There are many reasons to design a suitable residence. People with physical and motor limitations, wheelchair users and the elderly are some of the main groups that need such care.
When projecting an adapted home for wheelchair users, one should always take the following considerations:
- Minimum corridors 0f 32 in;
- Avoid residences with several floors, since it limits the movement of the wheelchair. If stairs are present, it is possible to install lifts coupled with the ladder, but it should be straight. Another alternative is to install hydraulic lifts. The recommended is to leave a placeholder for such a 70 in x 70 in;
- Interesting plan a room on the ground floor with a spacious bathroom;
- Entry thresholds should be low to prevent accidents;
- The doors, including bathrooms, must have minimum widths of 32 in;
- Sockets and switches must be installed between 18 in and 48 in of the ground;
- The windows with sill 28 in from the ground, so the wheelchair can look at the outside;
In the case of the elderly, we have to take even more care.
- Furniture with rounded corners and fixed on the floor to avoid accidents. When out of balance, the furniture will be an important support object;
- The floor covering should be anti-skid to prevent falls, since at this stage the body and the bones are fragile;
- In bathrooms, it is a great option to install grab bars to reduce the risk of falls, as in bathrooms, accidents usually common with the elderly;
- If possible, it is interesting to replace stairs by ramps. If the home has stairs, use handrails;
- Rugs should be avoided since they are easy to result in falls;
Accessibility solutions increase the total cost of the constraction in approximately 3%. While reforms and adaptations of residence, the cost reaches 25% of the total work. So it’s very important that these solutions appear in the initial project.
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