Deciding on where you’ll place your new home lift is an important factor when deciding whether or not you should get one. Certain homes may not have the space required for one, while others may only have space in areas which may not be the most suitable.
In addition to the space required for the home lift, you’ll need to think about where you spend most of your time, how accessible the lift will be depending on where it is placed, and what you want the lift to look like – as this may affect the actual lift’s shape and size.
Outdoors or indoors
In most cases, home lifts are placed indoors. However, they can sometimes be installed outdoors, too. Outdoor lifts are common in smaller households that have less space, or homes that would otherwise require intense renovation or reconstruction.
Whilst placing your lift outdoors can save indoor space, they will have to have a roof or cover over them to shield them from the weather. They will also require some decent space indoors for each entranceway.
If you decide to go with an indoor home lift, you’ll need enough space to get in and out of the lift, as well as space for the actual lift itself. In both outdoor and indoor cases, the space required to safely enter and exit the lift increases if mobility aids like wheelchairs, walkers and mobility scooters will need to get through.
The garage
The garage can be a great place for a home lift, granted that the areas on the floors directly above it are also suitable. Lifts placed next to where you park can make carrying and transporting heavy things a walk in the park.
Another upside is that you won’t have to walk through cold or harsh weather to get into your home, making it great in winter – especially for the elderly who may struggle even more with the cold than others.
Garage lifts may also offer you an increased sense of safety and security, as you gain direct, secure access from your car straight to your home without having to walk from the car to your front door.
Next to the staircase
If you’ve already got stairs installed in your home, and you still have no clue where to place your lift, a good option is to look at the areas surrounding your stairs. Usually, staircases are already in a convenient, prime location in order to offer the best access to each floor. As a result, the area next to or closeby them is usually the most suitable for a home lift.
Of course, this really depends on the type of stairs you have. If they are in a bending pattern, for example, you can usually place the lift in a way which allows the stairs to wrap around the lift. If they go straight upwards, a good place for the lift is usually next to them.
Close to frequently used entrances or rooms
The proximity from the lift to where you spend most of your time is easily one of the most important factors to consider when deciding where it should go.
Whether you are preparing to grow old in your home, have mobility issues or perhaps even a disability, you don’t want to make moving around harder than it already is – or might be in the future.
You want to place your lift in areas that are easily accessible, in rooms that are used frequently. This will help you get the most out of having a home lift, as well as increase ease of mobility within the home.
