jr. is not built as solidly as the full sized. 3 things about it are inferior:1. Installing the top bracket is more difficult since instead of installing a small bracket you have the bracket and the rod which are one piece now. Getting the first screw in is hard with the rod that keeps floating around as you turn the screw.2. The square tube steal frame rods are not tubes but U rods instead, which make the whole loft less able to hold a load. They could greatly increase the rod strength by welding even a small steal plate in the center of the rod since this is the weakest point. Looks like the old design was a mini version of the full sized but this new model is not and will not handle half the load.3. The Jr when fully extended drops lower than the full sized by about an inch or so. This is annoying since I have a full sized and a Jr side by side and they do not line up. Seems like this would be an easy thing for the manufacturer to do and something they would have thought about since they seem to be a pretty detail oriented company.Overall a good product but not for really heavy loads its rated at 150 lbs which seems accurate. Its a shame since this could be made to handle twice the load, I bet the old Jr design could have done that. I am sure they changed it to save money but I would have paid $5 or $10 more just to have the heavy duty design. Since the old design was literally a mini full sized unit that was more what I was expecting. Maybe they could release a Heavy Duty version of the Jr. I would buy it.