Measuring For A Stair Lift in 6 Easy Steps

6 Step Measuring Instructions

Follow our easy six step process outlined below to easily measure your stairs for a conventional straight stair lift. It should only take about 10 - 15 minutes to measure your stairs.

Measurement #1 – Nose to Floor:
Since most stair lifts are custom cut to your stair’s specifications; this measurement is the most important. The lift’s rail will be cut to this specification.

What to do:

• Stand at the top of your stairs, extend your tape measure until it lays across all stair treads, and the tip of the tape-measure touches the landing at the bottom of the steps.

Measurement #2 – Nose to Nose:
Measure the nose of the top stair to the nose of the first step. 

What to do:

• Stand at the top of the stairs, extend your tape-measure until it lies across all stair treads and rests on the top edge of the first stair.

Measurement #3 – Obstruction:
To ensure that the lift will not hit an obstruction such as a door or wall, you will need to measure the distance from the bottom and top stair to the obstruction.

What to do:

• Measure the bottom rise to any obstructions (wall, door, frame, permanent piece of furniture, etc…)

• Measure the nose of the top stair to any obstructions (wall, door, frame, permanent piece of furniture, etc…)

Measurement #4 – Tread:
This measurement assists in determining the angle of the track and lift. The tread is the flat horizontal section of the stair.  The area that you step on when going up the stairs.

What to do:

• Measure the depth of the flat horizontal section of the stair.

Measurement #5 – Rise:
This measurement also assists in determining the angle of the track and lift. The rise is the flat vertical section of the stair.  This is the height of your stairs.

What to do:

• Measure the height of the flat vertical section of the stair.

Measurement #6 - Stairs Layout:
It is important for both you and the stair lift dealer to understand the layout of your stairs.  Certain brands and models of stair lifts have restrictive use based upon the staircase.  Thus this is a two-fold measurement process.

What to do:

• Measure the width of your stairs.  You want to make sure to measure at the most narrow part of your stair case, not the widest.
• Count how many stairs you have, noting if any one stair has a variation in height or depth (tread or rise).  It is important to share this information with the dealer, especially if you are purchasing the lift online.

With your measurements completed, you are now ready to talk with a stair lift dealer.  There are many qualified dealers with quality products on the market.  Take your time and review all the models and brands to find the lift that works best for you.

If you have a curved unit, you will need to have a licensed dealer do a site visit to measure your staircase.  These units are markedly more in price and take precise measuring and manufacturing to custom build a curved lift for your stairs.

Homecare Suppliers, LLC is a licensed dealer for many quality stair lift manufacturers.  They have detailed this measuring guide online at http://www.buyastairlift.com/stair_lifts/measuring.htm.  Additionally, there is an online video that allows you to view an installer measuring a stair case.