You will find that having a stairlift installed in your home will make a significant difference to your life – giving you back the freedom to enjoy parts of your home that may have become a struggle and helping you conserve energy for the things that matter. Such as hosting family and friends or looking after the grandchildren.

Having a stairlift installed is a big decision, and understandably you will have many questions, especially concerning the safety of the lift, even more so if you have small children in the house.

After all, installing a stairlift in your home, should open up your home to you again, allowing you back into rooms you may have long struggled to get access to. You don’t want to have a feeling of danger or insecurity when operating your stair lift. That’s why Stannah Stairlifts focus on producing products that are safe, secure, reliable and comfortable.

The below article outline the steps taken to make Stannah Stairlifts one of the safest on the market.

Construction and Testing

Ultimately, safety is all about standards.

The most important step in making a stairlift safe is just that – making it. That’s why Stannah, unlike most other manufacturers, don’t use any pre-built components or components from third party suppliers. Instead, each staircase is measured using a photo survey, and bespoke parts are built to ensure everything fits together and works the way it should for a smooth ride.

On top of this, Stannah has a one of a kind, rigorous testing regime. Every design and every major component are tested for 25,000 return journeys, the equivalent of 10 years use. That is A LOT of ups and downs!

Additionally, there is ongoing testing throughout the manufacturing process, with every individual unit being tested to it’s capacity before it is allowed to get the Stannah stamp of approval and leave the factory. If a staircase requires custom-made curved rails, then these are tested for ride quality before they are allowed to be shipped, this means that there won't be any jerks or bumps when riding up or down.

Speed

You may have seen the recent Smith Crisps add, with a stairlift taking off at an incredible speed and flying out of the window… This add was very entertaining, but also outlines another key safety feature, Speed. If the Chairlift travels too slow, it may seem like a waste of time and hindrance, if it moves too fast, it can pose serious safety concerns. That’s why it is so important to get the speed right.

All stairlifts move at 0.1 meters per second. To put that into context, the average straight staircase is around 4.14 metres long, which means a one-way trip would take 41.1 seconds. That’s just over half a minute to get up or down your stairs and you will minimise the risks of falls and injuries.

Extensive testing and research have identified this speed to be the best combination of speed and safety for both straight and curved staircases.

Designing for Safety

Making a chairlift safe isn’t just about quality construction or speed of travel – while those elements are important, there’s still more to be done to ensure your safety.

That’s why our stairlifts are built with various additions to keep you safe and secure. These include arm rests, foot rests, seat belts and a host of other safety features. Our well trained and friendly consultants will be able to advise you on the different safety features that are included and available for your chosen chair and ensure that your stair-lift will have the right safety features for your staircase and your abilities.

Every staircase and every home are different, which means that every stair-lift that is manufactured and sold by us is different. Whichever design you choose, you can rest assured, knowing that the safety of your chair-lift is always a top concern.

Discover More

To find out more about how we work to make our bespoke stairlifts safe for you to use, and comfortable to boot, call us on 08 9242 733 or find out more here