If the height of ceilings or walls exceeds 20 feet, or if the job is large, it is usually safer and more economical to use a scissorlift. Electric scissorlifts are commonly used by painting contractors for painting interior exposed structural ceilings and tall interior walls. Electric scissorlifts have a maximum platform height ranging from 15 to 38 feet, depending on model type. Rough-terrain scissorlifts have a maximum platform height of 25 to 50 feet. Boom lifts are also used by painting contractors for reaching exterior building walls or structures.
Boom lifts can either be electric or fuel-operated.
Swing stages are suspended scaffold systems useful for painting high-rise buildings and structures. Use of a swing stage requires extensive safety training and procedures. Also of use to painters on occasion are vertical personnel lifts. These lifts consist of a work platform attached to an aluminum mast that extends vertically. The mast is attached to a steel base.