If you, or someone in your family, has a handicap which prevents you from using your stairs, it may feel very isolating. By adding a handicap stair lift to your home, the different floors are suddenly back within reach of the entire family. Once again getting access to bedrooms, entertainment rooms, or maybe even just the laundry area, can give a great boost to happiness in being able to enjoy your home.

Depending on your type of disability, will help you choose which style handicap stair lift you need. Most stair lifts accommodate a single person sitting on a simple fold down seat. This is great for many people, but if you are a confined to a wheelchair, this type of lift may not do much good. For wheel chair users, the ideal handicap stair lift is the wheelchair lift, which allows you to roll the wheelchair right onto a platform and ride up in comfort. Once you are to the next floor, a ramp drops down on the platform and you simply roll off. A wheelchair lift can usually have an optional fold down seat added, for family members who do not require a wheelchair, but still need assistance.

One other great advantage to the wheelchair variety of handicap stair lift is the ability to load many bags or boxes on the lift, and then use the fold down seat to ride up or down with the packages. This can be a great advantage if moving packages between floors is a challenge.

Other people may have a handicap which restricts the bending of their legs, making the normal sitting position of the most stair chair lifts impossible. For such situations, there is an Acorn brand handicap stair lift called the Perch. The Perch moves the seat to a much higher location, allowing you to be in an almost standing position while riding up the stairs. It still includes a seat belt for your safety. All the other traditional safety measures are also in place. It includes sensors for obstacle detection. The lift only continues to move while you are pushing the controls, if for some reason you release the controls this handicap stair lift comes to a smooth easy stop. To make sure you are very safe when riding in this upright position, the Perch makes the stops at the top and bottom very gentle and smooth.

It is highly recommended when selecting a handicap stair lift to buy one using a battery system. If the power is out for any reason, the handicapped rider may need to move to a different floor for safety, which is not possible with an AC only powered lift.

For most handicapped individuals, a standard handicap stair lift using a rail system attached to the stairs, and a standard sitting position seat, will work great. Most of these stair lifts allow the seat to be turned while getting on and off. You may need to take a look at optional handles, and grips available on many models to make your handicap stair lift safer and more comfortable for yourself or your family member.

Getting a handicap stair lift for your home can give a boost in happiness and joy as the home becomes fully accessible again.