Aging in place is a more popular goal today than ever before. Approximately two-thirds of baby boomers plan to stay in their home through their golden years. The rise in long-term care costs (i.e. retirement communities, independent living, assisted living) has a lot to do with it, as do technology and available services like meal and grocery delivery.

If your goal is to maintain your independence and stay in the home where many of your memories were made, you need to think about modifying your home to ensure it stays safe and accessible. Here are some necessary home modifications for seniors who wish to age in place.

Ramps

One of the most basic changes to make to your home is installing threshold ramps. These ramps help prevent tripping and allow for easy maneuvering by scooters, wheelchairs, walkers, and foot traffic. They can be placed in the main entry, as well as over any small rises or steps throughout the home. You may want to consider having a modular entrance ramp installed. Aluminum modular ramps are lightweight and can be installed over all outdoor steps and rises.

Bathrooms

As we age, bathrooms can become the most dangerous areas of the home. It’s essential to assess the risk factors in your bathroom and to be open-minded about making any necessary changes — particularly to the shower/bathtub. For instance, grab bars can make your tub safer and more accessible; they’re typically inexpensive and can be installed in a few hours. Shower/bathtub chairs and benches are also relatively inexpensive, and they can go a long way in making your shower or bath safe, relaxing, and pleasant. Adding walk-in and zero-entry showers can also be a great option, though they can get quite expensive.

Doorways

While widening your doorways is not the easiest of projects, it’s essential for keeping you able to move around in your home. This is especially true if you use or will use a walker, wheelchair, or other mobility aid. You may need to hire an experienced contractor to widen your doorways, as well as an electrician to relocate light switches, but you may be able to modify some doorways yourself. For instance, if there are any doorways where you don’t need a door, you could remove the door, door frame, and trim to gain about four inches in width.

Floors

Many trips and falls happen because of loose carpeting and/or rugs, so you should replace any worn out carpeting or rugs. While carpeting is a comfortable option, it’s important for it not to be over a one-half inch tall because a long pile can make it hard to maneuver when using a mobility aid. Cork, vinyl, rubber, linoleum, hardwood, and laminate flooring can all be good options for seniors, and each has its advantages. Try to steer clear of natural stone, ceramic/porcelain tile, area rugs, and transitions.

Cabinets

Along with making space and relocating appliances to make daily necessities in your kitchen accessible, modifying your cabinets is one of the best things you can do for aging in place. Cabinets should be easy to reach, so lowering them may be necessary (three inches for standard cabinets). Also, installing cabinet slide out shelves like these can help ensure you have easy access to the items in your cabinets. Such pull out shelves will also help you maximize storage in your lower cabinets and can significantly reduce back strain.

Modifying your home is a necessity if you plan on remaining there in your golden years. Start looking into installing ramps, widening doorways, and changing out your floors. Also, consider making vital modifications to your bathroom and cabinetry. The sooner you start planning and making changes, the more likely you’ll be able to age in place safely and comfortably.

Harry Cline

Author of The A-Z Home Care Handbook

Owner of  http://newcaregiver.org

Here are 3 Different Roll Out Shelving Solutions You Might Not Know About

1.  Undersink Kitchen and Bathroom Drawers

Every home has at least one kitchen and one bathroom, each including it’s own sink usually with a cabinet underneath.  This means if you have a kitchen or a bathroom in your home, you’re wasting good storage space right now!  Due to the presence of plumbing pipes under sink storage areas are not the easiest space to organize nor is it easy to maximize the storage space with all the piping and a sink in place.

To say it bluntly, undersink cabinets and cupboards are a challenge to organize!

This is why undersink roll-out shelves exist!  They allow you to fully utilize the space under your sink by having a notch built-in, or smaller shelves to clear the piping or the sink.  If you’ve got more than one bathroom in your home, roll out shelves for under the sinks would be an excellent storage upgrade.

2.  Garbage and Trash Can Drawers

Under Sink Trash Can Roll Out Shelf

For many households, the garbage can is either located underneath the kitchen sink or within fairly close proximity to the kitchen sink.

When items are getting tossed under the sink they aren’t always making it into the trash can (especially if you have little ones!) and it leaves quite a mess for someone else to clean-up, usually on their hands-and-knees as it’s a difficult to reach space.

With a roll out shelving solution for the trash can, it will be easily accessible and the trash can can be slide out, over your kitchen floor while garbage is thrown in.  This helps keep things clean under the kitchen sink.

3.  Roll Out Shelves For Pots and Pans

Organizing pots and pans is always a challenge, and even then it’s usually a game of carefully stacking everything so it fits.  Whenever you need something you find yourself going through the stack, or reaching way into the back of the cupboard just for that one, special item.

We make roll out shelving and drawers that are strong enough to handle the heavy load from pots and pans and cookware.  They can even be customized with special dividers and compartments so you can have a place for everything!

As you can see, there are a variety of different roll out shelf storage solutions that can be used in any kind of cabinet or cupboard to help you better utilize the space and make it more convenient when you need to grab something from under the counter.

Why Choose The Drawer Guy For Your Custom Roll Out Shelving?

When you choose The Drawer Guy for a custom rolling shelving or drawers you’re going to be getting a high quality and convenient storage solution that will meet your individual needs perfectly.

All Wood Construction

The Drawer Guy doesn’t use any particle board or MDF in the construction of our rolling shelves and drawers.  Instead we use 100% clear (clear – meaning it has no knots – just the wood grain) Birch or Maple hardwood of the highest quality.

High Quality Drawer Runners (rollers)

We sell and install Blum hardware as an additional option for our custom shelving clients. These are the best drawer runners in the industry and they ensure that whether the drawers are fully loaded with pots and pans or empty, closed carefully or slammed shut with force, they will operate smoothly, quietly, and effortlessly every time for a very long time!

If you’d like to receive a consultation and estimate for a custom shelving and rolling drawer solution please call (339) 206-7000 or fill out our contact form and we’ll get right back to you.