I could fit a second staircase to the back of my house. If so it could be disabled access from the start. But what is disabled access? How is a chair lift you sit on different than a wheelchair lift, can both be done cheaply? It seems to me this would be a lot cheaper than a lift, and futureproof the house against my legs failing.
Has anyone experience, ideas, or links to share please?
George
The first thing to consider is if you will still be in the house. There are other problems to think on as you get old besides stairs. It won't add value to the house. You may never get to use it.
Is there a reason that you can't fit a lift to the current stairs? They can do ones that can go round corners etc if required (although they cost more).
1) the existing stairs are antique oak I dont want to attach an ugly rail 2) it would be nice to have a back stair like there used to be 3) if so how would i future proof it for disabled access? 4) what kinds of disabled stair lifts are there?
3 types:
rip-off ones
rip-off ones
and
rip-off ones
HTH
I'm with harry. It seems an unnecessary expense that will add cost and no value.
by all means make sure that the new stairs are built so that a lift can easily be added at a later date, but putting one in at the start is overkill
tim
and also used ones, they're sensible prices.
I'm sure the OP is in a much better position to know if it's necessary
A lot of stairs aren't wide enough for stairlifts. That's the one likely gotcha. And a single straight run is far cheaper, and most used lifts are of this type.
NT
Keep it as simple as possible, and make sure its wide enough. So straight runs are best.
Of the normal built in ones, loads! Stannah, Minivator, and plenty others. Finding a second hand or recon one can save lots.
You can get tempory ones designed to climb stairs with a wheelchair on board - although they normally need an assistant to drive them.
Lots!
Avoid the large national firms that advertise widely. Small local firms have access to exactly the same stairlifts but without the badge! The price will be about half.
The stairlift should run from a built-in battery that is constantly on trickle charge. Direct power from the mains is not a good idea.
It should have two remote handsets so it can be controlled from both ends.
Check that the load carrying capacity is well above the weight of any likely user.
I'd forget a wheelchair stairlift for domestic use. If you really need a wheelchair lift it wants to be a vertical lift.
Bill
Alternatively, how about an elevator? Friends just had one fitted as he's had a stroke.
IME batteries fail more often than mains. But they fail gradually, so you don't get stuck half way. If you're able to extricate yourself on loss of power, albeit it awkwardly, then mains is more reliable & avoids battery cost.
NT
I would have thought a lift shaft on the outside should be the best way - but not aware of many suppliers compared to stair lifts.
the PP said categorically that it wasn't.
he said he wants to install it now, just in case at some point later in life, he does need it
which IS the type of thing I suggested he should consider now
tim
I wouldn't install an expensive lift now, because you don't know what sort of lift will be needed in the future. No use in having a sit-on stairlift if you're unable to transfer to it from a wheelchair, etc.
As others have suggested, a wide straight staircase with space at top and bottom will cover most eventualities.
Another approach is to have a cupboard on each level with a removable floor which can easily be converted to form a lift shaft if you do need a 'traditional' lift.
If you rely on any sort of lift you have to consider fire escape from the upper floor - even if a battery stairlift works in a fire it may be difficult to use in smokey conditions.
The best future-proofing is probably to provide space for a downstairs bedroom and level access shower, even if you retain a lift of some sort for occasional access to upstairs for access to possessions etc.
Really radical idea - is there space in the garden for a ramp to upstairs?
Owain
Obviously you don't know what his odds of mobility problems are. Silly boy.
NT
re fire escape, stair lifts are typically crazily slow. You'd be roasted by the time you were halfway down.
NT
In message , snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com writes
Is that not the point? None of us know what the future holds, and most will probably die before needing major stuff like stair lifts. Problem is, we don't know until too late if no plans have been made.
All through my 40s, I felt invincible. I'm gonna live forever! Even through my 50s, it seemed as though retirement was approaching, and I would have a whole new lifetime to enjoy doing nothing. Now, in my 60s, I keep reading obituaries of people my age. Having said that, I cannot get depressed about it. I'll just go on thinking I'm going to live for many more years until the day I don't :-)
That said, I do plan for later infirmities or whatever, in the same way I plan for winter power cuts. Neither are guaranteed, and I'm not going to be obsessive about either, but just be aware and prepared.
and some know that their odds of mobility failure are high or pretty much inevitable. The OP is the only one here that knows what category he fits in.
Yup. Denial doesn't work well.
NT
A fire refuge, effectively a one hour fire protected cupboard with ventilation from outside that the fire brigade can access, preferably from outside the building, is probably a better option for the disabled on an upper floor.
I'm in my 50s. I have high Blood Pressure which is not responding well to medication.
It will likely kill me before I am 75.
I also have a dodgy knee which is not recovering after an operation.
But I can't have a new knee because I am too young and if I have it done now I will need a second one by the time I am 80.
Um,
Dear Mr Doctor, please set paras 1 and 2
and the connection with the knee and the BP is .....
in order to lower my pressure by natural methods, I have to lose weight which requires that I exercise more. But I can't exercise more, in ways that are attractive to me, because of the knee (so I'm expected to go to the gym for 2 hours a day to exercise on machines - good luck persuading me to suffer the boredom of that!)
tim
But he doesn't know that he might suffer from something else first that makes his current house unsuitable in other ways
tim
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