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6 Stairlift Features That Make Acorn Stairlifts Stand Out from the Chairlift Crowd

12:00am & Tips and Advice

Independence. Safety. Security. Ease-of-use. Freedom. Peace of mind.

These are all of the priceless possessions that Acorn Stairlifts strives to provide to our customers with the help of our dependable, high-quality stairlift products.

Read on to learn 6 of the safety features included with an Acorn stairlift that help you remain in the home you love, all while regaining your sense of security and independence.

6 Acorn Stair Lift Features That Take Your Life to the Next Level

1. Safety Sensors

Acorn stairlifts have multiple sensors fitted to the footrest and carriage itself. Your stairlift’s sensors automatically cut off power if they detect any obstruction in its path of travel, such as anything inadvertently left on the stairs.

For example, children and pets often leave things on the stairs that you may not notice that your stairlift will detect. Even if you accidentally drop something while riding on the stairlift, such as a handbag or walking stick, your stairlift will sense these objects.

The moment your sensors detect any obstacle blocking the way, they will automatically bring the stairlift to a smooth stop. Once the obstacle has been removed, the stairlift’s journey can be safely resumed.

2. Durable and Dependable Batteries

Early stairlifts drew power directly from the main source, but Acorn pioneered the use of powerful rechargeable batteries located in the stairlift carriage. They are automatically recharged whenever your stairlift is ‘parked’ at the top or bottom of the stairs.

This means our stairlifts will still operate, even if there’s a power cut or if a safety ‘trip switch’ is activated in your fuse box. Because the power comes from the batteries and not the main supply, your Acorn stairlift will keep running, and you’ll never be stranded on the stairs. These batteries make our stairlifts very economical to run, only drawing main power to ‘top up’ the batteries as needed.

3. A Lockable Swivel Seat

A seat that swivels makes it far easier to get safely on and off the stairlift at either end of its journey— especially at the top where you should step off onto a level landing.

The seat will also lock securely into the straight or swiveled position so it stays firmly in place while you’re traveling or getting on or off your stairlift.

Acorn stairlifts have large, easy-to-use paddles at both sides of the seat to operate its lockable swivel function so that you can use whichever hand you prefer. Once turned, the swivel seat also acts as a safety barrier at the top of the stairs.

4. Slimline Foldable DesignTwo seniors looking at each other testing their acorn stairlift

If others who live in your home or are visiting will be going up and down the stairs on foot, then you need to consider their safety too. Trying to squeeze around a bulky stairlift could make them more likely to lose their footing on the stairs, especially if the staircase is narrow. For everyone’s safety, all Acorn Stairlift carriages have arms, seats, and footrests that fold up neatly out of the way when not in use. This makes our stairlifts among the slimmest profile models on the market.

In some settings, the bottom of a straight stairlift rail (at the foot of the stairs) might cause a trip hazard where it protrudes into a passageway. To overcome this, Acorn offers the option of a short-hinged section at the foot of the rail, which can be manually or electrically folded up out of the way when the stairlift is not in use.

5. A Secure Safety Belt

Just as you should always wear a seat belt in a moving vehicle, you should also wear one on a moving stairlift. All Acorn stairlifts are equipped with a simple, easy-to-use, retractable safety belt, which works just like the one in your car.

Fastening the safety belt once you’re comfortably seated on the stairlift will keep you safe and secure and provide peace of mind. At the end of your journey, just unclip the safety belt and let it automatically retract when you’re ready to step off the stairlift.

6. Easy-to-Use Controls

Fiddly, small, or hard-to-reach controls can be very difficult, especially if you have limited movement in your hands and arms. Struggling with poorly designed controls can make using your stairlift less safe and more stressful than it should be.

Acorn is the first and only stairlift manufacturer to be awarded the Arthritis Foundation’s Ease-of-Use commendation for its simple, ergonomic, and intuitive controls. Each arm of the stairlift carriage has a large paddle control, which allows you to move the stairlift at the lightest touch. Just move the paddle in the direction you wish to travel, using whichever hand is easiest, and off you go. Release it, and you’ll come to a smooth stop.

Contact Acorn Stairlifts to Get a Free Quote of Your Stairlift Price

Get in contact with Acorn Stairlifts today to claim your free, no-obligation stairlift quote and home survey.

Don’t wait to regain your independence and mobility and start living your life to the fullest.

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The Arthritis Foundation's Ease-of-Use Commendation

We are proud to be the very FIRST stairlift company to earn the Arthritis Foundation's Ease-of-Use Commendation. It is yet another effort that continues to prove that Acorn Stairlifts is a pioneer in the industry, always striving to stay ahead of the game, and to help our customers by providing the absolute best solution for their needs.

Arthritis Foundation logo