What is the Best Stair Lift in the Market?

Many middle-aged homeowners who live in multi-storey houses are interested in stair lifts primarily for their own use. Middle age is the time when people’s alertness and reflexes start to decline. It is also the time when some senses like eyesight and hearing begin to show some signs of impairment due to ageing. Stair lifts help reduce wear and tear on hip joints, knees and ankles and make it safer for people to negotiate their staircase considering that statistics show that falls from stairs is the leading cause of household accident injuries.

Because middle aged people expect stair lifts to serve them for many years to come, and considering the significant amount of investment that it would entail, they often want to know the best stair lift in the market. Many models are now introduced in the market but experts agree that the best stair lift has a rack and pinion drive, which makes for a smoother ride. It has soft starts and stops that the rider will hardly even notice that the lift is in motion. A chain or a cable drive model is noisy and gives the lift that jerky movement which may aggravate the condition of the rider if he has a bad back or has recently suffered a whiplash injury.

While it is debatable, some would argue that the best stair lift runs on a whisper-quiet DC motor powered by a 12 or 24 volt batteries that can be re-charged on static charging stations located at both ends of the track. These battery operated systems are safe and can operate even during a power failure in the neighborhood. A stair lift that runs on an AC motor that is powered by 110 to 220 volts electricity from the house mains has a trailing cable that has the potential for giving somebody an electric shock. Moreover, a lift that runs on an AC motor will be immobilized should a power outage occur in the area and strand its rider in the middle of the stairs if the power failure happens to occur while the lift is in motion.

The best stair lift must feature a swivel seat that can be positioned at three angles, otherwise it can be dangerous to mount or dismount the lift at the top of the stairs. As an added safety feature, the best stair lift must have an over speed governor to prevent uncontrolled descent should a major drive system failure occur while the lift is in operation.

If you are looking for the best stair lift in the market, be sure that the model you are interested in has these features as minimum standard.

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