How To Make Your Kitchen Cabinets Wheelchair Accessible

Although everything else is quite reachable, kitchen cabinets are often positioned 16-20” above countertops reaching up to the ceiling. Storage positioned at standing height saves space, however, being in a wheelchair makes these cupboards inaccessible.

The most popular way of making these cabinets accessible is by installing electric power cabinets. Depending on the user’s needs, the cabinets can go up or down. It’d only take the click of a button to bring down the kitchen cabinet to an easily reachable height. Once done, the user can raise it back to its original position.

However, there is a problem: Electric-powered cabinets are often extremely expensive.

The less expensive alternative is installing manually-maneuvered shelves within the cabinets. The user can lower or raise the cabinet in the same way based on their needs. This alternative isn’t exactly perfect either, since it is more tedious to operate. More moving parts often means more possibilities for constant wear and tear with resulting maintenance costs.

Glide Out Shelves

Glide-out shelves are perfect for those hard-to-reach sections in the back of your cabinets. Installing shelves that easily pull out allows for the entire shelf to be utilized rather than only the front sections. It also relieves strain placed on the body when required to stretch and reach in deeper cabinets.

Adjustable shelves are an additional consideration when redesigning your kitchen cabinets for the changing needs of those with disabilities.

Lazy Susan Cabinet

For corner cabinets that hold smaller items, lazy Susan is a perfect solution. Its rounded shelves revolve so that each item has a chance to be front and center. Accessibility is a breeze with this wheelchair-accessible kitchen cabinet.

Use Non-Slip Liners

It’s also a good idea to fit the kitchen with non-slip cabinet liners. This way, users can easily retrieve items reducing the possibility of dropping or breaking anything.

Use Appropriate Hardware

The pulling mechanism on cabinets can play a significant role in improving accessibility. Interior designers advise that cabinets have loops or bar handles instead of knobs or pulls which require greater grip strength.

It may be an even better idea to opt for touch-release doors and drawers. Installing this system can often be expensive but offers maximum accessibility and ease of use.

Top or bottom-hinged doors are additional hardware solutions when redesigning your kitchen cabinets to be wheelchair accessible.