When you’re planning for your future, one thing you might not have considered is making your home wheelchair accessible. If you plan on staying in your home as you age, planning for a wheelchair accessible home now will save you time, money, and stress later in life. To plan for a wheelchair accessible home, take a look at how you can modify each of the following rooms using home access products:
Bedroom: Install an overhang lift or manual trapeze to help with getting in and out of bed.
Bathroom: Install a toilet lift and a bathtub lift, as well as grab bars by both the toilet and the shower or bathtub.
Basement/Attic: Install a stair lift to move safely and easily between floors.
Kitchen: Check to see that your countertops and cabinets are reachable from a wheelchair. Your table’s height should have at least 27” of knee clearance between the floor and the table underside, and each seating location should have a clear floor area of 30” x 48”.
Porch/Yard: Install a durable stair lift and/or a portable ramp at the entry of your home.
Garage: A two-car garage gives you plenty of space to move between your vehicle and your home’s entry.
Don’t forget to make sure that your halls and doorways are wide enough for any type of mobility vehicle to maneuver through comfortably. Standard widths for hallways is 36”, and doorways should be at least 32”; in addition, the minimum clear space for 180 degree turns is 36” in all directions. Keep your home well-lit to cut down on any accidents, and make sure that light controls are easy to access and use. Finally, make sure that each room and area of your home has a phone or an alert system (especially by your bed and by the bathtub/toilet in the bathroom) in case of an emergency.
