Personal Elevators May Be Preferable To A Curved Staircase Lift
A personal elevator is also known as a home elevator and may be preferable to a stair lift if the staircase is not straight but is unconventional or curved in its shape. This particular type of equipment is open installed to assist members of the household who are physically disabled or those who are in their golden years in moving to different levels of a multi-story house. However, it is a common belief that the price of personal elevators is prohibitive and a less expensive alternative is the stair lift, especially used stair lifts. In this system, a rail is placed on the treads of the stairs and a chair or platform is allowed to move along the rail. Because of the simpler design, the stair lift is often preferred to the personal elevator when budget is concerned.
However, in the case of the staircase with an unusual design, the installation of the rails would be very difficult and thus may require much more time to be put in place. The result is a stair lift that is more expensive because of the higher cost of labor and even materials. Moreover, while the lift may increase the value of the home, it will not be anywhere near the increase in market value that will be provided by a personal elevator. The main reason is that it will be very difficult to sell the lift that is provided for an unusually shaped staircase unless you find a home with a staircase that is exactly the same in shape. Thus personal elevators may offer great value in certain situations.
Another reason why a residential elevator may be a better choice than the stair lift for an unusually shaped staircase is that it is difficult to get an accurate estimate until the potential installer actually visits your home to take measurements. This may have the disadvantage of exposing the homeowner to high pressure sales tactics when the installer visits their home. This may result in the installation of a system that may be more than what is actually needed. In addition, an expert installer is required because of the difficulty of the installation and this will further compound the cost.
Thus, the installation of home elevators may have approximately similar costs when compared to the installation of a lift for curved staircases. Therefore, the elevator would be preferable because it has more uses and it would have a better effect on the market value on the home because it is more versatile.
Another use of the personal elevator is during the construction of a building. In this application, it is known as a personnel hoist that is an elevator that is installed either outside or inside the building. Basically, it is utilized for raising workers to a particular height to perform their work on that particular part of the building. This machinery would also be used for bringing down workers to the ground level. However, unlike the usual residential elevators, this particular elevator is usually temporary in nature and may be dismantled after the construction work is done.
