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By: Christoffer X Altesino
Recliner lift chairs are a group of chairs in the lift chair family. The
chairs are equipped with a powered system to lift and can hence push
the chair from its basal position upwards, thus enabling the user to
come up to a standing posture. Apart from the lifting mechanism, a
recliner lift chair is also capable of flattening out or reclining up to
certain angles, which gives the user more comfortable positions to rest
or sleep. Such chairs are especially beneficial to the aged people,
those suffering from infirmity or the people with disability providing
greater comfort and flexibility. The chairs start relatively cheap, but
more sophisticated features invariably involve bigger price tags.
Most recliner lift chairs have a capacity to handle weights up to 450
pounds. Some can even carry load of up to 700 pounds. Prices start
around $400 in the USA and can even exceed $2000 for a state-of-the art
leather luxury chair. Chief manufacturers are Pride Mobility, Golden
Technologies, Medlift, Action Lift Chair (ALC, Inc), etc.
Recliner lift chairs come in several varieties. A chair having dual
positions has a lifted position and a slightly reclined "TV" position
for reading, relaxing or watching television. The user's back and thighs
stay at an angle of about 90 degrees to each other in the reclined
position. Such chairs cannot be slanted enough for the purpose of
sleeping. A chair having one more position, i.e. 3, has an additional
full recline position of approximately 135 degrees, which would allow
most people to sleep comfortably. An innumerable position recliner lift
chair can go fully flat, with the back and feet sections being able to
move independently. It may even allow the so called Trendelenburg
posture, where the feet stay at a height above the heart's height.
A potential hazard with a recliner lift chair lies with its strong grip
formed by the frame and the motor. Unsuspecting children and pets run
the risk of getting caught and crushed. After reported infant deaths in
Oklahoma, USA and Manchester, UK, a safety standard for the product has
been passed in order to alleviate any risk of injury/ death caused due
to this chair (BS 8474). Still, not all manufacturers have attempted to
fulfill the safety standards. Recently, La-Z-Boy, a New York stock
exchange listed US manufacturer has modified its range of recliner lift
chairs to meet the UK safety standard.
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