Most homeowners want to stay in the house they love as they get older, and there’s a whole field, aging in place, built around making that possible. If that’s the plan for you or someone in your family, a few thoughtful updates to doors, entryways, and lighting can make a real difference in how comfortable and independent daily life stays.
Some of these updates are familiar: shower seats, grab bars, a higher toilet seat that’s easier to sit down and get up from. Aging in place shouldn’t stop with making your bathroom safer, though. Updates to your indoor and outdoor lighting, as well as your kitchen, bedroom, and living areas should all be considered. One of the biggest challenges people face as they get older is safely getting in and out of your home. Door knobs can be a hassle if you suffer from arthritis, and if you have a walker or wheelchair, it can be extremely difficult to simply enter or exit your home.
Widening your entryway is a great idea for aging in place. To accommodate larger walkers and wheelchairs, an entryway should be a minimum of 32 inches wide. Even if you do not need a wheelchair, a wider opening makes it easier to enter and exit your home safely, as well as move larger or heavier objects in and out.
Mr. Rogers offers custom entry doors that can accommodate wider entrances, and offers different types of handles to make it easier on your wrists. Arthritis is extremely common in the elderly, and a regular doorknob can be painful to operate. Lever-style handles are much easier to operate, and these can be added to both exterior and interior doors in your home.
Another thing to think about is the walkway leading up to your front door, and the surrounding entrance itself. A no-step entryway can be installed to safeguard against slips and falls, and automatic lighting can be added to your pathway to illuminate it after dark.
Your front door might not always be the most convenient way to enter or exit your home. Sometimes, the patio is more suitable for making changes when upgrading your home to age in place. Sliding doors may be a convenient solution for getting in and out safely and easily. If you go this route, make sure the walkway to the patio door entrance is up to date, easy to navigate, and properly illuminated once the sun goes down.
If you’re planning updates to help your home work better for the years ahead, Mr. Rogers can help. We’ll walk through your entryways and patio doors with you and recommend what actually makes sense for your home, wider openings, lever handles, no-step entries, whatever fits. Every entry door we install is built to your exact specifications. Give us a call and we’ll set up a free in-home consultation.
