You might not see the need for wheelchair ramps in your home until your old parents come to stay with you. Of course, there are various ways in which we are involved in taking care of our aging parents. You might come in into their lives financially by paying their bills and meeting their health needs. In other cases, you might decide to invite your parents to your home to live with them. in such cases, you will need to make some physical changes that may be in your bathrooms and bedroom remodeling and installation of a wheelchair ramp. Wheelchair ramps may also come in handy when you are living with someone who has limited mobility.
Wheelchair ramps come in different shapes depending on the functionality of the same. Most people assume that there are fewer considerations when it comes to installing wheelchair ramps but the fact is, wheelchair ramps are more than a piece of lumber and therefore, certain things must be considered when choosing wheelchair ramp.
To start with, one must determine the length of the ramp they need. To short wheelchair ramp results in steep grade and consequently making it hard and unsafe for the wheelchair user to use the ramp. On the other hand, longer ramps are much safer and easy to use because of the decreased steepness. For a proper length of the ramp, you are advised to take the measurements for; the total usable width of the area and the total vertical rise one is trying to cover. With these measurements, it will be easy to implement the recommended length for maybe residential and commercial use ramps.
The next step involved in selecting the wheelchair ramp is determining the right type of wheelchair ramp you need. Each type of ramp is meant to meet certain needs and therefore, one must know what they want with the ramps. You can settle for the free-standing wheelchair ramps which tend to be more permanent. They are the sturdiest ramps and can be used permanently or as temporary fixtures. However, this is an expensive option because of its durability.
You might also choose the portable wheelchair ramps. These are lightweight ramps that are easy to carry around. These ramps might be needed where there are visitors who need the ramps for a certain period or when the user travels to certain places where they are not assured of the presence of the ramps.
One can also go for the threshold ramps. These are much shorter compared to the other types of ramps. They are portable and commonly used in residential areas to bridge shorter gaps. These are the ramps used where there are raised entrances and doorway plates.
As you can see, there are multiple ramps in the industry. People using a wheelchair and any other mobility devices can get the ramps suitable for their ease of mobility.
To sum up, for one to get the right wheelchair ramp, they should consider their budget, needs and how they plan to use the ramp.