-
Designing an accessible home
If money were no object, what items would you include if you were designing an accessible house? What if it wasn’t a house and you were trying to make an apartment as accessible as possible?
-
12 Replies
-
1) Ramps for stairs, or stair lift if a 2-story house
2) ADA height toilets
3) Bathroom design for grab bar placement everywhere
4) 36 inch wide doorways
5) low height thresholds for exit to outside and patios/decks
6) High-arc faucets
7) Low-set sinks (for wheelchair use individuals)
8) Roll-in shower
9) Microwave in counter
10) Stove with front controls (so no reaching over burners/hot pans etc.)
-
Mary,
Good suggestions. Thanks for taking the time to share them.
Ed
-
-
After my PPMS diagnose I wanted a shower installed in our 3 bedroomed house ( with stairs ) but the person I live with would not install one so we sold up and moved to a 2 bedroomed parkhome ( parkhomes are not bricks and mortar but are all on one flat level, ) but are larger than what one can afford when compared in buying a ” bricks and motar house – cottage or bungalow…” you can get more for your money, they have more space inside suitable for manoeuvring around…I now have my shower, he has his bath in a separate room but, Oh, how I would love to take a relaxing bubble bath once again, just like the old times, if only…So in answer to your question….money no object, the perfect bath for getting in and out of would be number one on my agenda…I am sure one exists but again, he is happy with the deep, slippery and too long for me bath that we have, and I know he has no intentions of replacing it…
-
Hi Jackie,
It’s been a long time since I’ve had a bath, but I don’t really miss them.
Have you investigated a walk-in bath? You can’t stretch out, flat, and soak but you can sit in them and enjoy some of the bath benefits.
Ed
-
-
Ed…
…I know walk in baths do exist but, It would be pointless me even mentioning them to ” you know who, his name I shall not mention, ” he is a person who will not budge, not even for me and my MS illness…anyway the bathroom is his, the shower room is mine…But just the thought of relaxing my head on a bath pillow, foaming bubble-bath or relaxing ( Elemis ) muscle soak as it would be now, oh what bliss if this could happen on occasion…As for my shower, I just want to get in and get it over with, and get out as quick as I can…
Jackie…
-
Back to the question…” if money was no object..” i would move again, move to a place that is not on a steep slope path at the front of the home – move to a flat back garden that one can step straight onto grass again, not decking…our grass is up high decking steps and is on a slope, not practical for someone with MS…My alterations would be on the outside rather than the inside of my home…
-
Easy-peasy – a good sized pool at about 85 degrees, for water ex. and swimming laps. More specifically – about 4 ft deep for running- walking in the water, a deeper area, 6 ft so I can do flutter kick exercises in the water upright, and even if I cannot use all of my limbs as well, I would still like to do laps. Pool edge should be at sit on edge height with railings so I can get in and out easily. Rails, steps in shallow area so I can exit easily.
Then exercise area with my rowing erg, free weights, bench, a cycle and perhaps some other things.
Yard – with paths to get to various planting beds.
I am currently having my modest ranch home updated. All towel bars or anything that can be grabbed is also a grab bar. Bath being replaced by walk in shower.
-
Thanks for the ideas, Nancy.
Even though I like to swim and walk in the pool to help keep me moving, I never thought of it as an item for an accessible home. I’m glad that you mentioned it.
Replacing the towel racks with grab bars is also a great idea. I wonder how many of us have started to slip, grabbed for a towel rack and pulled it right out of the wall as we hit the floor.
Ed
-
-
In addition to allof the recommendations, I have a few more. I do not have limitless funds, but I am planning to update my kitchen and bath – both orginal to the home which was build in 1953. And both locations are modest in dimension, so no major changes in layout.
Bath – replacing tub/shower with no thresh hold shower with seat that folds down. Adding hand shower wand closer to the shower seat, and have a regular showhead as well. Toilet/bidet combo – recommended by my OT. More extensive lighting and auto shutoff fan. I am also having a towel/grab bar installed right outside of shower to hand my canes.
Kitchen redo – new cabinets with light black splash and counter tops. Lots of lighting. Adding a dishwasher, a darker one bowl sink so coffee and tea stains are not so evident. Counter depth fridge-freezer with bottom freezer drawer – nothing buried back to far, and I can access freezer drawer from kitchen stool. Induction cook top – lower risk from accidental burning (only heats up the pots and pans on the burner). Small space for me to sit at counter to do chopping and mixing chores while sitting on stool. Pantry cupboard. Vinyl flooring – update, but I need a softer flooring.
In addition, I am having a 24″ washer/dryer stack set installed in main bedroom closet which backs on to mainfloor bath. I will be able to do laundry without assistance or having to go to the basement where machines are located now. Adding the w/d will require that the closet be made deeper so I am also have lighting in the closet, and and outlet installed to use for rechargable vacuum that I will acquire at some future date.
Minor things – I have grab bar adjacent to steps in my garage, makes the two steps much easier to manage both going up and down. I am planning to have similar grab bars installed at the top and the bottom of my basement stairs. Too often stair railing are only as long as the stairs themselves. The extra grab bars set higher at the top of the stairs and lower at the bottom give an additional hand hold in just the right place.
I have 4 grabbers for different rooms in my home. I also keep canes, walker and office chair in the basement so I do not have to carry my mainfloor aids down the stairs. I also have spare crutches in my car, just in case.
-
Great ideas, Nancy.
In my old house, which we re-modeled many years ago, we added a grab bar for the two steps from our laundry room to the kitchen…like what you’re doing from your garage. It was a very large help. We also added a first floor, roll-in, shower with a slightly sloping floor. And a laundry shoot from the master bedroom on the 2nd floor to the laundry room. If we had stayed in that house we, eventually, would have added a stair climber.
It pays to think ahead. Good luck.
Ed
-
-
It all sounds incredible Nancy, I would love that !
-
The person ( man ) I live with would not put in a shower for my benefit at our old house, he was happy living there, did not want to move, but I needed a shower and a home on one level, we were in a house with stairs…If only he had put in a shower, we would probably still be there…Now of course I wish we still was, as I so miss the people I once knew…I am far more isolated where we now are…just wish i was back home…
Log in to reply.