Everyone is familiar with the concept of having a stairlift in the home (for those that struggle with mobility, whether through a disability, old age or illness) but not so many people are familiar with the concept of home lifts (sometimes referred to as domestic lifts).
Indeed, most people would wonder what on earth had happened were they to visit a relative or a friend only to find a ‘proper’ lift in the hallway or corner of the living room – you’d be forgiven for wondering whether the upstairs had been turned into some sort of business premises.
But, in actual fact, home lifts have been around for quite some time and are fast becoming the favoured alternative to the more commonplace stairlift and here are five reasons why.
1) A standard home lift is far more reliable than a stairlift which can often breakdown, leaving users potentially ‘trapped’ upstairs or confined to the downstairs until the problem is fixed.
2) Stairlifts may ostensibly seem like the cheapest option, initially, but the ongoing cost of repairs and maintenance servicing means that, in the long run, it is far more cost effective to purchase a domestic lift.
3) The lifts do not take up an abundance of space or spoil the aesthetic of the home like a stairlift can. Home lifts and elevators can be fitted with an integrated curtain that simply slides over, making the lift seem like a windowed area.
4) Home lifts are far faster when compared to stairlifts which sometimes seem to take a lifetime to get up or down the stairs. A through-floor lift is capable of taking one passenger up to one floor in under 30 seconds.
5) Domestic lifts also allow for more than one person to travel at one time, meaning that unlike a stairlift, no one person needs to be left at the bottom or top of the stairs while the other one uses the lift.