Making your home wheelchair accessible requires changes to its structure, such as widening doorways to accommodate the mobility device, installing ramps or stairlifts, and lowering countertops. Just as crucial is investing in home accessibility features, including walk-in showers and grab rails.
Through these accessible home improvement strategies, you can make your home safer, more convenient, and more navigable. They also play crucial roles in helping you, an older loved one, or a family member with a disability to age in place.
As an AARP survey found, most adults aged 50 and older (75%) wish to live in their own homes for as long as possible. Almost half of the polled participants also say they foresee the need for modifications to achieve this goal.
Understanding the various ways to make your abode accessible to wheelchairs can help you adapt your home for disability and safer aging in place.
What Does Wheelchair Accessible Mean?
Wheelchair accessible means that the design of a structure or facility (e.g., a house, a residential complex, or commercial building) allows for its comfortable use and access by people with mobility challenges or disabilities. Compared to regular homes, for instance, it has wider doorways and paths and ramps over stairs.
What Is the Legal Requirement for Wheelchair Accessibility?
Private homeowners in the U.S. are not legally required to have a wheelchair accessible or mobility-friendly home design.
However, businesses, commercial establishments, and government facilities are under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA requires them to provide everyone, including people with disabilities, equal opportunity to access their goods and services.
Do Landlords Need to Make Their Rental Homes Wheelchair Accessible?
Suppose you're considering becoming a landlord and renting out your existing residential property to a tenant with a disability. You're still not legally required to install accessibility features, but you must adhere to the Fair Housing Act (FHA).
As explained by Congress.gov, under the FHA, small housing providers (e.g., if you only rent out one single-family house) must not prohibit tenants from requesting and making reasonable modifications to the property.
Reasonable modifications are physical changes to a structure that enable people with disabilities to have equal opportunities to use and enjoy the space. There must be a connection between the modification and the person's disability.
An example is if a tenant with mobility issues requests getting a wheelchair ramp installed (at home). You, as the landlord, should permit them to do so. You don't have to shoulder the cost, unless you choose to.
How Can You Make Your Home Wheelchair Accessible?
Making your home wheelchair accessible begins with creating a plan focusing on easy navigation both outside and inside the home. Here are crucial tips to help you get started.
Widen Entryways
First, check how wide your home's entryways and paths are. They should have a clear width of at least 32 inches to allow for ease of passage for a single wheelchair.
Note that many standard interior doors are only 28 to 30 inches wide, although most exterior doors are usually 36 inches wide. Doorways that are too narrow require widening, which you can do by having a professional:
- Offset the doors' hinges
- Remove the doors entirely
- Complete structural modifications to widen the doors' frames
Ensure all paths in and out of your home also allow for continuous, unobstructed movement. Remove any clutter or obstruction that can restrict the smooth passage of the wheelchair.
Install Ramps and Stairlifts
Wheelchair ramps feature inclined surfaces that allow for easier access and navigability than steps. They're alternatives to stairs, enhancing accessibility in both private and public spaces. While many are permanent structures, you'll also find portable and semi-permanent options.
You may also consider installing stairlifts if your home has multiple floors. They feature motorized systems that move a chair along the rail of stairs. With this, you or your loved one who uses a wheelchair can still go up and down the different levels of your home.
Lower Countertops
Lowering countertops also makes your home more wheelchair accessible, as it provides a more comfortable and functional workspace at a height that someone in a seated position can reach. It empowers people who use a wheelchair to perform many tasks on their own, such as meal preparation, cleaning, and organizing.
Add Accessibility Features
Walk-in showers, unlike typical shower stalls and bathtubs, provide barrier-free access with their curbless or low-threshold design. They allow a person who uses a wheelchair to roll directly into the space, giving them the choice to shower without transferring.
Grab bars are just as crucial, as they provide support and stability, particularly during movement and transfers. They're a must in areas where transferring from one position to another is necessary, such as bedrooms (e.g., from the bed to the wheelchair), bathrooms, and toilets.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Else Can You Do to Make Your Home Wheelchair Accessible?
One is by installing lower light switches. By positioning the switches at a lower height, you or a loved one who uses a wheelchair will still be able to flick lights on and off easily.
Another idea is to raise the height of electrical outlets. Doing so eliminates or reduces the need to stoop or crouch. It can be particularly safer for people who use wheelchairs, as stooping down can put them at risk of falling off their mobility devices.
Where Should You Install Wheelchair Ramps?
The most crucial place to install a wheelchair ramp is the most often used entryway, which, in most cases, is the front door. If you have the budget, though, you can also install one by the back or side door.
It's also wise to consider which entryway has the widest opening. If the backdoor and its path are wider and offer more space, it may make more sense and be more practical to install the ramp here.
Age in Place in Your Wheelchair Accessible Home
From widening doorways to installing ramps, lowering countertops, and installing grab bars, these are some of the most crucial strategies to make your home wheelchair accessible. The more accessible your home is, the better it supports aging in place.
Have a look at our other informative guides for more related reads like this.
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