My wife and BIl and I are thinking that my MIL needs to get one. We'll just have to do it without telling her, because otherwise she'll say no and she doesn't need it, but she needs it.
Anyone know anything about them? Can a recliner be retrofitted with a lift? Does it have to be a specific type of recliner?
I just got rid of my dads old one. For the most part, it was like any other recliner honestly. IF you could get the motor and (for lack of proper terminology) garage door opener bar, I don't think it would be that bad to retrofit. Probably more hassle than buying one though.
We took it apart because my buddy had such plans for the motor, and hasn't done anything with it. I wanna say it was in the $600 range, but it also had heat and massage settings that you may or may not want.
Keep an eye on CL, I see them fairly cheap. The main reason I got rid of it was because of how slow it was. From full recline to sitting was close to a minute.
I'm sorry I don't have pictures to post, but if you imagine a garage door opener or a worm gear, that's pretty much all it is mounted to the frame of the chair.
My step father has one. It isn't a retrofit sort of thing. Your best bet is to call your local medical supply company and ask them about your options. Medicare/insurance pays a portion of the cost so don't forget to include them in the calculation.
Do a speed check. We got one for an older aunt of mine. That thing took darn near a full minute to lift itself and her all the way up. It was worse than some of those chair lifts on the stairs.
My mom used a borrowed when she was recovering from a hip replacement. It must have had the JATO option because it wasn't nearly as slow as described in this thread.
It had seen enough previous (a)buse that it soon popped a frame bolt; it was loud enough that I heard while I was outside, 40ft away. It sorta/kinda worked after that, at least until I tipped it over and did a temporary fix. Seeing how the the lift motor and frame were integrated into the chair's wooden frame, there's no way in hell it could be considered for an easy retro-fit. My BIL and I did a full-on repair a couple weeks later that made it darn close to factory specs.
As mentioned, check with home-health vendors and the local ads for used ones. Take one for a test ride, too as they can be less than accommodating for those used to plush cushions.
RevRico wrote: We took it apart because my buddy had such plans for the motor
I have a motor and controller I've been waiting to use for something but haven't come up with anything yet.
My mother-in-law lived in one for ten years - 24/7 due to a stroke. She thought it was leaning and bought a new one - $1200. Sold after one month for $800.
We felt the lazy boy version, although expensive held up the best.
My FIL has one. He keeps buying the cheapest he can find, and they don't hold up very well.
Spinlife.com
Chairs starting under $500, free shipping. The price:value ratio is pretty constant, i.e. you get what you pay for.
Not affiliated, just a happy customer.
Seems like you could homebrew something with some industrial pneumatic actuators and an old La-Z-Boy.
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