Adjustable length rail to help old folks climb out of bath?

Can anyone please tell me of suppliers who sell the simple, unheated type of chrome towel rail? I want to put one on the wall over the bath, to provide something solid for my Dad to hang on to when he's getting in and out of the bath. I'll need to screw it firmly to the studs in the partition wall, hence the need for adjustable rail length.

-- Bill Haines

Reply to
Bill Haines
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Can't you get such aids ready made for the purpose .....?

If you cant find on-line then your local Social Services/Social Work Dept will be able to tell you or an organistaion like Age Concern.. Stuart

Reply to
Stuart

Hopefully someone will come up with exactly what you need but a couple of pragmatic sugestions using more readily available grab rails. Option (1) fit a surface batten between studs and fix the rail to the batten. Option (2) fit a grab rail vertically to a stud. That has an advantage of accomodating change of height as a user gets out the bath. Grip strength might influence you. The Screwfix rails seem to be white but I previously got chrome, can't remember where, possibly BES?

Jim A

Reply to
Jim Alexander

========================== Look here - you might find exactly what you need:

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you do need to make your own version you could use heavy duty wardrobe hanging rails, but I would suggest that you try to get something less slippy than chrome.

Cic.

Reply to
Cicero

The message from Bill Haines contains these words:

We've been using Ikea's towel rail for years here. I forget what silly name it has, but it looks just like a hand rail - all industrial except white painted.

Failing that, the big B&Q "Depot" stores had 'em last time I looked, but they were expensive.

Or there's eBay - search for "grab rail" under Mobility, Disability and Medical.

Reply to
Guy King

Yes social services may supply and fit free - they do for my mum and lots of other stuff. DONT buy a "Bathknight" bath lift as they are crap and potentially dangerous. S services will advise you.

cheers Jacob

Reply to
normanwisdom

I know what you suggest is the most sensible and appropriate course of action. My intentions here may indicate a certain over-sensitivity but I want to provide some help without overtly catering for "incapacity". A sturdy chrome rail could be there nominally to provide a place to hang a rubber shower mat and just by coincidence happen to be in the right place to make the bracket grabable at specific points of entry and exit, maybe postponing the fall that pride is said to go before.

-- Bill Haines

Reply to
Bill Haines

Thanks for the suggestions. I've seen some chrome rail and fittings at Screwfix but the rail diameter is 19mm which seems a little slender for my purposes.

-- Bill Haines

Reply to
Bill Haines

Thanks I'll have a look for the heavy duty wardrobe fittings which I hope will be chunkier than the 19mm diameter rails I've seen so far.

-- Bill Haines

Reply to
Bill Haines

AOL. Ask.

Reply to
Chris Bacon

Ah! Well Done, Mr. Haines. Certain people close to you *may* smell a rat, but a good idea anyway! Stainless (stair) handrail and fittings?

Reply to
Chris Bacon

B&Q used to supply 40mm stainless steel "D" shaped rails that looked like fat towel rails. They were not adjustable but there was a rang of lengths available. The larger B&Qs may still do them.

Reply to
Geoff Beale

try

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they supply coloured plastic ones which I can recommend. I have them fitted by the front door, the back door and white ones in the bathroom.

Dave

Reply to
dave

On Mon, 26 Jun 2006 20:44:58 +0100, Bill Haines had this to say:

If you get a rail longer than 16" or whatever the stud spacing is, you could mount it at an angle, which may also help Dad to manage the bath.

B&Q have a range of suitable rails. A simple towel rail is unlikely to have sufficient strength to support an adult getting out of a bath. A proper grab rail will have a textured finish too, which makes it easier to "hold on".

Of course, some baths have a built-in grab rail, if you don't mind a bit more effort and expense :-)

Reply to
Frank Erskine

Had another idea which addresses your desire to fix to studs, industrial barrier tube plus fittings. Can visualise this exactly, unfortunately couldn't find an obvious link when I looked.

Jim A

Reply to
Jim Alexander

could you specify the danger? a friend of mine has one.

Reply to
Sheila

|On Mon, 26 Jun 2006 20:44:58 +0100, Bill Haines wrote: | |>Can anyone please tell me of suppliers who sell the simple, unheated |>type of chrome towel rail? I want to put one on the wall over the |>bath, to provide something solid for my Dad to hang on to when he's |>getting in and out of the bath. I'll need to screw it firmly to the |>studs in the partition wall, hence the need for adjustable rail |>length. | |Can't you get such aids ready made for the purpose .....? | |If you cant find on-line then your local Social Services/Social Work Dept will |be able to tell you or an organistaion like Age Concern.. |Stuart

Our Social Services provided one free when we had an old person staying for a few weeks. Hand rails by doors and steps are also free, in England and probably the UK.

Reply to
Dave Fawthrop

|On Mon, 26 Jun 2006 20:06:23 GMT, "Jim Alexander" | wrote: | |>

|>Hopefully someone will come up with exactly what you need but a couple of |>pragmatic sugestions using more readily available grab rails. Option (1) |>fit a surface batten between studs and fix the rail to the batten. Option |>(2) fit a grab rail vertically to a stud. That has an advantage of |>accomodating change of height as a user gets out the bath. Grip strength |>might influence you. The Screwfix rails seem to be white but I previously |>got chrome, can't remember where, possibly BES? |>

|>Jim A | |Thanks for the suggestions. I've seen some chrome rail and fittings at |Screwfix but the rail diameter is 19mm which seems a little slender |for my purposes.

Even disabled people are heavy and can apply a lot of force. Test whatever you do with your *full* weight, before allowing your dad to use it.

Reply to
Dave Fawthrop

  1. The attachment of the strap/seat could become detached accidentally
  2. In the up position the machine stays '0n' instead of being responsive to the 'dead mans handle' type operating switch. This can pull enough to bend and eventually break the sides of a plastic bath, if it doesn't pull the strap from the floor or the machine off the wall. You can switch it off but my mother tended not to notice this due to poor eyesight. The intention of staying 'on' is apparently to maintain tension and stability in the seat. I disabled this function by removing the switch bar.
3 She twice got trapped in it - luckily not in the up and 'on' position which could break a bone. I don't know how she got caught - it may be because of the tilting action of the lift - i.e. it turns you away from the machine as it goes up. In other words completely unsuitable for use un-attended - and even then has hazards. I'm embarassed that I left it so long before scrapping it. They may of course have improved the design in the meantime - this was about 6 years ago. She now has an inflatable seat device free from social services which is much better.

cheers Jacob PS and social services didn't approve of the "Bathknight" it's excluded from their recommended list.

Reply to
normanwisdom

Whilst visiting a tap (kitchen, baths and basin) shop, I noticed that they were displaying an extensive range of attractive looking grab rails. The grab rails were _not_ the unattractive white 'Council-supplied' format.

Visit a decent supplier, you may find exactly what you _need_ (not what you think you require).

HTH

Reply to
Brian Sharrock

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