I am on a tight budget and need to improve a couple of jack stands. I have a good jack and need to change the oil and filter on my 2009 Corolla. I read the great info on how to change the filter but now know I will need to elevate the vehicle.

How to I make or create a safe jack stand?

 

theresapea...either you are getting ready to start spamming..or maybe you just don't know terminology.

You have a good jack? Well perfectly adequate stands can be had at any pepboys or walmart. Maybe $25.

You may think you have a jack..but you shouldn't use the vehicle jack (for flats) to do this kind of work.

You can get a jack and stands for $50 at walmart.

 

they cost $25. dollars each.....I have a floor jack not the one that comes with car......I think I read something about making your own jack stands with 2 x 6's......

 

I wouldn't trust a jack stand made out of wood

As suggested, a pair of jack stands isn't all that expensive - and they will last a long time. I bought my son a set of cheap 2 ton stands at tractor supply a couple of yrs ago for $5 each. Check around and I'm sure you can get 2 for less than $20.... and good ones most anywhere under $30

You might could fashion some type of block/stopper to use with your floor jack - something that would stop it at the desired height and wouldn't let it lower. I've seen a few jacks advertised that had that feature built in.

 

One word of warning do not use light or medium duty concreter blocks. Those ot the ones with holes in them. Those can easily split from the weight of the car. I will admit I have used the heavy duty concrete blocks that or solid and have no holes. I won't endorse that idea though. I will say also from personal experience never use blocks from the garden section. Even the solid one ssplit easily.

 

Get a pair of ramps; so much easier and safer for work such as oil changes.

 

Being that I restore muscle cars and do 99% of the work on my daily drivers I'll tell you what I've got. Some expensive but the inexpensive for light duty stuff is 4 stands from Big Lots that I've had for close to 20 years and still going strong for around $20 bucks a pair. Also a set of ramps I picked up at a garage sale for $5 bucks.

 

And another word of warning dont use any of this stuff on dirt.

 

Ya, if you must work on dirt - use plywood or something solid enough under the stands to disperse the load. That way they won't sink into the ground

 

do a search on craigslist, you should be able to find some there

 

One oil change hint. Get a big piece of cardboard to put under the car. It makes it so much easier to glide on the driveway and it will keep any leaks from screwing up the pavement.

I don't use jackstands or ramps for oil changes myself. I have a Truck/SUV floor jack good for 6,000 pounds paid $50 at Adavance for it, to jack up my Jetta just enough. That wheel is still on the ground, I just compress the strut as it were.

 

NOP yer gonna catch it now.....

I used only a jack to hold a car...once. Luckily I escaped with just a small 6" scar on my chest from a muffler clamp as I was able to slide out. If I had been on a creeper..I probably wouldn't be typing right now..let alone breathing.

 

Only a fool would get under a car supported by just a jack. I could tell you alot of stories but you already know them. Look at it this way, NOBODY is in a bigger hurry than a NASCAR pit crew and they put a stand under the car each time a crew man has to go under, if these guys have the time so do you!!

 

I did have a jack collapse on me once. I was dropping the gas tank on a 90 Dakota pickup. Shouldn't have put 2x6's under the floor jack for extra height. It fell, but luckily the rear axle stopped 6 inches above my chest. Needed a cigarette after that (1year anniversary of quitting 7/23). That jack was one of the $20 floor jacks.

 

Hey..I was 16...and yep pretty much a fool...lol

 

I knew a guy who lost his life under a 71 Buick Riviera because he used a make shift jack.

As TowGuy says and I 2nd it........get ramps.......their easy, safe and cheap. I use them all of the time for my oil changes.

Never trust a hydraulic jack or scissor jack and especialy a bumper jack......they can fail without warning and kill you.

When using any jack allways sure up your car with a set of jack stands.

With ramps you don't need jack stands if you're just changing your oil.
If you're doing a brake job you'll need jack stands.

Safety First.

 

Maybe what they meant was something more like this: You lay down say a 3' 2x6 in front of the front wheels, and then stack on it a 2' one, then a 1' one - and then drive up on the now 4 1/2 inch thick-worth of 2x6's. Or 2x8's or 10's even. Or combination with widest being at bottom, obviously. I do that sort of thing. I trust wood. No welds to break, if you think you might be jinxed. Definitely not concrete blocks. I also then shore up under the frame with boards also. I have also just jacked up the car and put wood blocking under it. I have a fine collection of chunks of 1 x's, 2x's and 4x6's.

 

A hardwood stump like the kind you use for chopping wood on should work if it isn't too big.

 

or you could be turning the car into a giant wood splitter

 

I thought of that too, but did not want to burst NOP's bubble. The grain, on edge, would not be as good as an idea - for possible reason quoted above - as boards lying flat, with the grain running with the board. And then, if you throw more lumber under the frame cross wise, that is even double security.

 

True story when I was young and working on my 1974 malibu classic I used some jack stands on some hot asphalt in my driveway. While I was under there laying on a piece of cardboard I noticed one of the legs of the stands moving into the driveway I got my young butt out from under that car ASAP just as it came crashing down. Damage was slight with a bent backing plate on the front brakes and some road rash to my arms because of my quick reflexes.
Eitherway I still use jack stands but now I chock my back wheels as well as use the tires I have removed under the car just as backup.
You just cant be to safe.

 

Absolutely - since I think we all realize that being squashed to death quickly,( or worse -slowly) would not be the ideal way to go.

 

That's what i have. I used 2 by 12s screwed together. Two of them will give you someting solid to drive on give you clearance fro your oil change. Three or four of them screwed together will give you more room, but may hit the bumper of the car. I believe this is a perfectly safe setup.

When I jack the car up and take off a wheel, I've always used sections of 12" logs stood on end to prop under the frame.

 

Everyone thought I was nuts for removing a tire , and sliding it under the frame while I was working with that wheel...

While I do realize that "Schmidt Happens" , even with the Best of equipment, If the 40 bucks spent on safety is such a hardship......Then you dont belong near a car....Are you still using those 2.99$ Chinese vise grips to remove your lug nuts?????

 

I use tires with the wheels still on and take up the bit of space withe 2 by 8s
Worked in the scrap yard for years and in gravel and dirt the cars could not go anywhere. There is common sense to be used though.
I still use tires in the shop. But I got a large selection to choose from. I dont know when I last used jack stands. I dont know where they are. And after feeling the security of well placed tires I would not trust jack stands. There is so much room for error.
The down part is that tires do take more space and you have to work around them.

 

I've never heard of so many unorthodox a dangerous ways to lift a car while you work under it. You people are nuts and must have a death wish.......good grief!

Are your life insurance policies up to date?

 

True Story ... The "Real" Vice Grips have been made in Nebraska for tons of years. Great tool for certain things. Due to the cheapo Chinese competition the plant closed in the past year and all jobs are gone......

..... the new Vice Grips will be made in China!

 

I worked with Mercedes Benz for 40 years, using an owners 500 dollar wheel as a jack stand would get you fired and maybe beat up by the foreman on the way out. When I was a kid of maybe 16 I had a 59 Chevy fall when I was under and to the side of it, it pinned me against the wall for perhaps an hour until my dad came out and found me. It pressed against my chest just enough to allow very shallow breathing and no option of even yelling.I took that as a warning and have used only the most secure methods to hold cars up since. You can learn from my experience or maybe you'll have one of your own.
Bill

 

I did mean within reason, and plain old steel wheels, in the driveway...And I never rested the car on them, Just sort of used them as emergency "Dropper Stoppers"....Me personally, I would gladly buy the owner a new wheel, instead of confronting the mechanics wife and kids, while holding the plastic bag that contains their DAD. But I do Hear what youre saying...

Things can go just as badly even with top of the line equipment. You cant Eliminate the risks, but blatant short cuts are just inviting disaster.

 

LOL good advice. Believe me I know
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[QUI think it's unwise to offer suggestions to those with little experience in procedures than can be dangerous. Folks that read these forums are looking for an easier or less costly way to get a problem solved and I understand that clearly but I lean towards safety being of the highest priority. As a technical instructor which anyone giving advice here we need to offer the best advice and people will alter it to satisfy there own needs. Brakes, steering and shop safety cant be shortcut. Just my feelings and no more.
BillOTE=Unclediezel;1608794]


I did mean within reason, and plain old steel wheels, in the driveway...And I never rested the car on them, Just sort of used them as emergency "Dropper Stoppers"....Me personally, I would gladly buy the owner a new wheel, instead of confronting the mechanics wife and kids, while holding the plastic bag that contains their DAD. But I do Hear what youre saying...

Things can go just as badly even with top of the line equipment. You cant Eliminate the risks, but blatant short cuts are just inviting disaster.[/QUOTE]