Curved Stairlifts

Once a person starts to suffer with mobility problems, it can become increasingly difficult (if not impossible) to move up and down stairs.  Luckily, there are options available to these people other than having to move home, potentially into a nursing or care home.  These options will allow them to remain in the homes and communities that they feel part of.

Options Available for People Suffering From Reduced Mobility

There are three main options available to people who are living with reduced mobility in homes that have more than one floor:

• Move home – either into a bungalow, a care home or sheltered accommodation
• Structurally change the entire home - to have a bedroom and bathroom downstairs which eliminates the need to go up and down the stairs
• Install a stairlift

The latter option is usually the best, as it allows people to stay in their home and continue to have full usage of it.  For those people who have a bathroom upstairs, this is even more important as there are very few temporary solutions available to be able to continue to use the bathroom.  There are two types of stairlifts:

• Straight stairlifts
• Curved stairlifts

Both types of stairlifts travel up and down a rail fitted to the stairs, but straight stairlifts cannot go around any bends or corners, whereas curved stairlifts are custom made to fit a specific staircase and can include curves.  A curved stairlift can even be fitted to a spiral staircase.

More Information about Curved Stairlifts

Curved stairlifts are bespoke and custom made and are hence more expensive and more complicated to install.  Due to the elevated cost, many people will try to fit several straight stairlifts rather than a single curved stairlift, but this does bring some significant safety issues with it, increasing the risk of injury.  Stairs are still one of the most common areas in the home where accidents occur, and safety should always come first.

Other people try to keep the price of curved stairlifts down by purchasing reconditioned or second hand ones, but the price difference is very small between the two, as even a reconditioned one will need to be readapted to fit your individual staircase.  One way to ensure curved stairlifts are safe is by having handrails installed all the way from the top of the staircase to the bottom.  This is something that can easily be done by yourself, although many DIY stores and curved stairlifts manufacturers would be happy to install these for you as well.

Selecting the right curved stairlifts can be very difficult and it is advisable to seek some professional help, initially from an occupational therapist who will be able to judge your needs and requirements.  Secondly, you could consider asking for several free, no obligation quotations from difference curved stairlifts manufacturers, allowing you to get a better overview not just of stairlifts in general, but also about which ones best suit your needs and how much you can expect to pay overall.

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