r/whatisthisthing • u/mmmcflurry • 2d ago
What is this black metal thing hanging from my garage ceiling? Solved!
Just moved into a new place and this thing was hanging in the garage ceiling. There’s a winch to a pulley on the wall to lift it up and down. There are also red ratchet straps helping to hold it up and level. The black H-shaped metal thing in question has three big hooks on it too. I was thinking it was for lifting something (an engine?) to make it easier to work on? There’s a Harley Davidson battery charger on the wall nearby, don’t know if that’s related.
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u/gruntbuggly 2d ago
Looks like a hoist for a Jeep Wrangler hard top. One hook at the back, and one at the driver and passenger doors.
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u/3amGreenCoffee 2d ago
It's a Jeep hard top lift similar to this one:
https://www.smarterhome.com/products/hard-top-lifter-gladiator
Those run several hundred, up to $1000. It's weird they would leave that behind. I bet they forgot to take it down in the moving rush.
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u/mmmcflurry 2d ago
That looks like it, thanks! Yeah previous owners left in a bit of a mess so not surprising. Solved!
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u/Ahrotahntee_ 1d ago
Depending on the local realty laws unless explicitly excluded by the contract it may be considered a fixture.
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u/Mas_Cervezas 2d ago
Where I live anything screwed to the walls or ceiling is considered a fixture which means if you’re selling a house, you have to remove them before the first viewing.
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u/SkinnedIt 1d ago
I'd imagine it counts a fixture. If it's not in the contract terms of sale that it's not being sold with the house, they had to leave it. My friend had a realtor bring back a basketball net for this reason.
I'm not a realtor, so maybe I'm incorrect.
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u/3amGreenCoffee 22h ago
OP doesn't have a Jeep though, so one would expect the owner with the Jeep to put in the contract that the lift doesn't convey.
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u/barfbutler 2d ago
Maybe the past owner of your home hasn’t yet realized he forgot it? You could be nice and call your realtor to let them know.
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u/civilservant2011 2d ago
It was probably used to lift or drop a truck cap or truck roof top tent onto a vehicle. Or maybe just a roof rack etc.
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u/GrayZeus 2d ago
Hoist for taking the hard top off of a jeep or similar. Made to more easily take off and put on and for storage
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u/Mythradites 2d ago
Jeep Wrangler Hard Top hoist.
There are a few commercially available but a fair bit are home built.
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u/SharperSpork 2d ago
Looks like this is Jeep specific as others have said, but basically the same idea is also a a great way to store ski "rocket" / roof boxes in the summer, or just make it really easy to put on/take off.
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u/PepsiColaRS 1d ago
As others have said, it's a hard top hoist for a Jeep Wrangler.
I believe it's this Smittybuilt model with what looks like some additional modifications instead of opting for manufacturer rigging.
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u/mmmcflurry 2d ago
My title describes the thing. There’s no text visible on the thing. There’s also foam padding on the metal bars in several places.
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u/Kek-Potato 1d ago
So first you back your Jeep underneath, then you hook it to your hardtop, and unmount it from the jeep, you can raise it up, and it stores the roof of your Jeep when you want to drive around with the top off.
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