We are improving access to our downstairs toilet for my father, who uses a wheelchair. This has included a double-swing door, so he can push it away from him whichever direction he needs to go through. We have found (before the painting was finished!) that this results in marks on the door from the wheel of the wheelchair nearest the hinge side. We have read about PVCu kickplates supplied by a firm in Leeds, but these are rather expensive at £36 each, plus £20 carriage.
Can anyone suggest a readily-available alternative?
If you want PVCu, you can buy panels of the stuff from Wickes etc. Normally intended for lining window reveals etc. I think they do one about 6" deep (0.25" thick) which might suit?
Or what about thin sheet metal? Cheapest would be to go round to an engineering works or steel stockholder and flutter your eyelashes a bit; but if you don't fancy that the big B&Qs sell it in various sizes, at a premium.
It needs to be deeper than that - 400mm or 500mm - as it seems to be the hub of the wheel of the wheelchair that is doing the damage. I shall try asking what the local Wickes/Jewsons can offer along these lines.
I am concerned that the door is kept as light as possible, principally for ease of use. Also I think metal would look somewhat institutional. OK in a public building, but not in the domestic situation.
If it's the clear rigid Poly' stuff, then you can cut and drill it just the same. The only thing I think you will find is that it will be soft and will melt easy with if handled roughly. Try not to use a jigsaw to cut it as it will probably just bond itself back together at the back of the blade. A fine toothed handsaw, or a copying saw, are the ideal tool for this job.
It shouldn't discolour quickly, but like anything else of this nature, it will become dull and scratched over time. The surface of polystyrene is also not as robust as true laminate acrylic, so it might get scratched a bit easier. It'll still do the job you want though.
Fixing to the door is one thing I need more info' on to make sure comments. What is the door made of, and is it a hollow egg-box structure. Most internal doors in modern flats are made of a frame covered with on both sides with a thin sheet of plywood. They have a cardboard web of honeycomb shapes in between to make the surfaces of the door a bit more rigid to the touch. They aren't as solid as an old oak door. :-)
To fix anything properly to this type of door, you need to take self-tapping screws with counter-sunk heads. Quite large heads to give a good secure fixing. Drill the holes through the poly' sheet slightly smaller than the screw. So a 5 mm screw nail would need a 3 mm hole in the sheet. You then counter-sink the hole on one side, with a proper counter-sink drill bit, to a depth that is just enough to hide the screw nail head below the surface of the poly' sheet. And I mean "just below the surface of the sheet". Feel your way with a little counter-sinking and keep checking with the head of the screw nail. Once you do one, you should then get an idea of how deep the others need to be.
Present the poly' sheet to the door, and with a good screwdriver, start turning the first screw in. This is where self tapping screws come into play. A self tapper screw will make its own hole, and this is the ideal solution for a hollow door. Make sure you get the sheet level, not in line with the edges of the door, but level with a bubble level. If the door has been shaped to fit the hole, then the kick plate will also look skew wiff if you fallow the edges of the door.
Once you get the first screw to bite in to the door surface, stop screwing. Don't tighten it in fully until you get the sheet level enough. The loose screw will allow the sheet to move around a bit for the placing procedure. Try to fix the next screw nail diagonally opposite the first one. This is a great way of making the sheet firm enough to put the other two screw nails in. Don't fully tighten any of the screws in until all are placed exactly where you want them to be. When you're happy with the level and the look, then tighten the screw nails in until they grip tightly, but not over tightened.
The same method can also be used on other type of door structure without any changes.
You should now have a polystyrene sheet fixed to the door. The screw nail heads should be quite well hidden so they don't catch on things, and it should all look pretty. If that's the way it looks and feels, then go put the kettle on and make a nice cuppa' tea.
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