Choosing The Right Forklift Type For Your Business

For businesses that use forklifts, the right type of forklift is an important decision. There are many different types to consider. Three of the most popular options are reach trucks, electric pallet jacks, and towables. Reach trucks are best for high ceilings because they have a very long telescopic boom. Electric pallets are best used in warehouses where there is consistent power available to recharge the battery. Towables are used when you need a little more power to move heavy objects that might be difficult or impossible with an electric pallet jack or reach truck. So how do you know which one will work best for your business? Here’s some advice to help you choose.

1. Think About Space and Limitations First

Reach trucks work best in areas where there is a lot of room on the floor and very high ceilings, but not so much on tight spaces with low ceilings. If your storage area has short height restrictions, reach trucks can be an excellent choice for moving items around. But if you have to lift things up as far as six feet or more into the air, reach trucks aren’t going to do it for you. You’ll need something that can rise higher than that, like a towable forklift. Towables are ideal when you’re working with heavy loads that would require lots of space to be moved by other types of forklifts. Also, consider your pricing limitations. You don’t need to buy anything new. The forklift industry experts at https://used-forklifts.net say that buying used forklifts can be a better option for you, especially if they are still in peak condition. It is a cost-effective option for those businesses that need a quality forklift but can’t afford a new one.

2. Look At the Jobs You Will Be Doing Regularly

Electric pallet jacks are perfect when you know the forklift will stay in one place for most of its workday like when it’s used to load and unload trucks or move items from storage to shipping. Reach trucks are great for picking up objects that are higher than six feet off the ground, but they’re not very good at moving things on the ground next to them because their forks don’t slide side-to-side like regular pallets forks do. So if you only need your pallet jack for short distances next to itself, then electric is definitely what you want. Towables offer more versatility in where they can actually go-they can push loads along with them, but they are also good for stacking things when your space doesn’t need to be moved.

3. Consider The Power Necessary For the Job

Electric forklifts are best when you have access to power all day long where the forklift will be working because they don’t have internal combustion engines that require fuel or regular maintenance like tables do. But if you work in a place where you only have short periods of time throughout the day with power, this might not be an ideal option for you because recharging the battery is time-consuming and takes away from what your electric forklifts could otherwise be doing during that time. Reach trucks are another thing entirely-they are incredibly convenient because whether there’s power available or not, they can do their job all day. However, if you work in places where the forklift needs to stay out of sight or your place is very tight on space, reach trucks can’t get into areas that other options like tables and electric pallet jacks can get into.

4. See What You Need to Move and How Heavy It Is

If you work with objects that are extremely heavy, towables will probably be the best choice because they use a diesel engine to power them which provides more strength than an electric pallet jack or reach truck can offer. Electric jacks and reach trucks are perfect for lighter loads where speed is what’s needed most, but if your needs include moving very heavy things like steel beams or construction equipment, then a towable forklift would be ideal since it can handle much heavier weights than either of those other options.

The best thing to do when you’re choosing between different types of forklifts is to consider what kind of jobs need to get done regularly. Once you know how much weight is going to be placed on the forklift and where it goes most of the time, you can definitely narrow down your search. It’s definitely best to think about all of these things before purchase so that you don’t waste money getting something that will not get used as much as it could.