Instal lift or convert ground floor room to bedroom

poppy12345

buglawton wrote: »

Sure, but let's not put quintain our op off, in first post no mention of the need for a wheelchair.

Exactly which was why it was good to point that out. None of us know if there's a wheelchair user in need of these adaptions. If a person is going to go to all the expense and trouble of having a through lift installed why would you have one that a wheelchair user can't use? No one knows what the future may hold and £12000 is a lot of money in anyones standards. Obviously the OP wanted opinions which was the reason for the post in the first place. When considering adaptions you have to consider everything and ALL options.

quintain

Dear all

Thank you for your replies and advice; I will try to update and explain our situation a little more in this post, which I will desperately try to keep as short as possible.

1. my wife Betty (who is young enough in infancy to have heard Neville Chamberlain's declaration "we are at War") has had 2 hip replaced in the last 4yrs, 2nd one being Dec 2016
2. June 2017 she tripped and fell in our home and badly damaged/hurt her lower back
3. following 6 days in hospital she returned home with bedroom on 1st floor, managed with pain to get to 1st floor
4. Pain is easing minutely daily with subsequent slight additional ability to walk with aids
5. now can travel from 1st to ground floor with pain/difficulty

I decided it was time for me to start researching any/all options for the hopeful but unknown distant future.


With no BS intended I turned to this forum knowing the MSE community generally are sensible persons willing to help others.


With apologies to truly independent advisers in these matters, I cynically considered I would get limited advise from product suppliers.


I simultaneously started a google search on methods of getting 'up the stairs' or adapting a ground floor area which we could retreat to.


We are not readily in the position of moving house as we are developing a small section of our land for 20+ self build family homes immediately adjacent to our home and it is to our benefit to be on hand at this time and especially when the builds start in about 1yrs time.

1. we could with major alterations retreat to the ground floor but it does seem like we are closing down part of our life
2. building onto the ground floor is the same as item 1
3. consider a staircase lift
   1. I assumed the track would need to be on a load bearing wall...I assumed wrongly as this collective research shows
      1. (assumed..'making an !!! out of u & me'...is appropriate)
4. consider a through the floor 'non wheelchair' lift
   1. the non wheel chair decision/option being "if we are to consider a staircase lift or a through the floor lift, Betty (or me in the future) would need to transfer ourself from a chair to either of the options both at ground floor and 1st floor
5. I was supporting a through the floor new or reconditioned lift
   1. I am concerned on reports from this forum as to their reliability
   2. I am wondering if a single s/case lift running around the bannister rail staircase side would not be preferred
   3. or 2 x straight s/case lifts

We have no emergency need to make any decision at this moment BUT it is unknown what tomorrow may require.


Your advice to date has helped us enormously and welcome any additional information following this missive.



Apologies for the 'War & Peace' narrative.


Thank you for your help to date.

GlasweJen

Only my own experience, the lift in my old house broke constantly. It got to the stage where I knew the repair guys name. There was an article in the glasgow papers lately and a lady had the same problems as me. The man said these things have a tendency to play up as they don't have the same qualify of components as a lift in a hotel or supermarket.

I'd describe the "ride quality" in my lift as being on a par with one of those Victorian lifts with the gate that you still get in dodgy hotels abroad.

Also in addition to the bit you see there's more space needed for the mechanism which is quite bulky. You'd also need to factor in the fact that they will pull down part of your ceiling and your ceiling may need reinforced as well.

I've vowed never to stay in a house with a lift again, I'd rather pay the premium for a bungalow

Owain_Moneysaver

poppy12345 wrote: »

That hardly looks big enough for a wheelchair user...

I don't think it is. It also looks like it has quite a high threshold step.

If there isn't space inside the building it is sometimes possible to bolt a lift enclosure on the outside eg

http://www.invalifts.com/our-products/external-lifts.html

This is easier if there are already windows vertically above each other which can be opened up to floor level and are wide enough to provide access onto the lift platform without needing to have new lintels put into the walls. It's then fairly straightforward to brick up the opening and put the window back when the lift is removed.