These are operated by an assistant or carer and are designed to climb up and down a flight of stairs. They are not attached to the staircase so they can be transported and used on different staircases.
Stairclimbers are available with either a seat onto which the user transfers or with an attachment onto which a wheelchair can be attached.
It is essential that the carer / attendant is familiar and has been trained with the equipment before trying to operate it.
Some stairclimbers have caterpillar tracks that grip the stairs and others have a wheel cluster which rotates to transport the user up or down. They are powered by a rechargeable battery.
It is important to consider the staircase, as stairclimbers will only cover a certain depth of tread and only some types of stairclimber can manage curved staircases.
Some of the stairclimbers with an attachment onto which a wheelchair can be attached require the wheelchair's rear wheels to be removed when going up / down stairs. These are only suitable for wheelchairs with quick release wheels and a carer / attendant who is confident to remove and re-attach the wheels.