If you have a child that is in a wheelchair, you need to take many things into consideration when building your new home. Write down the following things and discuss them with the home builder. You can then have a home that your child can enjoy.
Their Bedroom
Because they will likely be in their bedroom a lot, make it as large as you can. This allows them to easily move around the room. You could ask the home builder to add in-wall shelving where your child can put things they use often, such as books, electronics, etc. They can then easily roll up to the shelves and pull out what they want.
Wood flooring will be best for them, as carpet will be hard for them to use their wheelchair on. You can find pretty carpeting to place under the bed and other furniture, if you desire, but leave the main area free from any rugs or carpets.
The Kitchen
Even though your child will not be cooking or cooking a lot, you can still ask the home builder to make some changes to the kitchen. For example, you could ask the builder to make one area of countertop lower and have space underneath so your child can easily drive their wheelchair under the cabinet and reach the countertop. They could then help you with dinner or even do their homework on the countertop.
As with other rooms, make the kitchen as spacious as you can. You could choose an open floor plan where the kitchen and dining room are all one large room. There are many open floor plans you can look at to help you decide.
Hallways and Entryways
The hallways and entry ways into rooms should be at least 32 inches to allow your child enough room for their wheelchair. Also, make the entry doors at least this wide. Measure their wheelchair to ensure this is wide enough. Make sure the floor is level when going through doorways to make things easier for your child. Remove doors completely or install doors so they swing the opposite way, and put the doorknobs lower where your child can reach them.
Consider other things that will help your child. Talk with home builders like Fischer Homes to see if they have experience building homes that are wheelchair accessible. Building your home in the right way now is much easier than making changes later.
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