https://mselevator.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Traditional-Elevator-312-N-Forsyeth-2.jpg 1250 1250 Abstrakt Marketing /wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Morning-Star-Elevator-Logo-Color.png Abstrakt Marketing2026-07-01 12:43:212026-07-01 12:43:33Aging in Place With a Home Elevator in ColoradoBring the Elevator Contractor In at Schematic Design
Elevator planning for new construction needs to happen at schematic design. By the time a project reaches structural rough-in, the decisions that determine whether an elevator installs cleanly, like shaft placement, floor-to-floor height, and electrical panel location, have already been made. Getting these right costs nothing when they’re addressed on paper. Getting them wrong after the slab is poured is a different and much more expensive conversation.
An elevator contractor site visit during design development catches coordination issues before they become RFIs. Builders who bring an elevator contractor in at this stage close out projects cleaner, schedule inspections without scrambling, and avoid the change orders that erode margin on an otherwise well-run job.
Hoistway Dimensions and Pit Requirements by System Type
Residential elevator rough-in requirements vary by drive system, and specifying the wrong rough opening is one of the most common and costly mistakes on custom home projects. The numbers below represent standard configurations. Confirm final dimensions with Morning Star during design development, as manufacturer tolerances and cab sizing selections affect minimums.
Hydraulic Elevators
Hydraulic systems are the most widely specified residential elevator in Colorado custom home construction. Standard hoistway rough opening runs 60″ x 60″ for a standard cab, with 54″ x 54″ available for compact residential configurations. Pit depth ranges from 18″ to 24″ depending on travel speed and load rating, and must be formed before the slab is poured.
Overhead clearance runs 112″ to 136″ above the top landing finished floor. A machine room of 50 to 80 square feet is required adjacent to or below the hoistway and must be accessible, ventilated, and finished before inspection.
MRL Traction Elevators
Machine-room-less traction systems eliminate the dedicated machine room by integrating drive equipment overhead in the hoistway. Rough opening typically runs 60″ x 72″ for a standard residential cab. Pit depth ranges from 24″ to 36″, and overhead clearance requirements run 120″ to 144″ above the top landing floor.
Because there is no machine room, the overhead structure must be designed to carry the drive assembly load, a coordination item that needs to be on the structural engineer’s desk at design development, not flagged during framing.
Shaftless and Pneumatic Systems
Shaftless elevators have the lowest rough-in demand of the three system types and are the most forgiving for projects where shaft placement is constrained. These self-contained units require only a floor opening between levels, typically 36″ x 36″ to 52″ x 52″ depending on cab size, with no pit excavation and no machine room. Overhead clearance requirements run 96″ to 102″ above the top landing floor.
Electrical Rough-In Requirements
Electrical coordination is the item most frequently missing from the first MEP set on projects that include a residential elevator. Share these requirements with the electrical engineer at the first coordination meeting.
- Hydraulic systems require a dedicated 208 to 240V single-phase or three-phase circuit, 30 to 60 amps depending on motor size, with a separate disconnect at or adjacent to the machine room. A duplex outlet and lighting circuit are required in the machine room per code.
- MRL traction systems require a dedicated 208 to 240V three-phase circuit for most configurations, 20 to 60 amps depending on motor capacity and number of stops. A separate lighting and convenience outlet circuit is required in the overhead drive space.
- Shaftless and pneumatic systems run on a dedicated 220V single-phase circuit at 15 to 20 amps, the lowest electrical demand of the three system types. No machine room circuit is required.
- Cab communication wiring is required on all system types. A telephone or intercom circuit must be roughed into the cab location at each landing. This is a code requirement under ASME A17.1 and is consistently missed on first electrical submittals. Flag it early.
Morning Star works directly with architects and general contractors on residential projects across Colorado, providing drawings, specs, and site visits during the design phase so coordination items are resolved before they affect the schedule.
Machine Room vs. Machine-Room-Less
The machine room affects floor plan layout in ways that are not easy to undo. A traditional hydraulic system requires 50 to 80 square feet of dedicated mechanical space that must be accessible, climate-controlled, and positioned adjacent to or below the hoistway. On a tight floor plan, that space competes with everything else on the program. On a larger custom home with a utility core, it integrates without issue.
MRL traction systems resolve this by moving the drive equipment overhead. The floor plan recovers the machine room square footage, and there is no mechanical equipment in the finished living space. The trade-off is overhead structural coordination, which adds a step to the engineer’s scope but is straightforward when identified at the right phase.
For architects working on high-finish custom homes where every square foot of program is deliberate, the MRL configuration is worth the conversation at schematic design. The luxury home elevator product lines Morning Star installs most frequently in Colorado’s custom home market are predominantly MRL for exactly this reason.
Colorado Permitting and Jurisdiction Context
Home elevator installation for builders in Colorado involves two parallel permit tracks. The building permit runs through the local authority having jurisdiction. The elevator permit runs through the Colorado Division of Oil and Public Safety. Both must be closed before a certificate of occupancy is issued, and the elevator inspection sits on the critical path.
Denver
Denver’s building department processes elevator permits concurrently with the building permit but requires elevator drawings submitted with the initial application. Inspector scheduling through DOPS in the metro area is generally predictable, but final inspection requests should be submitted no later than two weeks before the target CO date.
El Paso County
El Paso County coordinates elevator permits through the county building department for unincorporated areas, with DOPS handling state inspection separately. Projects in Colorado Springs proper run through the city’s building division. DOPS inspection scheduling in this jurisdiction typically runs two to four weeks and should be accounted for in the construction schedule.
Garfield County and Glenwood Springs
Mountain jurisdiction projects carry the most scheduling variability. DOPS inspector availability in the Roaring Fork Valley is more limited than on the Front Range, and final inspection lead times can run four to six weeks depending on season and workload. Elevator permit submission in this market should happen no later than rough-in, not at closeout.
Multi-Trade Coordination: Who Owns What
The hoistway touches multiple trades, and ambiguity about responsibility is where schedule damage happens. Here is how scope breaks down on a typical custom home elevator builder in Colorado project:
- Framer is responsible for hoistway rough opening to the elevator contractor’s supplied dimensions, pit forming, and top-of-shaft blocking for overhead clearance requirements.
- Electrician provides the dedicated circuit, disconnect, machine room or overhead drive space circuits, and cab communication rough-in to locations specified by the elevator contractor.
- Drywaller finishes the hoistway interior to the elevator contractor’s specified tolerances. Premature drywall in the hoistway before elevator rough-in inspection is a consistent source of schedule damage.
- Elevator contractor supplies hoistway templates and dimensional specs at design phase, performs rough-in inspection coordination, sets equipment, wires the cab, and manages DOPS permit and inspection filing.
- General contractor owns the master schedule, sequences trades correctly, and confirms rough-in inspection is complete before the hoistway is closed.
Roughing In for a Future Elevator
The rough-in approach is straightforward and costs a fraction of what a retrofit adds after the home is finished. The framer sizes and frames the hoistway opening to specified dimensions, the electrician runs the dedicated circuit to the shaft location and caps it, and the pit is formed in the foundation pour. The hoistway can be finished as a closet or storage space in the interim.
When the buyer is ready, the structural and electrical work is already done, and the project reduces to equipment procurement, installation, and inspection. For builders serving Colorado’s custom home market, offering this as a standard option is a low-cost differentiator that protects the long-term client relationship and generates a future lead for the installer.
Luxury Finish Coordination Starts Earlier Than You Think
On high-end Colorado custom projects, the elevator cab is an interior finish element. Cab wall panels, flooring, lighting, handrail finish, and door style all need to be coordinated with the architect’s interior package during design development.
Morning Star works directly with architects on residential elevator requirements for finish selection, providing samples, shop drawing submittals, and configuration options that align with the home’s material palette.
Let’s Talk Before Your Next Project Goes to Permit
The builders and architects who run the cleanest elevator installations are the ones who made one early call. Morning Star provides hoistway templates, electrical load schedules, spec language, and design-phase site visits as part of how we work, not as an extra.
Reach out to our team to discuss your next project and get the coordination right from the start.
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