Lots of “second hand elevator” transactions

“Our company specializes in purchasing used elevators in buildings, offices, commercial companies and old homelift. We have a team of experienced professionals who directly visit the site to survey, quote in detail and disassemble the elevator for you… “Depending on each type of elevator, current condition, as well as recycling capacity, reuse, installation location, dismantling ability that we will quote accurately”

“Every year we trade and exchange hundreds of elevator sets with many different models, designs and brands on the market, so we have the necessary capacity to meet the liquidation, buy old elevators”.

“When you need to liquidate, sell old elevators to replace new elevators, reduce repair costs, please contact us for a quote”…

Advertisements like these are not hard to find on the internet. It is an invitation from elevator companies, individuals, even those who have nothing to do with elevators. On the market, there are many units that accept and buy back “old” elevators.

Users are dizzy with countless information on buying and selling old elevators

In fact, most home elevators take a long time to degrade if the frequency of use is low, maintained, repaired, and inspected in the right process and on time. Therefore, most of the liquidated elevators come from offices, apartments, public places, etc. Most of them have been seriously degraded, even damaged many parts and spare parts from firm are not available.

An “old merchant” who asked to remain anonymous shares, trades, buys and sells, and exchanges old elevators with risks, so “not everyone does this!”. He said that when buying old elevators, they will be dismantled as components and classified. The non-reusable type will be converted to “junk”, and the part that can still be used will be fitted to simple hoists. But there are also many old elevators that have been refurbished and sold to people in need.

But why do so many people still like to buy old elevators?

If there is demand, there will be supply. When asked, many people who bought used elevators answered that it was “affordable”. This will help save buyers up to half, even 2/3 of what it takes to buy a new elevator. In addition, the trust in big brands, “although old, still works” makes many buyers still choose this type of product. Not only that, the small elevator companies, elevator repairmen also have a need to buy to take advantage of components and equipment installed for customers. Therefore, the closed forums for buying and selling elevators are still very active with all kinds of things.

Once, when the mini-apartment flourished and the investor after selling and handing over was out of responsibility, the old elevator was used quite a lot. It leaves potential risks to the users.

Old reusable elevator installed in mini apartment in Trung Van ward,

Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi had an accident

The risk of “spending money on a quack doctor and only get worse “!

Many customers have the desire to use the elevator but financial conditions do not allow it. And they chose a less expensive solution, which is to install and use an old elevator.

Many people compare, buying a used elevator as well as buying a “second hand” car because these two vehicles in terms of transportation features and basic safety devices are the same. They must all comply with safety regulations and be regularly inspected.

However, people in the profession will know that when old elevators are reused, they will carry many safety risks. Especially when they are used to carry passenger.

Elevator used for a long time will have two types of wear and tear. One is tangible wear and tear, which is wear and tear caused by use. The second is invisible wear and tear, which is technological obsolescence over time.

When used for too long, over 10 years, the elevator will have potential safety risks from traction machine, wire rope, brake device, overload warning, etc. There have been many accidents from degradation, damage the aforementioned equipment.

Important equipment such as traction machine, pulleys, electrical cabinets, etc. are too old to be reused, which will pose a potential risk of unsafety.

That is not to mention whether the old elevator size is suitable for the buyer’s shaft area or not. And of course, it’s not simply “cash on delivery”.

What do experts say?

The INCOSAF expert shared that the old elevator can be used if the equipment components are assessed to be in good condition. At the same time, the process of dismantling and preserving the elevator must follow the correct procedure, then it can be moved to another place and reassembled according to the original design. But that requires technical staff to be very skilled and experienced in dismantling and installing. But this is hard!

The most common situation is that the elevator is not in sync with the original due to damaged parts due to disassembly and assembly, and the parts are mixed up in the original position, the parts are not packed for storage and transportation according to the manufacturer’s specifications.

Specifically, the wire rope. After removing and reinstalling, the tension of the wire rope will not be the same, so it is likely to cause wear, breakage, etc. Or the safety switches installed in the wrong position (confusion) do not work as designed, the components do not work as designed. Details of parts to be replaced are not processed, detailed alignment specifications do not have manufacturer’s documentation for comparison, etc.

There are currently no regulations prohibiting the replacement of the control system, transmission system, etc. of any elevator, but the reality shows that such a replacement or renovation requires a design and a task-implementing unit have sufficient capacity to ensure system safety.

In fact, there are no regulations prohibiting the use of old elevators. Just at the time of testing, whether the criteria are met or not. If passed, continue to be allowed to use as usual.

However, the INCOSAF expert noted that in order to qualify for inspection, the manufacturer’s manufacturing records must be complete, because elevators are batch-manufactured goods, components, and equipment type that can be interchanged from one to another or from one location to another. But the principle is that if the records are not reproducible, the elevator is not eligible for testing. This makes it very difficult to verify old elevators.

But if the car is not inspected on the street, there will be a competent force to sanction, seize or even confiscate the vehicle. As for the old elevator located in the house, who, what force checks and how to punish is an extremely difficult problem that the authorities have not yet had a specific answer!

How should the old elevator be handled?

Although there is no specified lifespan, experts recommend that elevators are generally good for about 15 to 20 years, depending on the quality of the original equipment along with the quality of maintenance and repair services during use time. So after the above time, what needs to be done?

People in the profession share 2 suitable options, which are both creating and upgrading old elevators or dismantling and installing new elevators.

Renovating, upgrading and modernizing elevators

This is the most economical solution, making the most of the good old elevator equipment and components. But for maximum efficiency, users should find a reputable unit with experience in the field of equipment supply and old elevator renovation.

It is very important to evaluate the remaining quality of the old elevator. It will determine the exact amount of investment for the renovation or purchase of a new elevator. Usually, if the elevator is only about 30% of its use value, people will replace the elevator with a new one rather than renovate the old one.

Taking the elevator is cheap, sometimes doesn’t worth the cost

Before making a decision to upgrade or replace the elevator, it is necessary to conduct a survey to re-evaluate the entire elevator to see what can still be reused, what equipment needs to be replaced, what parts can be repaired or renewed. Often some important equipment can be reused. These are traction machine, guide rails, mechanical frames (some parts may need to be replaced, new paint), elevator cabins and doors, counterweights, some control devices such as inverters, circuit boards. …

The repair and upgrade may also include the integration of additional safety features (if possible), technology upgrades (new generation traction machine, control cabinets …) at a price that is not cheap.

Completely new

If the cost between renovating and installing a new elevator is not too much different, then a new elevator should be considered. This is probably the simplest solution but will give users peace of mind in the long run.

Elevator experts also recommend that old or poor quality elevator components and equipment can be purchased from domestic sources or  from abroad to Vietnam to be “built” into a elevator with a selling price like a new elevator. If customers are not alert enough, they will most likely have to “pay real money for fake elevators” with unpredictable risks.

Buy second hand or install a new elevator? Power depends entirely on the knowledge of the consumer!