Measuring your home before buying is the simplest way to avoid costly mistakes when mobility is changing. An assistive chair can have advanced functions, but it must be able to get in, move, pull up alongside the bed and reach the table without running into obstacles that no one had considered.
Preparing your home for reduced mobility doesn’t mean transforming every room straight away. It means gathering concrete data: the width of doors, the turning space, the mattress height, the table’s footprint, the position of power sockets and the route between the bedroom, the living room and the dining area.
Choosing Sollevita at this stage means considering a product that is always fully optioned and completely customisable. Its modularity, the wheeled trolley for moving with the person on board, the lithium battery, the removable armrests, the flat bed 180° and the vertical lift all need to be considered in relation to your real home.
In brief
- Measuring doors and hallways matters both for delivery and for later moves with the wheeled trolley.
- Checking the height and the free side of the bed lets you understand whether the stretcher function can really be used.
- Checking the table, the space under the top and the room for the knees helps you make the most of the removable armrest and the adjustable height.
- Mapping power sockets and charging areas keeps cables out of walkways; the lithium battery offers more freedom but requires proper maintenance.
- Involving an occupational therapist or another professional can be helpful when transfers are already complex or set to change.
Measuring the entrance and the delivery route
Opening every door along the delivery route lets you measure the actual passage, not just the nominal width of the opening. Handles, door frames, radiators and furniture can reduce the available space right at the tightest points.
Checking the stairs, the lift and the landing avoids discovering the problem on the day of delivery. Sollevita is built in a modular way and the backrest, armrests and wings can be removed, a feature that makes transport and assembly easier, but it doesn’t remove the need to check the route.
Protecting floors and edges during entry makes the delivery of a heavy, technical product simpler. The final room should already be clear, with enough space to assemble the parts without blocking exits or hallways.
Organising the bedroom for a possible pull-up alongside
Measuring the mattress height from the floor lets you compare it with the chair’s vertical adjustment. This measurement should be taken with the person on it or with the bed’s normal load when the mattress drops noticeably.
Clearing one side of the bed creates the space to bring Sollevita up alongside in the reclined position. Bedside tables, rugs, bed rails, cables and hoists that are already there should be drawn on a simple floor plan, because each item changes the caregiver’s route.
Choosing the side for pulling up requires observing which part of the body keeps more strength and from which side the person assisting works. In the case of stroke, spinal cord injury or a neuromuscular disease, this decision should be shared with the professionals who know the person.
Checking whether other aids can still be used avoids the mistake of treating Sollevita as a replacement for every hoist or transfer board. HSE reminds us that equipment and techniques must be chosen after assessing the individual case, the environment and the person’s remaining abilities.
Preparing the living room and dining area
Measuring the footprint of the chair both closed and open lets you leave space in front of the footrest and behind the backrest. Walls, side tables, heaters and curtains must not interfere with the movements.
Checking the space under the table top helps you understand whether the person will really be able to get close. It isn’t enough for the chair to reach the right height: rails, drawers and central legs can prevent the knees or the armrest from fitting in.
Removing the top part of the armrest allows you to reduce the side footprint during meals. The vertical lift then lets you find a height that is more consistent with the table, useful also for independent people who want to use the same chair to eat, read or work.
Moving the person towards the table with the wheeled trolley requires an even floor and a route wide enough. High thresholds, thick rugs and tight turns must be assessed beforehand; the trolley doesn’t turn the chair into a wheelchair to be used anywhere.
Mapping the everyday route, not just the ideal one
| Route | Practical question | Data to gather |
|---|---|---|
| Bed → living room | Does the chair get through without moving furniture every time? | Minimum width, turns, thresholds and floor type |
| Living room → table | Can the person get under the top? | Table height, space under the top, knee room and turning radius |
| Chair → bathroom | Do you really need to move the chair into this area? | Door width, damp environment, alternative aids |
| Entrance → final position | Can delivery be done in modules? | Stairs, lift, landing, doors and assembly space |
| Chair → power socket | Does the cable cross a walkway? | Distance, socket position, battery charging and cable protection |
Observing the route that is actually used avoids designing the home around an exceptional day. If the person almost always eats in the living room, the priority will be different from someone who reaches the kitchen every day.
Planning a resting point can make managing doors or turns easier. The caregiver must be able to stop the trolley, check the person’s position and set off again without pushing in a hurry.
Sockets, battery and cable safety
Placing the chair near a compliant socket reduces the need for extension leads and power strips. The cable must not be crushed by the mechanism, cross walkways or stay under rugs.
Using the lithium battery lets you move Sollevita without a constant mains connection. The battery must, however, be recharged according to the instructions and disconnected during transport or technical moves, so that accidental pressure on the handset doesn’t cause unexpected movements.
Keeping the space under and around the chair clear protects people, animals and objects. Before operating the footrest, the tilt or the lift, whoever uses the control must check the entire movement area.
Choosing sizes and load capacity with the room in mind
Selecting the 52 or 63 cm seat also changes the total width of the product and the space needed to get through. The choice must start from the person’s body, but it should be checked at the tightest point of the home.
Deciding on one of the three available depths changes the support under the thighs and the footprint in the seated position. The footrest extension, included in the Sollevita specification, further increases the surface needed when it is opened.
Choosing a load capacity from 180 up to 350 kg means considering not only the person’s weight, but also the structure, the number of independent motors and the caregiver’s ability to handle the product in the available spaces.
Preparing the home for a need that can evolve
Leaving one side of the bed accessible today can avoid urgent work tomorrow. In degenerative diseases or situations of progressive frailty, small changes made in advance reduce improvisation when the transfer becomes more demanding.
Keeping space for a future hoist doesn’t mean it will certainly be needed. It means not placing the chair in a corner from which no other aid could operate if needs were to change.
Assessing the home with an occupational therapist can help identify barriers the family no longer notices: rugs, lighting, handles, routes that are too narrow or tables that aren’t compatible. NHS sources on home adaptations stress precisely the role of assessing the environment in making everyday movements and activities easier.
A concrete example: a room ready before the emergency
Moving a bedside table by thirty centimetres can create the space needed to bring the chair up alongside the bed. Removing a rug can make the trolley’s route more direct. Replacing a side table with a narrower one can allow the footrest to open fully.
Photographing these spaces with a visible tape measure lets the Sollevita service assess the project better. The images don’t replace a professional site visit when needed, but they avoid a lot of misunderstandings during a remote consultation.
Checklist before requesting a quote
- Minimum width of every door you pass through, measured with the leaf fully open.
- Dimensions of the lift, the landing and the stairs along the delivery route.
- Mattress height, free space beside the bed and preferred side for pulling up alongside.
- Table height, thickness of the space under the top and room for the knees and the armrest.
- Distance from the socket, position of the cables and the chosen point for charging the battery.
- Floor type, thresholds, rugs and the space available to use the wheeled trolley.
- The person’s measurements: height, weight, width needed, depth and hours of use.
Sollevita service: assessing the body, the home and the routine together
Sending measurements without describing the routine isn’t enough. The team needs to know who moves the chair, how many times the person rests, whether they eat at the table, which aids they use and what change in need is already foreseeable.
Looking at the Sollevita assistive chair lets you connect the functions to your home’s real layout and prepare a proposal that takes delivery, use and future care into account.
Buying a Class I medical device may allow tax relief when the required conditions apply and the documentation is correct. This must be checked for the specific case, without presenting the benefit as automatic.
Prepare a simple floor plan of your home and photograph the doors, the bed, the table and the route with a visible tape measure. The Sollevita team can then compare this information with the person’s measurements and indicate which functions are really usable in the available space.
Frequently asked questions
How much space is needed behind an assistive chair?
It depends on the movements and the final position. You need to check the real footprint of the backrest, the tilt and the flat bed 180°, always leaving a margin from walls and furniture.
Can the chair get through a narrow door?
The modular construction and the removable parts make delivery easier, but you need to measure the tightest passage and assess turns, stairs and the lift.
Can I use the wheeled trolley on rugs and thresholds?
Only if the route is suitable and in line with the instructions. Thick rugs, level differences and thresholds can make the move unstable or too tiring.
Does Sollevita replace a hoist?
Not automatically. The stretcher function and the vertical lift can make some transfers easier, but the aids needed depend on remaining abilities, weight, the environment and a professional assessment.
Why do I also need to measure the table?
Because the height, the space under the top and the room for the knees determine whether the person will be able to get close using the removable armrest and the vertical adjustment.
When is it worth asking for a home assessment?
When transfers are already complex, spaces are tight or several aids are present. An occupational therapist can help assess barriers and adaptations.
FAQ
Common questions
How much space is needed behind an assistive chair?
It depends on the movements and the final position. You need to check the real footprint of the backrest, the tilt and the flat bed 180°, always leaving a margin from walls and furniture.
Can the chair get through a narrow door?
The modular construction and the removable parts make delivery easier, but you need to measure the tightest passage and assess turns, stairs and the lift.
Can I use the wheeled trolley on rugs and thresholds?
Only if the route is suitable and in line with the instructions. Thick rugs, level differences and thresholds can make the move unstable or too tiring.
Does Sollevita replace a hoist?
Not automatically. The stretcher function and the vertical lift can make some transfers easier, but the aids needed depend on remaining abilities, weight, the environment and a professional assessment.
Why do I also need to measure the table?
Because the height, the space under the top and the room for the knees determine whether the person will be able to get close using the removable armrest and the vertical adjustment.
When is it worth asking for a home assessment?
When transfers are already complex, spaces are tight or several aids are present. An occupational therapist can help assess barriers and adaptations.
