Search:

Home | Business | Managing


 

Using a Wheelchair Lift with Your Car

By: Ralph Nindly

There are many people who today use wheelchairs and mobility scooters. These types of devices are sometimes called mobility vehicles or personal mobility vehicles. They make it possible for many millions of people who have difficulty to get around. Since many people use them away from the home, it is necessary to use a wheelchair lift in order to transport these devices.
There are a few types of wheelchair lifts available. Some wheelchair lifts, which are often called vertical platform lifts, are designed for the home. Others are made for vehicles. A vehicle wheelchair lift will allow an individual using a car, truck, van, or SUV, easily transport their mobility vehicle.
Some are made so that they can easily and quickly be added or removed from the car. These wheelchair lifts are hitch mounted, so there is seldom any serious car modification needed. These attach directly to a car or other vehicles hitch. Depending on the class of the hitch, some can support well over three hundred pounds. Some are manual, but most lift the mobility vehicle electronically using a small platform. A hitch can be installed on virtually any type of vehicle, so these types of lifts work with cars as well as larger vehicles.
For transporting a manual wheelchair, there are several lightweight easy to use hitch mounted lifts available. These use a manual tip system and the whole lift does not weigh much. Most electric hitch mounted lifts, like those that used to move a mobility scooter, weigh a little more, because they feature an electric motor.
Most other types of wheelchair lift are installed internally. These lifts either use a platform, similar to the external vehicle lifts, or they use a winch system. The system that uses a winch is well suited to transporting these devices in a cars truck. They are basically a mini-crane, which can extend from the trunk.
The internal lifts that use a platform are usually able to support more weight in addition to being easier to use by your self. They do require more space in the car though. They are often installed, after removing a row of seats, into the middle part of a van. They can also be installed into the rear of a SUV or van, but can not be used with cars.
While there are some manual lifts available, most vehicle wheelchair lifts utilize electrical motors to do the actual lifting. Some get their power from removable and rechargeable battery packs, while others utilize the vehicles battery. Some can even be used to charge your mobility vehicle while you are on the road.
People that use mobility vehicles to get around, frequently invest in a wheelchair carrier for their automobile. There are advantages to the two major types, internal and external, but they are all generally easy to install and use.

Article Source: http://directoryjam.com

Using these types of vehicle wheelchair lifts can make getting around town easier. Learn more about these and other lifting aids, like the dumbwaiter, at AmeriGlide.

Please Rate this Article

 

Not yet Rated

Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Managing Articles Via RSS!

Powered by Article Dashboard