An essential tool across several different applications and industries, winches are of major importance in construction, marine industries and industrial sites. However, there are many different types of winch available today, each with their own unique functions, advantages and drawbacks. Here, we take a closer look at the most popular types of winch available today, highlighting their key differences and functions across different industries.
Air Winch
Often referred to as an air tugger or air hoist, an air winch is specifically designed to help lift and transport heavy objects across the oil and gas industries, construction sites and marine industries. Exceptionally strong, durable and safe, air winches are almost always found on large scale industrial sites. Below are some of the key advantages of using an air winch:
- Safe
- Durable
- Ideal for Construction & Marine Industries
However, it’s important to remember that these additional safety and durability measures will come at an additional premium; air winches are a particularly costly option, due to their high number of moving parts and complex design.
Hydraulic Winch
A highly powerful winch, the hydraulic winch is an ideal all-in-one winch suitable for a majority of applications.Durable, efficient and versatile, hydraulic winch systems are well known for their high load capacity, capable of pulling a variety of heavy objects, from cars, to boats to buses. Below are some of the key benefits of hydraulic winches:
- Perfect for Handling Heavy/Sizeable Load
- Powerful
- Immensely Durable
- Highly Versatile/Utilised Across Different Applications
Once more; the greatest drawback of a hydraulic winch is arguably the cost, with a number of these systems costing an absolute fortune to purchase outright. Winch Hire services help contain these costs, ensuring you are only paying for the system when needed, but the general cost is still higher than other winch solutions. Aside from this, Hydraulic winches are well known to cause a disruptive amount of noise, so keep this in mind when considering your winch choice on-site.
Electric Winch
Easily the most popular solution of winch on the market today, the electric winch is incredibly simple, versatile and reliable. Running through a vehicle’’s battery to deliver power directly to the motor, an electric winch can be used whenever your battery is charged up. Below are some of the key advantages of using an electric winch:
- Simple Installation Process
- Highly Versatile
- Reliable
- Easy Operation
- Low-Weight Structure
- Can Be Utilised When Engine Is Dead.
Naturally, as an electrical product, this type of winch is unsuitable for wet or damp environments, and therefore should be avoided in these instances at all costs. In truth, due to their high energy use, electric winches are best suited for light, quick or occasional uses only.
Looking for winch equipment hire? At Atlas Winch Hire & Hoist Services, we aim to meet your lifting needs. As winch specialists, we stock all of the essential winch equipment that you need including lifting slings, base mounted winches and more. With over 30 years of experience, we focus on high-quality customer service and delivering excellent products. Contact us today.
