People who are interested in finding the right electric chain hoists that can work for them need to make sure that they do a thorough search for the different products that are available. It is important that you do your research and finds a good product that will last for a long enough time.

Finding the right host will ensure that you can find something that can work for you. You will need to look at the specifications of each model to make sure that it has the carrying capacity that you are looking for.

Below are some steps to help lead you to the correct type of electric chain hoists.

1. Is the hoist going to be in any special environments? If it is a special environment such as an explosive environment has the class, group, and division if applicable.

These are electrical specifications which will require special enclosures, but you may also want to consider mechanical items such as bronze wheels, stainless hook, stainless chain, etc. These are not required to meet the electrical specification but can create sparks.

2. What will the duty cycle of the hoist? How many motor starts will you be doing? Remember if it is a 2-speed hoist that you will have twice the motor starts.

Also of consideration is the location of the lift. That is will you be only lifting in one area of the chain or will your lifts all be different lengths. If a lift is all in the same location premature failure of the chain can happen. If the duty cycle is too severe, you may want to consider a wire rope hoist.

3. What type of hoist suspension do you need? If the hoist is going to be hung from a single point, you can consider a top hook hoist which will work nicely with a beam clamp. It can be moved when needed.

If you need travel along a monorail or across a bridge crane, you will want to either consider a plain push trolley or a motorised trolley. A plain push trolley is economical and normally not a problem with loads under 2 tonnes, but it can be harder to stop the load once you get it going and it will not brake and can drift easier than a motorised trolley.

4. Next, you need to look for the particular job you are doing with your electric chain hoists. Do you need precision such as setting down a delicate part or are you just doing regular maintenance or fabrication? If you part is expensive, delicate or takes precision placement then you will want to look at variable frequency control on the hoisting motion. If you just need a little precision then consider two speeds.

5. Depending on the horsepower of the hoist motor a hoist will be offered in single or three phase power. If it is a heavier application, you should use three phase power if it is available. Your miscellaneous components such as contactors and motor will run cooler and last longer.

6. If the hoist is running on a bridge or monorail, you will need to confirm the type of beam and size of the beam. You will need to know if it is a wide flange or I-beam and the flange width as well as depth. Most hoist manufacturers now offer a wheel that can run on a wide flange or tapered tread of and I-beam.