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Straight Stairlifts, Curved Stairlifts and Chairlifts for outdoors

Stairlifts are the safe alternative to climbing stairs and can easily be retrofitted into most homes. There are different designs and options to suit a wide variety of staircases, including indoor, outdoor, curved, straight and narrow stairs.


Furthermore, stairlifts get installed directly to the stairs, not the walls, making it an easy non-damaging installation process.

How to Choose the Right Stairlift for Your Home

Choosing the right stairlift for your home is a crucial decision that can significantly impact your mobility and independence. Here is a step-by-step guide to help you select the perfect stairlift for your needs.

1. Assess Your Staircase Type and Layout

The first step in choosing a stairlift is to evaluate your staircase to determine whether a straight or curved model is needed.

Straight Stairlifts: A straight stairlift is designed for staircases without bends, curves, or landings, providing a smooth ride up and down straight flights of stairs. Stannah Stairlifts offer several models that are easy to install, customizable, and include safety features such as seatbelts, swivel seats, and battery backup for uninterrupted operation. These stairlifts are ideal for enhancing mobility and independence, offering comfort and reliability with a range of options to match home decor and personal preferences.

Curved Stairlifts: For staircases with curves or landings, our custom-built curved stairlifts provide a perfect fit. These stairlifts are crafted to match the unique layout of your stairs, offering seamless navigation and enhanced safety. The Stannah Curved Stairlifts and the Otolift Air single rail stairlifts both cater to staircases with turns or curves but differ in design and features. Stannah Curved Stairlifts offer a bespoke solution tailored to the exact specifications of your staircase, emphasizing robust safety features and a smooth ride. The Otolift Air, on the other hand, features a slim, single-rail design that is aesthetically pleasing and minimally intrusive, making it ideal for narrow staircases. Both options prioritize comfort and reliability but cater to different aesthetic and space requirements.

 2. Other Considerations: 

Location of Staircase: Are your stairs located outdoors? Make sure you install a chair-lift that has specifically been designed for the outdoors, to ensure it can withstand the elements in the years to come. Our current outdoor options can be viewed here

Width of Staircase: Ensure there is enough space to accommodate the stairlift without obstructing the stairway. Curved stairlifts require more room than straight stairlifts, however, Stannah also offers a perch-style stairlift for extra narrow stairls, the Sadler Stairlift for narrow stairs. 

Location of Power Outlets: Consider the proximity of electrical outlets for charging the stairlift. While power can always be added after, this may incur an additional cost.

Structural Features: Take note of any obstacles, such as doorways or architectural features, that may impact installation. Protruding handrails may need removing, while doorways and space at the top/bottom of your stairs will determine which side of the stairs your stairlift rail will be installed on. 

3. Determine which Stairlift Features are right for you.

Dexterity of hands: Once you have identified the type of stairlift suitable for your staircase, consider the features that best meet your personal requirements.

If you suffer from arthritis or have reduced dexterity in your hands, you may require options such as automatic swivelling chairs, which means that the chair will automatically face the right direction when it has reached its destination. As using a manual lever under the seat to swivel, the chair may be too difficult.

Trouble rising after sitting: Most stairlifts will allow you to adjust the seat height to the optimum height for you during the installation process. However if you find it difficult to stand-up or lower yourself to a seated position, a perch option may be a right solution, or you could consider a chair with a rising function, which allows you to rise higher to assist you in getting in and out of the chair. This function is also a great option if there is more than one stairlift user, and if the users aren’t of the same or similar height. Find out more about this Chairlift option here

While there are many more factors that will ultimately influence your choice, the above will give us a good idea of what products would be best for you. Across our entire range of curved stairlifts, straight chairlifts, outdoor lifts, one-rail lift options and two rail stair-lifts we offer many options to ensure the stairlift fits your décor, such as different colours and material of upholstery and finishings on the rails/rails.

FAQ's 

View our most popular frequently asked questions below, or click here to see all our FAQ's

What Stairlift features does a stairlift have? 

Can stairlifts go around bends, landings and corners?

Yes, both Stannah Stairlifts and OtoLifts offer bespoke curved rail options. Include one rail and two rail solutions. These are custom-made to suit your stairs for a snug fit and additional room on the stairs for other users.

What is the best stairlift available in Australia?

What happens during a power outage?

Motobility prides itself in only providing products that have been well designed and manufactured by reputable suppliers to the highest of quality standards. Both Stannah Stairlifts and OtoLifts have a long-running history of excellence, and we feel confident about providing you with the solution that is best for you.

Because everyone's need is different and all staircases are unique, it is hard to say what the best stairlift is in Australia as we believe it is about finding the best possible solution for you while choosing from the best products currently available.

Each stair-lift is fitted with batteries, which are continuously being charged while the stairlift is at it’s “charging points” these are usually located at the top and bottom of your stairs, but can also be located in turns or areas, where the chair causes the least amount of disruption to the stairs. During a power outage, the battery will continue to power the chair for 6-8 return journeys, depending on the length of your stairs and the condition of the batteries

How much space do you need for a stairlift?

How to use Stannah stairlift wall-controls / How to call a chairlift

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