The History of the Stairlift

First designed for victims of polio the initial commercial stairlift was created by the Inclinator Company of America in the 1930's. The design itself however was adapted from a rudimentary unit that was made in the 1920's by a Pennsylvanian inventor named C.C. Crispen. A self taught engineer, Crispen was inspired to create the unit for a friend who had difficulty getting up and down the stairs of his own home. He managed to develop a working prototype of the device that soon became the foundation for the modern lift.

Even so, there are many who claim that the stairlift is not an American invention at all and dates back to the era of King Henry the VIII. The crude device was crafted after the king injured himself in a jousting accident and consisted of a block and tackle system that was hauled by several servants.

Whoever was credited with the actual invention, many companies have been able to improve on the design offering a variety of styles and systems for individuals in need of assisted in home mobility.

The greatest of these innovations was the addition of various types of rail systems. The basic premise of the rail system is to create a reliable pulley station/port for the actual chairs. The rail can be made of aluminum or steel and is placed on the wall alongside the stairs in question. Rails can come flat or curved and are chosen based on the design of the stairwell.

Ramps made out of aluminum or steel are also a welcome addition to the device, providing a new option for those who have wide and/or small steps where a rail system may not be as necessary.

The basic design of rails or ramp platforms has not changed over time but the carriage system has evolved to become far more efficient and to deliver a smoother ride. The cable and chain drive mechanism was the very first type of carriage system used for the stairlift. This mechanism was later improved upon via a rack and pinion system which utilizes a pair of gears that engage the teeth of a flat bar (the rack). The system usually engages a circular rotation that helps the gears move the chair up or down.

With these bases, stairlift manufactures were able to come up with numerous types of units that would improve the lives of those who needed to move about but had difficulty doing so for a number of reasons.

Early systems concentrated on affixing wheelchairs to rails but specially made lift chairs soon followed. If you are wheelchair dependant, the former choice would be best as you are more familiar with this type of transport. Drawbacks-the wheelchair systems have to be built to order, are harder to install and can be more expensive than a simple chair lift. One should weigh the wheelchair versus simple chairlift option before making a firm decision in this regard.

In the beginning, the focus of the design was primarily on indoor maneuverability but modern units can be utilized both in and out of doors. Some restaurants and businesses even have outdoor models installed for the convenience of their customers.

Easy to access and use switches, toggles and buttons have evolved over time as well culminating in electric and remote controlled devices that make navigating the chairs even easier. The speed of the chairs can also be controlled, putting even more control in the hands of the chair user. Another modern convenience that comes with the purchase of a contemporary stairlift is a warranty that protects the purchaser in the event of disrepair.

The stairlift has evolved since the days of King Henry VIII and some can even be easily installed by the buyer. With these units becoming even more affordable the elderly or those with debilitating conditions can maintain a greater degree of autonomy with ease and tremendous style.

Andy West is a writer on a variety of topics including medical supplies, and medical devices for the elderly or disabled.

The Advantages of a Stair Lift in Your Home

If you live in a home with more than one storey and have people living with you who are unable to climb stairs comfortably, then what you need is a stair lift. Stair lifts are extremely useful, especially in cases where you cannot afford to add another room to your ground floor. Stair lifts also saves you from the hassle of shifting houses again and again.

Stair lifts come in wide varieties. Some stair lifts have a chair fixed on them, and the person who needs to move to another floor sits on it and can thus easily be transported to the other floor. Another kind of stair life has a platform instead of a chair, and is especially useful if there is need to move the ill person in a wheelchair, or if the person prefers to stand rather than sit.

A stair lift runs on wheels that move along a railing that is fitted into your staircase, and upon pressing a single button the lift moves the person or thing on the platform or chair onto the next floor. This convenience is becoming fairly common in homes having elderly people, since it provides them ease of movement.

The biggest advantage of this is that it provides mobility to the person who needs it. Furthermore, stair lifts gives you complete independence and you can easily move about from one floor to another without asking for help from anyone.

The second advantage is that it saves you from either spending a lot of money on constructing new living space downstairs, or from moving people around the house to reshuffle the rooms so that the person unable to climb the stairs can have a room downstairs. This also saves you from having to move, or get another bathroom constructed if you don't have one on the ground floor.

Thirdly, it can carry heavy loads on it, up to four hundred pounds, and you can also use this to move objects between floors. No longer will you have to carry heavy furniture up the stairs when you are redecorating. You can now put those things on the stair lift and have it carry the load for you.

This system is not only for use of the person who is ill. Children will love it and use it as a game, and anyone can use it if they are unable to climb up or down the steps. So, if someone is feeling very tired, or are for whatever reason unwilling to climb up the stairs, they can use this as well. If someone does not want to take the risk of climbing or descending the stairs themselves, for example pregnant women, then this is a great option for them as well.

The lift operates on battery or on your regular electricity supply. The battery option is more expensive, but they will also function during a power outage. Stair lifts are also really safe, and also there is no danger of someone falling from it as it offers a very smooth ride.

More information about stair lifts can be found at Churchill's.

Straight Stair Lifts - An Affordable Option For Many

Most of the physically challenged people depend on chair lifts to travel up and down the stairs in their residences. Straight stair lifts are used in houses that do not have stairs with curves and bends. The external stairways through which a person enters the home from outside are more often straight stairways. The same is the case in majority of the offices. Therefore straight stair lifts are commonly used in houses and offices. Straight stair chair lifts which are power driven, travel along a straight track. Apart from carrying old and disabled people, these devices can also be used to carry heavy luggage from one floor to another without much effort. As many of the stairway lifts are provided with remote control facility, it is easy to move luggage between two floors.

Straight stair lifts are cheaper than other types of lifts These can be easily installed and are more comfortable than other stairway lifts The installation charges usually depend on the length of the track. As the length of the track used for a this type of stair chair lift is lesser than that required for curved stair chair lifts installation of this type of stair chair lifts is cheaper. Besides, straight chair lifts require only minimum number of tracks. As wheelchair lifts on stairways, these stairlifts are the best and most economical choice. This wheelchair lift can be used for other purposes also. All these factors contribute to making straight stair lifts an affordable option for many people.

These kinds of stair chair lifts are more convenient than curved stair chair lifts to travel up and down the stairs. They provide quicker movement from one floor to another, compared to curved chair lifts Moreover, these can be easily relocated to new locations. Straight chair lifts are relatively more compact than curved chair lifts They can be easily folded and kept aside when not in use. This enables other people to use the stairways comfortably.

Straight stair lifts which are manufactured by branded companies have a life of about 20 years if used properly. Bruno, ThyssenKrupp Access, Savaria Concord are some world famous brands that provide different models of straight as well as curved stairlifts with various features at affordable rates.

Day provides indoor and outdoor accessibility solutions ranging from dumbwaiters to wheelchair lifts. The straight stair lifts available at DAY Elevator & Lift are the practical solutions for individuals who have a hard time climbing stairs.

Whole Lot of Special Benefits of Chair Lifts Or Wheelchair Lifts

The chair lifts or lift chairs and lifts for wheelchairs offer many advantages especially for disabled persons and persons of high level that are not fit enough to stand up a chair and move. In fact these have been specially designed to help these people. With the help of the chair lifts and lifts for wheelchairs, such people can move and even move up and down the floors of a building.

Some diseases could grab someone close to you and create many problems and restrict their mobility to unthinkable levels. The restriction of mobility conditions created by Parkinson's, paralysis, Lou Gehrigs, arthritis, etc. are well known. Thus, people who suffer feel helpless and dependent on others, even to move in the same room and carry out some simple activities. They feel devoid of all force and totally devoid of energy to do things voluntarily. More than other people pitying them is that they themselves feel sad and left to the mercy and eliminating others. It is to bring a ray of hope in the lives of those unfortunate people who chair lifts and lifts for wheelchairs intended. With the help of innovative and modern chair lifts and lifts wheelchair the day one can help overcome the disadvantage of limited mobility to a very large extent.

Not only are the conditions that limit mobility that can maintain a restricted movements, but also the knee and hip problems and fractures caused by industrial accidents and muscle weakness, etc. The president lifts can help these people get up in a position and sat back. They can enjoy much of normal life in terms of movement through the use of lifts and lifts for wheelchairs. Battery operated wheelchairs are special offers that the user can carry the wheelchair to various places at different levels of inclination. Thus, the wheelchair user can have greater mobility.

The battery operated wheelchairs can even be lifted over stairs and other high ground. There are also special classes of wheelchair lifts called handicap wheelchair lifts some of whose models can help enable entering vehicles, transporting chairs mobility, navigating in a multi-storey building, and even swim in a pool. There are also models that can help one to leave a seat and get underway. Therefore, the president lifts lifts for wheelchairs and helps people with reduced mobility in a variety of ways hitherto unthinkable.

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Will Your Home Accommodate a Stair Lift?

Installing a stair lift in your home is a great way to increase the number of years you can live at home, even if you or a loved one have health limitations that make it difficult to go up and down stairs.
I was out with an elderly woman last week who was looking to buy a new home. She already had bad knees, and had to take the stairs slowly. One of the things she was looking for was whether her new property would accommodate a master on the main level (if it didn't already have one) and a stair lift on the stairs.
I thought she might just want to look at one-level homes, but every home she looked at had a staircase in it. One home had a lovely Y-shaped staircase featured in the living room that split off in two directions. One home had a rickety old staircase leading to the finished basement, and one home had a plain old fashioned 2-level staircase that went to the upstairs. My client told me that this wasn't exactly what she was looking for and said she would "know it when she saw it." It had been hard for her to figure out online whether the homes she was interested in would accommodate a stair lift because most realtors don't feature the stairs in their MLS photos.
This client gave me a bit of an education about what it takes to install a stair lift. Basically, she was looking for a long, straight run of stairs from the first to the second floor. We actually found it in one of the new construction homes we looked at, so they are certainly out there. Stairlifts can be installed on other types of staircases, of course, but as with everything, complication adds expense.
If you are building or buying a home that you want to grow old in, it's a good idea to contemplate in advance how the home can be modified to suit your needs when you are older. Some things - like wide hallways that can accommodate wheelchairs - are nice features you might want to have anyway.
Other things, like grab bars in the bath tub, are easy to add on later if they become necessary.
What's not as easy to plan for is if you will need wheelchair access to upstairs rooms of the house. Even if you're not in a wheelchair, going up and down the stairs can be a challenge for many seniors.
Installing A Stair Lift May Be The Perfect Solution
A stair lift runs on a track that is installed on the side of the stairs and plugged into the wall for power. Your stairs must be against the wall or have a reinforced railing to accommodate the full weight of a person on a seat, and the track along the wall. A stair lift can help you bring groceries and laundry up and down the stairs, too. Pretty much anything you can carry, provided you don't exceed the safe weight limit for the chair lift.
Although they can be pricey to install, many seniors are so happy about the idea of having the ability to remain in their own homes as they age, they are more than willing to pay the price to have their home upgraded to accommodate their changing mobility needs.







Emily J. Cressey is a licensed real estate agent and investor in Seattle, Washington. If you are in the market for housing for seniors or disabled people, please click here to learn more about what's involved in installing a stair lift in your home.

Buying a Home Wheelchair Lift

A wheelchair lift can be a tremendous help to those who suffer from disabilities and limited mobility. For those who are confined to a wheelchair, whether it be full-time or part-time, having a home wheelchair lift can allow them to move from one level of a home to another more easily than using ramps, or give them an easier way to reach the ground level of a home from the yard in homes such as split-levels. A wheelchair lift can make it much easier on those with disabilities, as well as those who care for them, to regain their independence, and carry out their daily activities.

Choosing the right home wheelchair lift involves making a major decision, but is one that can be determined very easily if you know exactly what you need. Knowing the specific features and requirements that will benefit you most will help in the decision making process. You should determine the size and weight specifications of the lift that you need. Something else to keep in mind is the material that the lift will be made of.

Home wheelchair lifts come in a wide variety of styles, including manufacturing materials. If the person using the wheelchair lift has allergies or sensitive skin, then be sure to choose a wheelchair lift that is made from a material that will not aggravate their condition. Also be sure to plan for the convenience of the lift. Home wheelchair lifts also come in a variety of operations, meaning that they can be automatic or manually operated. Be sure to consider the pros and cons of both types, and determine what your individual needs are, regarding the power of your lift. If you choose to purchase a lift that is not automatic, be sure that the controls are conveniently located and easily accessible, in case the person using the lift is alone.

You will also need to check warranty information from the companies that you are considering purchasing your wheelchair lift from. Many offer warranties that last up to four years. Be certain to obtain a copy of the warranty, just in case a problem arises, and compare the different manufacturers warranties to ensure that you are getting the most complete coverage for your purchase. Reviewing several manufacturers is an excellent way to determine which company offers the best lift, with regards to price and functionality. By comparing companies and products, you can ensure that you are receiving the wheelchair lift that suits your individual needs the best, as well as to ensure that you are purchasing the lift that costs you less. With the many styles and models of home wheelchair lifts that are currently available, it is much easier to make an informed decision about the lift that is best for you if you compare pricing and product information.

Buying a home wheelchair lift is a major decision, but one that can be made very intelligently if you have the right information, and know beforehand exactly what your needs are.

The Different Kinds of Wheelchairs

Wheelchairs are basic necessity on people entering the period of old age. It is a given fact that a certain individual turns weak when he or she becomes old. So when a person gets older, he or she would probably need this one. Generally speaking, this device is especially intended for people who cannot walk. It is a sort of substitute for walking. Basically it is a device similar to a chair with four wheels on it. On a typical situation, the two wheels in the front are smaller compared to the ones at the back. The wheels are already furnished with a metal rim. This could help the client or patient move the equipment on his or her own.

This device could also be pushed manually by a person. The person pushing it is the one who manipulates the direction of the wheelchair. It has a grip at the back portion which is used by people who pushes the equipment by hand. In other cases, this equipment can be motorized too. There is a certain motor inside it which is manipulated by the use of a certain remote control. As of this time, there are two forms of wheelchair. These two are the manual or self-propelled ones and the electric ones. In the category of manual or self propelled device, there are two types. These two are folding and rigid type.

Folding devices are completed by the use of light materials and can be easily transported wherever a person goes. This is particularly designed for outpatient individuals or client confined at homes. This wheelchair is usually pushed by caregivers or hospice care attendants. On the other hand, rigid ones are made from welded materials and have lesser moving parts. Lastly, an electric wheelchair is motorized by a rechargeable battery. You can easily plug this one to any power outlet near you.

Exercise plays a momentous role in our lives. That is why it would be good if you have mobility scooter parts. For more details about this, you can visit handicap scooters.


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Buying a Wheelchair Lift

Buying a wheelchair lift can be a daunting task, especially if you are newly disabled or are purchasing a wheelchair lift for a loved one. There are many types of devices that are referred to as wheelchair lifts but most fall into two broad categories; vertical platform lifts or vehicle lifts.

The most elaborate and expensive type of wheelchair lift is the vertical platform lift. You may have seen this type of wheelchair lift at a commercial building or government office. This type of lift allows the wheelchair user to roll on to a platform and activate a lift mechanism by using controls mounted on the frame. A vertical lift can cost several thousand dollars and requires an expert to install. Additional inspections fees may also be associated with the installation of one of these lifts, depending on local codes and ordinances.

If you are planning on buying a vertical lift, be sure to verify the building codes in your area before laying down the cash. It would also be a good idea to bring in a private contractor to verify that you will be able to safely install the wheelchair lift on your existing structure while still complying with local codes.

Another type of wheelchair lift is the vehicle lift. There are literally hundreds of variations of the vehicle lift. Some types are only for vans with side entry. Other types utilize a boom to lift the chair into the rear cargo area of a smaller mini-van or SUV. The type that you require will depend on not only your needs, but on the type of vehicle that you own.

Most vehicle lifts sold today are of the smaller variety that is primarily used for lifting power wheelchairs or mobility scooters into the trunk of a car or the rear of an SUV. These lifts use a boom or swing-arm to lift the device up and over for easy loading. Then boom itself can be motorized or manually operated and will require a special docking device designed to couple with the specific type or brand of power wheelchair or scooter that you are using.

Now that you have a clear understanding of the types of wheelchair lifts on the market you can now begin searching for a distributor that will be able to meet your needs. More and more consumers are finding that, even with large items such as wheelchair lifts, shopping on line can safe you hundreds of dollars. Often the installation or measurement can also be included, since many on line resellers have nationwide networks of installers.

Choosing the Right Scooter Lifts For Your Vehicle

Most people who have disability scooters are also going to need to find the best scooter lifts to use with their vehicles. Of course, it's not only about finding the best lift - you also have to make sure that it will fit your vehicle properly, that it fits all of your physical needs, and that you will be able to afford it.
Before you start shopping for scooter lifts, you should make a list of the things that you need. This list should help you narrow down your choices. What are some of the things that you should look for in a lift for your scooter?

First, you need to make sure that you are able to find a lift that will fit your model of vehicle. This should not be very difficult, as there are a number of different types of lift available, and the companies that make them know that people don't all drive the same type of vehicle. If you are unsure about the size that you need for your vehicle, you should contact a dealership and ask them for their advice.

Second, you are going to want to consider your individual needs. Since everyone is different, this means that you are going to want to research the various types of lift to see which one is going to be the best match for you. It is important that the one you choose is easy to use, and that you will be able to learn how to operate it without trouble. Most of the time when you buy through a dealer you will find that they will teach you about the different lifts, as well as how to use them.

Finally, you need to make sure that you are going to be able to afford the scooter lifts. Fortunately, you will be able to find lifts that vary in price, which should make it easier to find something that is in your budget. You might even find that the dealer has financing that can help you get the lift if you can't afford an outright purchase.

When you have a scooter, you are going to want to take it with you when you go places. The purpose of the scooter is to help you get around, and the best way to do that is to have a great lift installed by the professionals. IMED Mobility is your premier supplier of new scooter lifts and mobility equipment. Visit IMEDMobililty.com to find Scooter Lifts and wheelchair accessible van rentals.


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Solution For Limited Mobility - Get Stairlifts

For those suffering from physical ailments, injuries or even physical disabilities, climbing stairs can be a monumental task apart from being a painful experience. These limit your mobility leaving you are the mercy of care givers or just limiting your area of movement within the house. But with numerous advanced feature stairlifts, you can go up and down the stairs with ease. All you need to do is press a button and viola! You are either up or down.

No longer do you have live a life of cripple but move around the house with ease with a standard stairlift in case you have a straight stairlift or get a curved stairlift installed. Riding up or down the stairs are no longer a hassle or a long drawn process. With advanced safety features, chances of accidents and slips are close to none. No longer do you need to be singled out for any event or occasion, be a part of the family events- join them at any floor with disability stairlift.

Most stairlifts have this safety devices- safety belt, one touch remote, wraparound arms, emergency brakes, foot rests, swivel chair, automatic obstruction sensors and foldable seats. Just sit and press a button and you will be transported either upstairs or downstairs as required. It also provides you with the freedom that you need to live independently instead of moving to another home. Consider mobility devices to help you live a full live and with advent of technologically advanced devices, elderly and physically challenged individuals can live an independently. Easy accessibility and commuting can put you back to tasks that you couldn't do as half the house was out of bounds. But not any longer!

You may research online for the best available stairlift models and considering your requirements and priorities search for the one that fits your budget. You may even ask the stairlift company representative to come and survey your home and suggest the best available model that fits your pocket and suits the requirements.
Jason Tate has been involved in providing more information on mobility aids and stairlifts for numerous years. To know more about stairlifts and other products, please browse Stairlift comparisons.


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