While the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) resulted in ADA Accessible Guidelines (ADAAG), which provided handicap accessibility specifications for public buildings, there are no such guidelines for residential buildings. And for the over 30 million Americans who use either a wheelchair or walker while living at home, accessibility around the home is a huge obstacle.
From the bedroom to the bathroom and even the kitchen, homes are not built to be handicap accessible. But for the sake of this article, we are going to focus strictly on the kitchen.
The biggest obstacles when designing an accessible kitchen are sinks, cabinets, and countertops. This is where Kitchen Saver can help.
If you are confined to a wheelchair, why live in a home not suited to fit your needs when a simple kitchen remodel, designed to make your kitchen handicap accessible and barrier free, can greatly improve your independence. These types of remodels are done with the idea of making the kitchen accessible to everyone, both able and disabled.
Kitchen Counters: Lowering the counter height will make the kitchen much more accessible. The average height of a wheelchair armrest is approximately 29″. The recommended countertop height is 28-34″.
Kitchen Sinks: Wheelchair accessible sinks need to be shallow, only 5″ to 6 1/2″ deep. The faucet needs to be a loop or single lever for ease of operation and there needs to be knee space directly under the sink for accessibility reasons.
Kitchen Cabinets: Lowering wall mounted cabinets from 18” to 15” should make them easily accessible for most people. You can also include pull-out shelves, Pot and pan pull out drawers, and lazy susans to increase cabinet functionality.
So stop living in a kitchen that wasn’t designed to fit your needs. Call Kitchen Saver today!
Twenty-five years ago, Kitchen Saver opened its doors and began offering remodeling and refacing services to customers in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. Quality workmanship, solid materials and innovation were our watch words, and they still are today.
If you have any questions, please contact Kitchen Saver for all your Kitchen needs by calling 877-828-9056 or click here today!
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Sources: Accessible Kitchens
