A wheelchair lift is a motorized platform to carry a person in wheelchair over a barrier such as stairs. Wheelchair lifts are made for installation indoors or outside, and specialized versions are available for use in transportation such as buses.
A residential wheelchair lift is securely mounted or installed outside the home in order to travel from ground level to the door of the home, or they can also be installed inside a home using several methods.
Types of Wheelchair Lifts
There are two basic types of wheelchair platform lifts: vertical platform lifts and inclined platform lifts.
Inclined platform lifts are installed to travel over the stairs, following the angle of the stairs. In this way, an inclined lift is similar to a stair lift, but the inclined lift features a platform capable of carrying a wheelchair. There are also inclined platform lifts that are custom fabricated for curved or turning stairs. These are typically used in commercial or public buildings.
A vertical platform lift moves straight up and down so it can be located away from the stairs, or beside the stairs depending upon the space available. This type of lift is offered as a standard unenclosed lift, or with a factory-built enclosure, or it can be installed into a constructed hoistway inside a home.
Most vertical platform lifts can be installed outside, and some incline platform lifts are suitable for outdoor use depending on the climate. A vertical platform lift for home is often called a deck lift, or porch lift. It may also be referred to as a “VPL”, short for vertical platform lift.