Electric vs Non-Electric Scissor Lifts: A Comprehensive Comparison

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Scissor lifts are common for several construction projects ranging from HVAC work to electric work to painting, exterior modeling, roofing, and more. With their compact design, they are designed to fit into narrow spaces both indoors and outdoors.

For some projects, picking the right scissor lift is easy. For others, you might need to make more specific decisions about the type of machine you need. This could be the dimensions of the machine, platform capacity, or if it's electric or diesel-powered.

There are many factors that affect this decision including location, whether it's indoors or outdoors, charging infrastructure, or even emissions and noise regulations. Here, we'll cover the difference between electric and diesel-powered scissor lifts, when to pick between them, and how you can rent them through DOZR.

Overview of Electric Scissor Lifts

Electric scissor lifts have electric-powered engines that power the machine, rather than dual-fuel and diesel. These aerial work platforms do not require fuel, are quieter than their diesel-engine counterparts, and do not emit any fumes. For these reasons, they can also be referred to as indoor scissor lifts since they're perfect for those environments.

With non-marking tires, they're engineered to operate on finished surfaces like concrete and warehouse flooring. Common jobs for electric scissor lifts include warehouses, retail shops, conference and event setup, and production facilities. As they become more popular and emissions regulations continue to grow, more companies are making electric rough terrain models for outdoor work as well.

Pros of Electric Scissor Lifts

As mentioned, electric scissor lifts are designed for indoor projects, reduced noise levels, and less maintenance. Because of their electric power, they don't require the same air ventilation as diesel-powered scissor lifts. Indoor jobs are typically less demanding which means the battery will last longer as well.

Because of the growing environmental factors, as well as some projects requiring reduced noise levels, electric scissor lifts are becoming more common in indoor and outdoor projects.

From a maintenance perspective, electric engines have fewer components, making them easier to service and maintain, giving them more uptime and better performance and productivity. They also don't require any fluids which can save more and money as well.

Cons of Electric Scissor Lifts

Electric scissor lifts are not without their disadvantages either. As of right now, the range of electric scissor lifts is smaller than those that are diesel-powered. Electric models can not lift as high and typically have lower lifting capacities than their gas-powered counterparts. This can make it challenging to justify using them for some jobs.

The battery aspect also gives them a limited runtime and requires you to be on a job with a good amount of charging infrastructure. Although electric scissor lifts are designed to work a full day, if you forget to charge the machine or don't have access to charging, entire days of work can be lost.

While on non-electric scissor lifts you can fill the machine up with fuel, the same does not apply to scissor lifts. However, some scissor lifts can be used while charging which can help overcome this.

Overview of Non-Electric (Diesel) Scissor Lifts

Non-electric, or diesel scissor lifts, are essentially the exact opposite of electric models. Still narrow in design so they can fit easily in small spaces, these machines are louder, more powerful, have higher lifting capacities, and can handle outdoor terrains.

Designed also in rough-terrain models, diesel scissor lifts run on fuel, have great engines, and have 4x4 capacity, making it easy to operate on different terrains, unlike electric models. They also come in a wider range of height capacities making them better choices when looking to reach more extreme heights.

Pros of Diesel Scissor Lifts

As the general standard in the construction industry, diesel-powered machines have had their deserved time in the sun and are not going away anytime soon. The benefits of these machines, despite any potential downsides, are clear: increased runtime, more power and lifting capacity, and better performance on rough terrain.

Lift height and capacity will play a factor in what machine you rent

Also, diesel will keep getting cleaner and cleaner as emission standards and regulations and the quality of engines increases. Advancements are being made every day to ensure the construction industry produces less emissions and cleaning up diesel is part of that goal.

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Other pros of diesel engines include being able to refuel at any time, especially in rural areas or on new projects that don't have charging infrastructure. The outdoor, diesel-powered models also tend to be able to lift more and have bigger platforms, allowing more workers to get the job done. This also speeds up the process of lifting materials and equipment.

Lastly, sometimes it just makes organizing your fleet easier. If you have a ton of equipment on site that's all running on diesel, trying to cut costs by using an electric model won't really move the needle. It might be easier to just fuel up everything you need with one truck without having to remember to charge the equipment overnight.

Cons of Diesel Scissor Lifts

Again, the biggest cons of diesel scissor lifts are the positives that electric scissor lifts provide. Diesel engines can be loud and exhaust fumes that can be harmful to those around them. This makes them unusable in indoor spaces. They can also be much louder as their engines create more noise than that of electric models.

As for operating costs, while they cost less upfront than electric scissor lifts, they do cost more to maintain. With fuel costs as well as maintenance and general servicing like oil changes, the total cost of ownership of diesel scissor lifts is quite a bit higher.

Factors to Consider When Choosing Between Electric and Diesel Scissor Lifts

Now that we've discussed the pros and cons of both electric and non-electric scissor lifts, it's time to determine what factors you have at your job site. Every project will be slightly different and it's important to take everything into consideration.

For example, if you're working indoors, it's pretty clear that you probably will require an electric scissor lift. Indoor jobs rarely have the height requirements needed from diesel scissor lifts and electric scissor lifts can be more narrow, giving them a better chance of fitting through doors.

The pros and cons of electric and diesel scissor lifts

Sometimes it also depends on the regulations of the job at hand. For example, we interviewed a project manager working on a hospital redevelopment project and he had the unique challenge of only being able to use electric, non-emission machines. This was because the renovations they were doing were attached to the main hospital and they couldn't risk any infections to patients.

For outdoor projects, it may depend on the terrain of the job. If you're just expecting to work on concrete or cement in an urban area, an electric model could still be the ideal machine. However, if you're working on mud or rocky terrain on a pretty rural project, diesel-powered rough terrain models may be the best option.

It also may depend on the type of materials you're lifting and how many laborers you need to get the job done. As mentioned before, diesel-powered models are more powerful and can lift heavier capacities, making them an easy decision in certain circumstances.

Renting Electric and Diesel Scissor Lifts with DOZR

On DOZR's Marketplace, you can rent both electric and diesel scissor lifts, depending on the size you need and your preference. Able to select from a wide range of equipment rental companies and find competitive pricing, DOZR can help you find man lifts ranging from 12' to 50' and more.

Whether you need them for just a day or over an extended period of time, search DOZR's Marketplace for scissor lift rentals and other equipment.

Remember, it's important to pick the right equipment for the job and sometimes that won't be a scissor lift. You can refer to our scissor lift vs boom lift blog to determine what type of construction lift will work best for you.