Competition is heating up in the stair lift business. Companies offering battery operated stair lifts are mud slinging competitors who are offering plug in style stairlifts.
In the past year, suppliers who were preaching the advantages of the plug in style, decided to start offering a battery operated version to counter the criticism from the manufacturers supplying the battery stairlift models.
A good comparison of all the common stair lifts can be found at... http://www.silvercross-stair-lifts.com
To be quite honest, I have been in this business since 1993 and I still feel that the plug in style stair lift is more reliable.
Batteries tend to be more problematic over time. They must be eventually replaced with an added cost to do so and a time factor where the lift will be down until the dealer has come to change the batteries.
Criticism of the plug in style lifts has usually centered on the fact that if the power goes out, then the lift user is stuck. While this is true, in reality, the power rarely goes out in most homes.
The true comparison is how often does the battery lift fail over time compared to the plug in style.
There is no question that the plug in style fails less than the battery operated style stair lift in the long run.
Also, one must keep in mind that the battery operated stair lifts still require electricity to run. If the power goes out, then the battery operated stair lift will only run up and down the stairs a limited number of times before it requires electricity to re-charge the batteries.
I guess you could compare this to your furnace or air conditioner. They are a plug in appliance just like your fridge, stove and dishwasher. If the power goes out, you are out of luck with all these items.
The ideal stair lift is a plug in style that has a battery back up. The extra cost of this type of model is questionable in most applications.
About the author: Bob Harvey Founder of SILVER CROSS
Mandate: Guide to finding a lower cost alternative to stair lifts in the market place by sourcing recycled and new stair lifts through international network of pre-screened installation dealers. http://www.silvercross-stair-lifts.com
