Your home should be your safe haven, and many of us spend most of our lives ensuring that this is a comfortable place that meets our needs. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons, individuals often have to leave their homes behind and move on. One of the reasons for this is an inability to move around the home independently. This usually happens due to old age, as your physical ability significantly reduces, although it can also occur due to a physical disability caused by injury. Whatever the reason, it can be frustrating for you to not be able to fully take care of yourself in your own home.
When this happens, individuals often look for another home to move into, although there are other ways to make adjustments to your home so that you can continue to live independently in the home you love. Adding a stairlift is a good example of a change you can make if you have stairs at your place but are no longer able to walk up and down them. This article will provide you with the top four things to consider when buying a stairlift so that you know exactly what to look for.
Your Available Budget
Firstly, you should think about how much money you are willing to spend in terms of stairlift costs. There will be different types of stairlifts to choose from and they will each be of a different price. Set a budget and make sure you stick to it. As you can imagine, a home stairlift can be considerably expensive and you should not struggle financially to meet your needs. If money is an issue, you can always look into second-hand stairlifts, as these will be cheaper than brand new ones and still as effective.
The Needs of the User
As mentioned previously, there are different types of stairlifts, therefore thinking about what the user needs is essential. There are stairlifts that can be installed permanently if the user’s movement inability is chronic, but you also have rental ones that can be installed for a short temporary basis – the latter is ideal for those recovering from an injury or surgery, for example. The stairlift pros behind National Stairlifts advise that you can add specific requirements to your lift so that all needs of the user are met. When looking for a model, check the type of seat and how the machine is controlled so that you find what best suits the user.
Type of Stairs
The type of stairs is another important factor to consider. Not every staircase is built the same, and this may impact the type of model that you are able to get. Moreover, you may have to install a rail to support the lift if this is not something that is already available. Most models will fit standard straight staircases well, but if yours are round you may have to get a custom stairlift to fit the exact curves of your staircase, which can be more expensive.
Whether You Get Warranty
Having the staircase installed should not be the end of your contact with the professionals. You should ensure that the company that you hire to purchase and install the stairlift also offers a warranty so that you can get support should anything go wrong with the lift.
Choosing a stairlift can be difficult as there are a few things you will need to think about. Hopefully, the list of factors to consider when buying a home stairlift provided above will make this process easier for you.
