When your spouse or child gets in a serious accident and becomes handicapped, you will likely have to make enormous changes to your house to accommodate their needs or buy another home. But, if a family member such as one of your parents or siblings has recently become handicapped, you may just want to invest in several remodeling projects to make it possible for them to comfortably visit your home.
Make an Additional Path into the Home
A lot of homes are not designed with handicap functionality in mind. This means that the walkway to the front door may incorporate a few stairs. But, without a ramp, a handicapped family member may not be able to get into your home, so it is important to make one of the entrances accessible. If there is not enough room at the front entrance to make a handicap-friendly ramp, then you should look towards the backyard as a solution. You should have an easier time using some of your backyard for this addition.
Increase the Size of the Doorways
The problem with some doorways is that they are not wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs. This is not something that you will need to change for the master bedroom, closets, or any room upstairs. But, you should do everything you can to make sure your family can get around on the main floor. An easy solution is hiring a remodeling contractor to expand the doorways in these areas by a slight margin. It may require you to buy new doors to fit the adjusted measurements, but interior doors are quite affordable.
Add a Walk-In Shower Area
If you intend on inviting your family to stay overnight, you will want to give them the opportunity to take a shower. This is especially important if they are going to stay for longer than a night. This means you will want to transform a main floor bathroom into one with a dedicated walk-in shower area. If you already have a walk-in shower, you can just get rid of the framing to prevent the need to step into the shower. Adding a built-in bench to the shower area will make it possible for them to sit down while showering.
Making several changes to your home to accommodate a handicapped family member is a smart decision, especially when you are used to spending time with them on a regular basis. Call a contractor, like Alleva Construction, Inc, for more help.
