Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
I know I'm way late on this one, but I'll throw my six cents in. :) Cement is nice, durable. Costs a lot, and no one wants to steal it. Clearing it of snow can be a chore. Expanded metal mesh? Depending on the mesh they use, absolutely fantastic traction under virtually all conditions. You can get good traction even with a light coating of ice. Ice and snow and everything basically falls through out of the way (or can be mostly smushed through with your tires). If you need deicer on it, it won't stay. You can scoop snow if necessary. Bad points: bare toes, high heels, and metal recyclers seem to want to steal lots of them. I don't like the recommended construction of most accessible wood ramps. It's true that they have the design down now such that you can start churning out a series of standard boxes and hook them to make a ramp, but I don't happen to personally like them. My biggest objection is to the plywood decking. It provides no traction at all, and has zero provision for water run-off. No water run-off means the plywood is going to delaminate and fail much quicker than it should unless you waterproof each individual piece of wood using epoxy, as you would if you were building a boat to last. You would still wind up with water on the decking, whether in the form of ice, snow, or rain. There are various ways of getting traction. One is those friction strips that you put on stairs. I've noticed that a lot of people use these. They work pretty well in the rain (did for me, anyway), and can be ok with very thin coatings of ice. With ice any thicker, or with any any amount of snow, the ramp always seemed to have no traction at all, with a resultant full-speed uncontrolled skid to the bottom. Not fun. We never could figure out a way to keep them attached to the ramp anyway. Also, you basically have two choices: cover the entire ramp with them, or run two strips of them down the ramp and make sure that your tires never stray off of them. Another way to get traction is to paint the deck with paint (pref. epoxy paint) that has a quantity of sandblasting sand mixed in. This kind of sand has sharper edges than regular sand and gives better traction. This also works pretty well in the rain, and not so well with anything else. A handyman we worked with would only use pool paint instead of epoxy, and regular sand because he said there was no sandblasting sand in town. There were a lot of buildings in town being sandblasted, and a few are anyway every year, so I don't think that was right. The end result was not much traction, plus all the paint peeled in less than a year. sigh Here's what worked for us. Our ramp was two 1x12 boards running underneath the length of the ramp, at the left and right sides. The decking was formed by 1x4 boards run crossways on the ramp. The spacing of the boards was good, being 1/8 to 3/16 inch. This let the wood swell and shrink from the water, while keeping them from touching each other. It also let the water run off between the boards very quickly. Also, they were close enough together that neither toes nor high heels would fall into the cracks. The ramp needed a lot of improvements. It sagged a lot in the middle of all those 1x4 boards, so we added a third 2x12 down underneath the center of the ramp, running the entire length. At that point, we had a couple of large people jump up and down on it. It didn't sag at all anymore. If you want your ramp 4 feet wide, run another 2x12 underneath down the length of it. Just space them all apart at equal distances. We added expanded metal mesh to the entire surface of the ramp. It was attached by putting washers on top of the mesh then driving a large screw through the hole in the washer. To be sure to get traction at the top and bottom of the ramp before the drive wheels engage the mesh, be sure to extend the mesh at least 3 feet above and below the ramp. Above, you would screw it down to the level part of the deck. At the bottom, if it lets out onto sidewalk or bricks... you just have to get creative. It just has to be solidly secured down. For some reason, tiny bits of the mesh cannot be allowed to stray up into a lawnmower... One fine but important thing about the mesh. Paint it flat black. Epoxy, or maybe engine paint, but something that will stay on. Spray paint worked pretty well for us. Why paint it? We got the galvanized stuff, and it was a heavy enough mesh that it wasn't for corrosion resistance. It was for the heat gain. Have a coating of snow and ice in 25F weather, and it would get warm enough to melt itself off. If the whole thing was covered, you could scoop some of it off, and that would get the sun to heat it enough to start the process for the rest. If it needed more help, you could throw salt on it, and the mesh would keep the salt from washing itself or being kicked off the ramp. It would just keep the salt working. You also need a solid edge on the right and left edge of the ramp, to keep the chair from
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
Please review the ANSI Codes regarding ramps as it is what most jurisdictions follow and will be a good guideline for the contractorthat will be building it for you. No material is impervious to the elements. Talk with your local Center for Independent Living for ideas, contractors, etc. --- On Thu, 10/14/10, wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com wrote: From: wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps To: t...@toddc5quad.com, quad-list@eskimo.com Date: Thursday, October 14, 2010, 8:20 PM much depends on your climate, environment and capital. Room is also an important issue. Each material has its plus and minuses. Finding someone to purchase the raw materials, perform the install and do the job right is all part of Doing it Right. How long will your ramp have to be or required Best Wishes In a message dated 10/14/2010 4:43:13 P.M. Central Daylight Time, t...@toddc5quad.com writes: Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
[QUAD-L] Ramps
A ramp can be expensive. All ramps are expensive, so planning is most important. Is your family or friends doing the work for you or will the job be contracted? Until that is determined, it is difficult to offer you better and more credible advice. Will it be a straight run or have curves and bends? Single level or dual level? Best Wishes In a message dated 10/15/2010 8:24:34 A.M. Central Daylight Time, tecn...@sbcglobal.net writes: Please review the ANSI Codes regarding ramps as it is what most jurisdictions follow and will be a good guideline for the contractorthat will be building it for you. No material is impervious to the elements. Talk with your local Center for Independent Living for ideas, contractors, etc. --- On Thu, 10/14/10, wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com wrote: From: wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps To: t...@toddc5quad.com, quad-list@eskimo.com Date: Thursday, October 14, 2010, 8:20 PM much depends on your climate, environment and capital. Room is also an important issue. Each material has its plus and minuses. Finding someone to purchase the raw materials, perform the install and do the job right is all part of Doing it Right. How long will your ramp have to be or required Best Wishes In a message dated 10/14/2010 4:43:13 P.M. Central Daylight Time, t...@toddc5quad.com writes: Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
RE: [QUAD-L] Ramps
You might want to check out an organization called, Rebuilding Together Good luck, Dave Krehbiel -Original Message- From: t...@toddc5quad.com [mailto:t...@toddc5quad.com] Sent: Thursday, October 14, 2010 5:43 PM To: quad-list@eskimo.com Subject: [QUAD-L] Ramps Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
[QUAD-L] ramps
Hi all. I have this kind of ramp.Works great in all seasons. www.americanramp.com-800-649-5215 Paul
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
My husband really likes to watch Holmes on Homes on HGTV with Mike Holmes. I watched an episode of it with him today whereby a guy with MS had moved into a home 6 years prior and then was diagnosed with MS a few years later and his health *rapidly* deteriorated. He is now confined to a scooter. Anyway, the guy with MS and his wife had known another guy in some capacity and they asked him if he would build a ramp for them... on to their home of course. Needless to say, the guy did a crappy job and then kept coming up with excuses as to finishing it correctly, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. So, in comes Mike Holmes with his crew. Mike showed everything about it that was so poorly done (and therefore unsafe). So him and his crew took off the other ramp and built one (a perfect one) that was up to code, etc. For those living in extreme temperatures (from cold winter months to very hot months) it is important to use PRESSURE TREATED WOOD. Mike also did not use nails. He used GALVANIZED SCREWS (if not galvanized, they will rust quickly from rain or snow, etc.). And he used approximately 3000 of those screws for the ramp he built onto this guys house for him. Not to mention going for foot down in the earth for stability. And making sure everything is leveled, etc. etc. etc. HGTV does a lot of reruns on many programs so you might want to check out your local listings when is on for you in your area and then look at THE TOPIC that Mike Holmes is working on in any particular episode. Lori On Fri, Oct 15, 2010 at 6:31 AM, wheelch...@aol.com wrote: A ramp can be expensive. All ramps are expensive, so planning is most important. Is your family or friends doing the work for you or will the job be contracted? Until that is determined, it is difficult to offer you better and more credible advice. Will it be a straight run or have curves and bends? Single level or dual level? Best Wishes In a message dated 10/15/2010 8:24:34 A.M. Central Daylight Time, tecn...@sbcglobal.net writes: Please review the ANSI Codes regarding ramps as it is what most jurisdictions follow and will be a good guideline for the contractorthat will be building it for you. No material is impervious to the elements. Talk with your local Center for Independent Living for ideas, contractors, etc. --- On *Thu, 10/14/10, wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com* wrote: From: wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps To: t...@toddc5quad.com, quad-list@eskimo.com Date: Thursday, October 14, 2010, 8:20 PM much depends on your climate, environment and capital. Room is also an important issue. Each material has its plus and minuses. Finding someone to purchase the raw materials, perform the install and do the job right is all part of Doing it Right. How long will your ramp have to be or required Best Wishes In a message dated 10/14/2010 4:43:13 P.M. Central Daylight Time, t...@toddc5quad.com writes: Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd -- Lori Age - 46 C4/5 complete quad, 30+ years post Tucson, AZ
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
My story of ramps _http://www.users.qwest.net/~daveoc/ramps/index.htm_ (http://www.users.qwest.net/~daveoc/ramps/index.htm) AZDAVE
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
This is really weird because about an hour after writing what I did in my previous e-mail regarding Mike Holmes and ramp building... someone on the SCIC list was asking if anyone tried a portable shower from the following website and the following website is all about ramps! American Ramps: http://www.amramp.com/ Lori On Fri, Oct 15, 2010 at 3:14 PM, hellodav...@aol.com wrote: My story of ramps http://www.users.qwest.net/~daveoc/ramps/index.htm AZDAVE -- Lori Age - 46 C4/5 complete quad, 30+ years post Tucson, AZ
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
Go to www.pviramps.com Sent from my iPad On Oct 15, 2010, at 18:14, hellodav...@aol.com wrote: My story of ramps http://www.users.qwest.net/~daveoc/ramps/index.htm AZDAVE
RE: [QUAD-L] Ramps
If it's just a straight ramp you need and not too steep, maybe you could considera portable ramp, I use one in my van since I don't have an electric one and I use it a lot for getting in to unaccessible places. I live in Mexico though, sothere are a lot of places like that. Lissette Whitehead www.lissettesgoaltowalk.synthasite.com www.lwgripgloves.com Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2010 14:43:08 -0700 Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps From: lorilivin...@gmail.com To: wheelch...@aol.com; quad-list@eskimo.com My husband really likes to watch Holmes on Homes on HGTV with Mike Holmes. I watched an episode of it with him today whereby a guy with MS had moved into a home 6 years prior and then was diagnosed with MS a few years later and his health rapidly deteriorated. He is now confined to a scooter. Anyway, the guy with MS and his wife had known another guy in some capacity and they asked him if he would build a ramp for them... on to their home of course. Needless to say, the guy did a crappy job and then kept coming up with excuses as to finishing it correctly, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. So, in comes Mike Holmes with his crew. Mike showed everything about it that was so poorly done (and therefore unsafe). So him and his crew took off the other ramp and built one (a perfect one) that was up to code, etc. For those living in extreme temperatures (from cold winter months to very hot months) it is important to use PRESSURE TREATED WOOD. Mike also did not use nails. He used GALVANIZED SCREWS (if not galvanized, they will rust quickly from rain or snow, etc.). And he used approximately 3000 of those screws for the ramp he built onto this guys house for him. Not to mention going for foot down in the earth for stability. And making sure everything is leveled, etc. etc. etc. HGTV does a lot of reruns on many programs so you might want to check out your local listings when is on for you in your area and then look at THE TOPIC that Mike Holmes is working on in any particular episode. Lori On Fri, Oct 15, 2010 at 6:31 AM, wheelch...@aol.com wrote: A ramp can be expensive. All ramps are expensive, so planning is most important. Is your family or friends doing the work for you or will the job be contracted? Until that is determined, it is difficult to offer you better and more credible advice. Will it be a straight run or have curves and bends? Single level or dual level? Best Wishes In a message dated 10/15/2010 8:24:34 A.M. Central Daylight Time, tecn...@sbcglobal.net writes: Please review the ANSI Codes regarding ramps as it is what most jurisdictions follow and will be a good guideline for the contractorthat will be building it for you. No material is impervious to the elements. Talk with your local Center for Independent Living for ideas, contractors, etc. --- On Thu, 10/14/10, wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com wrote: From: wheelch...@aol.com wheelch...@aol.com Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps To: t...@toddc5quad.com, quad-list@eskimo.com Date: Thursday, October 14, 2010, 8:20 PM much depends on your climate, environment and capital. Room is also an important issue. Each material has its plus and minuses. Finding someone to purchase the raw materials, perform the install and do the job right is all part of Doing it Right. How long will your ramp have to be or required Best Wishes In a message dated 10/14/2010 4:43:13 P.M. Central Daylight Time, t...@toddc5quad.com writes: Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd -- Lori Age - 46 C4/5 complete quad, 30+ years post Tucson, AZ
RE: [QUAD-L] Ramps
I like the doggy in the pics, what breed is it?looks a bit like one of my chihuahuas whichgrew huge. Lissette Whitehead www.lissettesgoaltowalk.synthasite.com www.lwgripgloves.com From: hellodav...@aol.com Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2010 18:14:01 -0400 Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps To: quad-list@eskimo.com My story of ramps http://www.users.qwest.net/~daveoc/ramps/index.htm AZDAVE
[QUAD-L] Ramps
Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
much depends on your climate, environment and capital. Room is also an important issue. Each material has its plus and minuses. Finding someone to purchase the raw materials, perform the install and do the job right is all part of Doing it Right. How long will your ramp have to be or required Best Wishes In a message dated 10/14/2010 4:43:13 P.M. Central Daylight Time, t...@toddc5quad.com writes: Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
My first ramp was made out of treated wood , screwed some 2x4s on the edges to keep ya from rolling off and a basic hand rail..all out off wood. We stained it then bought some of that sand paper tape in a roll and stuck that down. Worked very good for 10 yrs then I had a concrete ramp poured. Ron c7 Keep rollin til the wheels fall off then buy some more and roll again --- On Thu, 10/14/10, t...@toddc5quad.com t...@toddc5quad.com wrote: From: t...@toddc5quad.com t...@toddc5quad.com Subject: [QUAD-L] Ramps To: quad-list@eskimo.com Date: Thursday, October 14, 2010, 4:42 PM Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
Re: [QUAD-L] Ramps
First thing to consider zoning for your community! Weather conditions, cost of materials and most importantly how long will it last and maintenance? What are other individuals in your community using that has worked well for them? Now I am in a snowy part of the country so materials were more slippery and especially on the way up. Some wheelchair tires get better traction on different materials because one time I had A ramp that every time it rained I sid down! - Original Message From: t...@toddc5quad.com t...@toddc5quad.com To: quad-list@eskimo.com Sent: Thu, October 14, 2010 5:42:52 PM Subject: [QUAD-L] Ramps Hi everyone, I need to install a new ramp, it can be temporary or permanent. I'm trying to decide between Cement, Wood or deck type material or Expanded metal. I was thinking snow and rain would fall through the expanded metal so it wouldn't require as much snow shoveling as the others. But would it have good traction when covered with frost, fresh snow or wet from rain? I have a cement ramp and it doesn't seem to have any issues unless the snow builds up and gets packed down before it gets shoveled off. I would think a wood or decking material would be similar to the cement. Any ideas or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Todd
