A woman from Essex who has been suffering with a spinal condition for nearly 40 years is now able to move independently between floors at the touch of a button after installing a modern and stylish Stiltz Homelift.
Kim Carpenter has Degenerative Disc Disease – a condition which affects around 30 million people every year and involves the discs collapsing and causing the facet joints in the vertebrae to rub against one other causing pain and stiffness.
The 60-year-old has suffered with the back problem since the age of 22 and around eight years ago the situation became so bad that the only way she could go upstairs, was on all fours.
Mrs. Carpenter and her husband, Brian decided to have a Stiltz Homelift installed in their four-bedroom detached home in Ongar rather than her having to struggle on and off an old-fashioned stairlift.
The freestanding domestic lift travels through the floor and was included in a renovation project which involved connecting an extensive library room to an upstairs mezzanine area in a brand new extension. The Stiltz moves on self-supporting rails and plugs straight into a normal domestic 13 amp power socket with no hydraulics or load bearing walls required. This enables these unique and innovative homelifts to be positioned almost anywhere in the home.
The Carpenters had the new capsule-shaped Stiltz Duo+ Homelift installed although the company also offer larger models for wheelchair users.
Mrs. Carpenter said: “I was never keen on a stairlift as they take up too much room on the staircase and I never fancied moving to bungalow because I always wanted a house with a swimming pool.
“We’ve got the rid of the pool now but the homelift has helped make our home fully accessible for me has improved my life immeasurably. The lift is ideal for sending up the laundry and the vacuum cleaner rather than attempting to do it myself and is so easy to use. The Stiltz is clear on all sides making it light and airy and I couldn’t be without it.”