Caregiver Blogs:

You might think of elder mobility issues as problems walking, but they can start sooner and in more subtle ways. Whether from osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis, knee pain can making climbing stairs difficult even as walking itself is still easily accomplished. To limit pain as well as reduce the chance of falls, avoiding stairs often becomes necessary. To continue to age in place when the bedroom is upstairs, stairs lifts are a terrific innovation.

Rather than involving a huge structural and financial undertaking, having a chair for stairs installed is easy and affordable. The track of the stairs chair goes over your staircase—it’s not attached to the wall. This makes it less of a problem to remove, too. Stair lifts’ models are available for virtually any type of staircase you have, from straight to curved, and the designs are unobtrusive.

The price of a stairs chair will depend on the style as well as features you select and can run from about two or three thousand dollars and up (custom curved ones are most expensive). The most important chair stair lift features are safety, including braking mechanisms, sensors and a seatbelt, and smooth operation that’s battery-based and has dual remote controls—on the unit and a separate controller.

As easy as it is to install a chair for stairs, you don’t have to do it yourself. Leading manufacturers will send a representative out to measure, answer your stair lift chair questions and arrange for a knowledgeable installer to put it in. Be sure to get customer testimonials and recommendations before deciding on which chair stair lift company to use, and ask how long the warrantee is good for—you may be able to get an extended one for a few dollars’ more.
When it comes to staying independent and living in one’s home, having a stair for chairs can have a huge impact on a senior’s well-being.