EZ Climber Home Elevator

[flagman1776]

https://www.easyclimber.com/home-elevator/

I've never seen anthing like it. Supplied information is frustratingly scant. The company pushes a "free home visit".

It's 24v DC (battery) operated. Available in 4 footprints: 38" X 38", 38" x 47.47", 36" x 54", 30" x 46". I don't see a weight rating... I'm thinking an occupant and future powerchair... except 400# signage in an image. The installation requres a "back wall" on both levels. Only available to connect 2 floors. In the video, the elevator strikes me as "slow".

We are considering this indoor option as opposed to a long outdoor ramp. There isn't an obivious location... there's a lot of figuring to do a to possible locations. The most obivious answer is to move the laundry downstairs & use that space off the hall.

I'm afraid it wouldn't fully replace the need for a ramp eIther.

[Burgerman]

Move, get a bungalow.
Think of the children, I mean future.

Honestly if you plan things right you dont need to go through the adapt everything and rely in mechanical gadgets, expense, options. You know you wont get better. So plan for a disabled future. I would have moved house. But already lived in a bungalow ith ground floor space. In a flat area, with plenty local parks, shops, easy train station, town centre, etc.

I decided 20 years ago to draw up a massive joined up plan. And then started knocking down walls and re-ranging ramps so that there were non visible, making things as open plan as poss, wet room, disabled freindly kitchen, huge fridge for , as maintainance free (outdoors too) for the future as humanly possible, and with no obvious visible adaptations. I hate to appear disabled. It puts people off. They think you are institutiuonalised.

EG my block paved drive simply replaces the previous ramps and railings to the now wider p;lastic double glazed front door, and the same setup at the back. So no obvious ramp, just slightly angled driveway with a level entrance. Wider doors everywhere, huge open plan kitchen/dinibg room by taking a hammer to several walls and building an extention across the whole back of the house.

Wide doorways everywhere, solar to cover much of my electricity, all wood replaced with plastic, garden all pots or block paved, or grass (shaun sorts that out) and no borders to weed etc. Tiled floors, black carpet tiles everywhere, doors that swing both ways to several rooms so I can crash in/out as I want, indoor workshop, van, etc. Fortunately I already lived in a bungalow. Unfortunately its got a batthroom, and 2 bedrooms that I have not seen for 20 years upstairs in the roof! But they are no bother. I still also have 2 bathrooms (one is a wet room) downstairs, 32 large bedrooms downstairs, living room that is currently being rebuilt by insurance due to leak!
And I mostly cook in the non winter months at a gas BBQ outside under the solar panels at the bottom of the gaarden as its a sun trap. Save the kitchen getting dirtty or worn out!



Shaun http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/gopro/fastmower.mp4

[Burgerman]

After I knocked down a couple of walls what used to be 3 rooms and no space to move, means I have some ROOM! That the most omportant requirement in an adapted kitchen. Space to manoever. I went a bit mad here. But now I can move about. Part of my plan...

http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/disable ... itchen.htm

[Burgerman]

I wouldnt trust a cheap mechanical lift to be reliable. And the thing that puts me off them, and there are actually quite a lot of those types of lift here, is that they are very flimsy, and look disabled. That puts me right off installing one in my house. If I did then I would be able to go and see 2 bedrooms and a bathroom, that I have not seen in 20 years! But I dont actually need them that badly.

[LROBBINS]

We have an elevator to go the 60 cm from our garage to our apartment - it is ground floor but has an air space underneath, common construction practice here. It is an hydraulic pantograph unit and very little different from industrial equipment lifters except for safety interlocks, deadman switch and enclosed sides and doors. It is slow, but many times faster than a stair climber (hateful devices!). Ours is mains powered, but can descend by opening a valve and has a hand pump if we have to raise it without power. Platform is 1.5m x 1m and it's rated at 250 kg. BTW - you will not find a bungalow in Italy as far as I know, nor a "ranch" etc., so in general some adaptation will be needed.

[Burgerman]

Villas?

[Burgerman]

250kg isnt that much.

Modern chair 190kg with all singing seating.
User can be light weight, say 60kg and its on the outside limit.
I am double that! So would be 60kg OVER the limit. If I need an adult to drive the chair, as you do with Rachi, I would be at 310kg plus your weight! A guess. 75kg?

So 385kg... Without shopping or dog! Or toolbox!

For flagman, I suggest you think very carefully after checking out one of those lifts in use by an end user for a period of time. To at least evaluate build quality, as well as quality of installation and ask them about problems. And test it. All those I saw so far I wouldnt trust and they felt flimsy and poorly designed. Nor would I want in my house for asthetic reasons. But if theres no better option you may not get much choice.

[LROBBINS]

Yes, there are villas and smaller villetas, but all multi-storey as far as I've seen. I suppose that out in the sticks you could probably get someone to build whatever you'd want (if you could get the bureaucracy to approve it). We have what is considered a large apartment - 115 square meters - and, as was the case in the U.S., it took quite a bit of looking to find one that could be adapted with widened doorways etc. Our last house in the U.S. was more than twice as large and cost about half as much, but was in a relatively cheap city. It had ca. 200 square meters on ground level on a no-basement slab with two largish rooms a half floor above that became my shop and a guest room. Front door was accessed by a long, sloping sidewalk (shallow enough to not be legally a ramp) and rear door was at yard level.

[flagman1776]

Trying to "Future Proof" the home requires furture needs be met. The videos show a walker, not even a manual wheelchair. Hmm!

[Burgerman]

Well not every disability needs a wheelchair.

One of the things that frustrated me was turning my home into an obviously addapted house. I dont want to LOOK disabled or different. And dont want to de-value my house or turn it into an eyesore either. As was happening initially. Then I made a plan.

I had a ramp in concrete installed at my too narrow for comfort front door by the council for free on leaving hospital. Complete with really pretty industrial scaffold type handrails that I did not want, and had no choice. (rules, safety nazis, etc etc).

So after my plan, I made myself a bit of parking space, re-did the drive, lost the lawn, flower borders, added a gate, to keep the dog in, and made it so that the disability adaptation at the front was invisible. I did the same thing with inner doors widened, redecorated, and other gadgets designed for helping me. And removed a few walls etc. Theres always a work around that works better for everyone and doesent look adapted or institutionalised. Except for maybe a lift...

Ie the ramp/scaffolding, replaced for eg, here below, and allows me a bit of parking space too, and now the grass is gone so no more lawn or weeds at the front. It no longer looks adapted at all from the road, and is easier to maintain with just an automatic hose pipe! Its true that mods like this cost. But does it really? It increased the value of the house, and more importantly it means my life is both easier and more enjoyable with less of a struggle. This included replacing old windows, doors, with wider plastic sdouble glazed ones that reduce heating and maintainance costs for the future.

No ramp, just a slope, and all gutters, doors, windows, eaves, soffits replaced with washable plastic! (hose pipe maintainance plan! Drive kept in shape with yearly weedkiller... Easy!

http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/images_ ... _NIGHT.JPG
And
http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/images_ ... PLACED.JPG

Theres more OCD if you want to look. 14mm lens distorts and makes edges and close stuff look bigger than it really is...
Lawn replaced borders with weeds/flowers. Fence replaced hedges that needed maintainance. Extension gave me space to move!
New efficient heating system, and planned heat pump ventilation system soon, to increase comfort and decrease heat costs. Solar decreased electricity costs markedly. Dog sadly gone, reduces costs too but thats one expense I would want back!
New bathroom, because my brother has a bathroom shop. I got all the stuff he couldnt sell! Cheap...

http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/images_email/

[flagman1776]

Wife doesn't want to relocate to a more suitable location.
There are other home elevator companies & choices... I found one with enough capacity.
http://www.home-elevator.net/freedom-green.php They don't give pricing information.

[Burgerman]

Wife doesn't want to relocate to a more suitable location.

Well thats one you cant win! Did you consider a ramp outdoors may be cheaper and 100 percent reliable if theres a place to do it sdescretely. Maybe in wood and decking materials. I considered a 2 stage reversing one here at the back of the house.

[rlnguy]

I'll just toss this out for your consideration.
Many years ago, I installed a few of these:
https://butlermobility.com/inclined-platform-lifts/
We installed one, in a new home, where they framed a shallow pit, at the bottom, so it sat level with the floor.
It only works with straight stairways.
We also installed a couple of these:
https://www.garaventalift.com/en/produc ... lifts.html
The advantage was that it can handle almost any stair configuration, including stairs that turn corners.
They also make an outdoor unit.
If you are up to doing it yourself, there are a lot of videos and websites that show how others have done it.
(I copied a design my dad built, when I was a kid, but I have seen some built using all kinds of mechanisms.)
Lastly, I'll add, check with local building codes folks-sometimes they have concerns.
good luck

[Burgerman]

Those look like a better bet and better build quality than the typical domestic vertical lift. Those are all cheap plastic glass and plastic rattly panels. And feel like they are a DIY mod! But...

Personally I qould still have the "it makes the house look adapted" issue. Or it makes you look/appear disabled to guests. Yes I know I am nuts. So would rather build a ramp out the back somewhere that anone can walk up, that looks pretty, has a few hanging baskets and lights, made from wood or something and doesent scream disability. But dont take my opinion too seriously, I am a bit abnormal and have strong views!

[Burgerman]

Something like this to the next floor, with a drinking area and a picnic table at the top. Make a feature of it. Then it wont de-value your house, and it wont break down. And it looks cool instead of institutionalised. It may need to be 3 turn rather than 2. The next one can go UNDER the higher level. Sort of like a multi level car park.

Once stained, and decorated, with a few chairs at the top it would look great. Your wife would aprove. And likely no more expensive than a lift. Of course it means stepping outside to go down/up which may be cold for a few secs in winter.

index.jpg (8.95 KiB) Viewed 2566 times

Heres another, 2 story residential ramp:

[Burgerman]

HOW NOT to do it!

Here is what a socialist local government ramp looks like, cost a staggering 40K and she didnt even want it... Thats 60k dollars.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... tain-great

[rlnguy]

I would agree with the ramp, or other non powered option.
Sometimes that just isn't possible.
My house has a ramp, and large, covered, outdoor deck, in the back.
But it is also 2 stories, so I have a home built elevator, that goes from garage up about 5 feet to main floor, and then another 9, to the 2nd floor.
It took 2 days to build, and will take about a day to remove, when/if I ever move.

I love the ramp story, BTW

[Burgerman]

I love the ramp story, BTW

It takes a spectacular amount if stupidity to plan, authorise, install that rediculous ramp at the taxpayers expense. Only a bunch of councilers could possibly be that stupid! She even told them not to do it. And note the stupid metal scaffolding style hand rails that the safety nazis insist on fitting.

I needed a ramp at my front door after my accident to get in. I used aa lump of plywood initially. It needed to go up about 22 inches. They fitted a concrete ramp about half a mile long with those stupid rails. So I did the drive instead and brought all the levels up. Elsewhere on this thread. http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/images_ ... PLACED.JPG Ramp gone...
Because it works better, and it LOOKS better! And got rid of a load of gardening and gave me somewhere to park a few cars.

[flagman1776]

My last post didn't "take"... Thankyou all for the useful comments.
There will be a wooden deck anyway. A wooden ramp off that is pretty much a no brainer. There's grass there now... we want to keep the but I think a paved walkway would be all I need to get to parking. Wife is coming around to my thoughts on new parking & how to get there.

[flagman1776]

At present there are 6 steps to the kitchen door... we never built the desk we'd planned. So I am looking at different deck / ramp ideas.

Ramps aren't required to meet ADA for a private residence but I'm treating it as a useful guide. (6) 7" steps is 42". (ADA max for one run is 30" but I'll disreguard that also for my private residence.)(ADA requires landings be 60" & it has merit for required turning room.) ADA 1:12 = 42 feet of ramp. Or (2) zig-zag 21 foot runs + a 5 foot landing to turn. (or some combo to equal 42 feet.)

I have a lot of ideas... different configurations... that reach ground level at very different places. Hmmm...