Choosing A Lift For Disabled Access To Your Above-Ground Pool

A swimming pool at home is a great boon for any Australian, especially in the punishing heat of the summer months, and for people suffering from physical disabilities, they can provide many improvements to quality of life. Swimming pools are great for low-impact exercises for people who find it difficult or painful to move freely, and the buoyancy of the body of water takes weight and pressure off of damaged or painful joints. 

However, entering and exiting a pool can be a difficult endeavour for many people with disabilities -- this goes especially for disabled people with above-ground pools, which entail a difficult climb and descent even if they have a poolside deck fitted. Installing a pool lift can enable disabled swimmers to use your pool with dignity and autonomy. However, choosing a pool lift can be difficult, so when you're shopping around for the best deal, keep the following questions in mind:

Permanent or portable?

Disabled pool lifts used at public swimming pools and other amenities are generally permanent lifts, which are permanently installed and attached directly to the deck. If your above-ground pool has a sturdy deck fitted, similar systems can be installed for home use. Permanent lifts generally have significantly greater lifting capacities than their portable counterparts, but once installed, the lift cannot be repositioned in any way. This can make protecting the expensive lift from the elements difficult, especially in winter months.

Portable lifts are, as you'd expect, portable, and are usually attached to a wheeled or tracked base to assist movement. The base is also fitted with a heavy counterweight to assist stability -- despite this, portable lifts generally have quite limited weight capacities. However, they do not require a solid anchor such as a deck, and can be used on any stable, reasonably flat terrain, making them ideal for high-sided pools.

Manual or powered?

You have another difficult choice to make when it comes to how you want your pool lift to be powered. To make the choice simpler, you can generally divide pool lifts into two categories -- manual and powered.

Manual lifts rely on pulleys, hand cranks and elbow grease to lift a swimmer into the pool, and are raised, lowered and rotated by a standing operator. Without expensive electronic or mechanical components, this lifts are generally the cheapest options. However, they do not allow a disabled swimmer to enter the pool by themselves.

For swimmers who seek more independence, powered lifts are generally the most desirable option. Most powered pool lifts generate power in one of two ways:

• Electric lifts -- These can be battery powered or connected to your mains electricity. This option requires less expensive installation, particularly for permanent lifts, but can leave your lift more vulnerable to water damage and subsequent malfunction, particularly if the motor housing becomes damaged.
• Water lifts -- These lifts are permanent lifts and function on simple hydraulic principles, raising and lowering swimmers with power created by water pressure. The water used can be taken from your pool or from your main water supply. Water lifts are simple to use and can be used by a lone swimmer, but are vulnerable to low water pressure reducing their effectiveness -- installation of a secondary water pump may be necessary.

For more information, contact Pooltime or a similar company.