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May 8, 2008 4:07 pm US/Pacific
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Off The Beaten Path: Dumbwaiter Makers
GEORGETOWN (CBS) ―
A family in the foothill community of Georgetown has hit it big making something very old.
It's something our founding fathers would certainly approve.
Take a guess what these guys are building -- maybe a rocket launcher for the military or new super rollercoaster? Nope. Fabricator Wayne Gibson is making a dumbwaiter.
"Well, when I tell people that it build dumbwaiters, they go 'what's a dumbwaiter?'," said Wayne.
Thomas Jefferson developed this little home elevator on a rope and pulley system. And Georgetown resident John Reite has patented the newest model. It's a modular system which makes the sections easy to ship and install. A new Powerlift dumbwaiter is being installed a at this veterinarian's office for hauling pet food upstairs. For homes, the primary use is still for groceries.
Powerlift is now building about 300 dumbwaiters a year and selling them in such diverse places as Russia, Bahrain and Tennessee. Scientists in Antarctica even use one.
John also developed a safety switch so a moving dumbwaiter won't injure people or pets.
"Every door has a switch on it so if the door opens, the door will stop," said John.
Making dumbwaiters is a family affair. Three of John's sons and other family members make the parts, do the sales and keep the books. Son David is hoping to increase production to shorten delivery time.
"These would be in stock and they'd just ship them out because usually you are looking at two to three weeks," said David.
So why have the sales of these dumbwaiters taken off? Well, credit the Internet.
John started making dumbwaiters 30 years ago and sold a few a year. But now, more homes are multiple stories and more residents are older so a service elevator is just the ticket for moving food, firewood or laundry.
Oldest son Jim stopped by with a load of parts he had just welded up.
"Yeah, I work out of my home most of the time and I do some service calls, too," said Jim.
So if you are tired of running up and down stairs in your home, maybe old Thomas Jefferson and the Powerlift family have something for you.
So how much does it cost for a dumbwaiter? Figure on a couple of hundred dollars up to a few thousand depending on the size and shipping.
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