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Ten Convenience Built-Ins That'll Help Seniors And The Disabled Live Independently
Planning to remodel, repair or build a new home? Looking for
some innovative, unusual -- but powerful -- universal design
features? We can help! We started collecting over 1,000
uncommon, affordable convenience built-ins in 1998, when we
first began writing books and consulting to help people have
truly extraordinary -- but affordable -- homes. Here are some of
our favorite ideas that'll change your life via how they enable
independent living. Add any of these to your next project, and
you'll be on your way toward creating a home that's truly beyond
the ordinary!
* Motion-sensor faucets. These are especially handy where hands
will often be dirty or full. They also deliver water at a preset
temperature that kids or slow-to-react family members may
appreciate. No more risk of getting scalded!
* A single-lever faucet control, for ease in adjusting water
flow and temperature with one hand. (It's especially
inconvenient to have two-fisted, separate hot and cold controls
at the kitchen sink.) This can help you reduce wasted hot water,
can be visually marked so family members know where to position
it for safe hot water temperatures, and is easy to use after
arthritis has started to affect your fingers and hands.
* A central vacuum system. Its parts are not as heavy to push as
most freestanding vacuum cleaners.
* A garbage disposal activated by a pressure-button switch
that's inches away from the faucet, so it's accessible without
your bending to open a cabinet or walking several steps to flip
a switch.
* Well-planned task and reading lighting that doesn't create
shadows. Don't forget lights that illuminate countertops or are
mounted under upper cabinets.
* Lots of electrical outlets for your holiday decorations, both
indoors and outside, so everything plugs in nearby. No point in
having the confusion or hazards of extension cords, powerstrips
or overloaded circuits.
* Magnetic drawer and cabinet locks that release and latch via a
single remote-control button that controls an entire room or
outdoor area. This is the least awkward and most secure type of
childproof lock we've seen, especially if you mount the control
unit high on a wall where adults can easily see and reach it
while kids
cannot. Grandparents with arthritis will especially
applaud this system, compared to the common plastic door locks
that require considerable dexterity to release. (These magnetic
locks also secure drawers or cabinets in overnight guestrooms
that you use when your guests are gone, or in any rental
properties you own and store some possessions in.)
* Wall-mounted intercoms in every room and outdoor living area
(don't forget the garage), for talking to anyone on your
property without having to physically walk over to them. This
also eliminates using what might be dirty or full hands to dial
and hold a cell phone you might use to call people elsewhere in
the house.
* A light switch or knee-level motion sensor at the top and
bottom of every stairway that controls adequate lighting from
above. Motion sensors are especially handy wherever your hands
are often too full to easily reach for a switch. That light from
above is more important for people with vision problems than
light from fixtures that are down at the stair level.
* A bathroom near the family entrance for quick cleanups for
limiting the mess that gets tracked inside when someone's coming
home dirty. It'll also prevent rushing through the house -- and
risking a fall -- when nature calls while you're working outside
or just arriving home.
Like this article? Then you'll love our books chock-full of
uncommon, affordable convenience built-ins that increase your
quality of life and your home's resale value! We also offer a
free e-book at www.extraordinaryhomes.com: The 34 ExtraOrdinary
Home Principles: Over 70 Fabulous, Affordable, Innovative Ideas
That'll Improve Your Life and WOW You!
© Copyright 2005 by Carol Abrahamson/ExtraOrdinary Homes. All
rights reserved.
About the author:
Carol Abrahamson consults, writes and makes presentations about
more than 1,000 of these fabulous features that can improve your
life, add value to your home and make you the talk of the town.
She spent years researching them via thousands of sources just
so you can quickly and easily use them to create your
affordable, extraordinary Home of Your Dreams™. Learn more about
her work via www.extraordinaryhomes.com or
carol@extraordinaryhomes.com.
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