How to Convert Horsepower to Lift

Horsepower reflects lifting capacity.

Horsepower was originally though of in terms of lift. The idea was based on the amount of weight, in pounds, that a horse could raise (with the assistance of a pole to apply torque). To make horsepower a true unit of power, though, you need to take a measurement not just of weight and how high the weight is lifted, but of the period of time it takes to lift it. One horsepower has the value of raising 550 lbs, in one second, one full foot.

Things You'll Need

• Calculator
• Scale

Instructions

1. Divide 550 by the weight you will lift. For instance, if you are lifting 50 lbs, the result is 11.

2. Multiply the amount of horsepower you are converting by the figure in Step 1. Here, for 2.5 horsepower as an example, the result is 27.5. This is your lift figure in feet, the number of feet that 2.5 horsepower would raise a weight of 50 pounds in one second.

3. Multiply the lift result from Step 2 by a given number of seconds to find the lift figure over time. In this example, for a time frame of 8 seconds, the lift would be 220 feet.

References

• FT Exploring: How Fast is Your Energy Being Converted?
• "Nitrous Oxide Performance Handbook"; Jeff Hartman; 2009
• Van Der Graaf: Horsepower to Lift Load Vertically