Wheelchairs

[MargaretB]

Hello everyone,
I am hoping someone can give me some advice about buying a Power pack to fit on a transit wheelchair.

My husband has reached the stage with his Lewy Body Dementia where he is no longer able to walk far or safely. I intend to purchase an aluminium light weight chair for him, [ we have one at present borrowed from the Red Cross] but have wondered about adding a power pack as we live in a village where there are hills, not "mountain type" hills but enough to make pushing him difficult. We need the chair to fold to go in the boot of a car, it cannot be folded with a power pack on, and though the information on the power packs say they are easy to put on and take off, I just wondered if the manufacturers idea of easy and mine are the same. An electric wheelchair which the user operates is not an option as he simply cannot do it. We tried him with a scooter and he seized the control in a grip of death and cleared the pavement like a bulldozer!

Has anyone any experience of these Power packs please?
Margaret

 

[grove]

Sorry Not Able To Help

Hello Maragaret , Am sorry not able to help you about the "Power Packs " but wanted your "Thread " to be on the front Page so other's can see it ! Just a thought is there a Special Centre near you ? where you can have a "practise " with the "P Pack " or have you asked the Red Cross about it ? ( where you got the W Chair from )

Hope this helps & good luck & hopefully some body on T P will be able to help ! ( hope you & Hubby will be able to enjoy your Walks again very soon !

Take Care

Love Grove x

 

[Winnie Kjaer]

Power Pack

Hello everyone,
I am hoping someone can give me some advice about buying a Power pack to fit on a transit wheelchair.

My husband has reached the stage with his Lewy Body Dementia where he is no longer able to walk far or safely. I intend to purchase an aluminium light weight chair for him, [ we have one at present borrowed from the Red Cross] but have wondered about adding a power pack as we live in a village where there are hills, not "mountain type" hills but enough to make pushing him difficult. We need the chair to fold to go in the boot of a car, it cannot be folded with a power pack on, and though the information on the power packs say they are easy to put on and take off, I just wondered if the manufacturers idea of easy and mine are the same. An electric wheelchair which the user operates is not an option as he simply cannot do it. We tried him with a scooter and he seized the control in a grip of death and cleared the pavement like a bulldozer!

Has anyone any experience of these Power packs please?
Margaret

Hello Margaret,
I used a power pack on my husbands previous wheelchair. His chair was
a purpose built proper heavy wheelchair and the pack was good for that one. It is very heavy, but easy enough to put on/off as such. I do not however think a power pack would be suitable for a lightweight wheelchair but suggest you check this out with either the manufacturers or at a mobility centre where they would be able to advise you both about a suitable chair and the power pack.

I would just add that I did find the power pack cut out quite easily, as soon as a wheel hits on something or the hill is too steep the motor struggles and it is impossible to go backwards without lifting the power pack off the ground. We now have a proper powered wheelchair and the different is fantastic wish we had got one years ago, it really has helped my back not to struggle with the heavy chair/pack.

I hope you find something suitable to your needs.

Best wishes x

 

[hollycat]

Hi

No experience but have just "googled" and got the following

http://www.mobilityzone.co.uk/acatalog/Wheelchair_Powerpacks.html

Hope this helps