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Simpro Bath Lift

In her late years my mother experienced difficulty getting out of the bath. Getting into the bath was no problem but when it came to getting out she was stuck. Unless this has happened to you or someone in your family then you can't imagine what a problem it is. It is extremely difficult to assist someone out of a bath and when there is the presence of pain in the body it is even more complicated.

Several different bath lifts were available for sale in Cape Town that were designed for such situations but the price I found to be out of reach of ordinary households and so I embarked to design and produce a machine that could do the job but also be affordable and here is the machine that I have now made available.

Lifting a person out of the bath involves major engineering complications that are not apparent until you embark on such a project and although the Simpro bathlift does not cover all aspects of the difficulties that can be encountered let me just say that I do think that the Simpro does overcome most of the problems.

It's easy to build any machine that will do everything when cost is not a factor but most people are strapped for cash and this was for me the first hurdle to overcome in the design. The machine had to work but it also had to be affordable.

When cost is a determining factor in deciding which machine you are going to use and when you are working on a limited budget then when you compare other products on the market then you may agree with me that the Simpro bathlift is a financially sound choice.

The bathlift requires an assistant to operate but it is very simple to use and the machine itself is easy for one person to move as it only weighs 9 kilograms. At its highest point the bathlift is 25 cm. At its lowest point it is only 5 cm high which allows it to be stored in the bathroom on the wall above the bath without imposing on others who from time to time are using the same bath.

Another advantage of storing it on the wall above the bath is that immediately after use any water left on the sheet will drip into the bath and not where it is not wanted.

You can enjoy using rich and lavish oils and salts in your bath water without having to worry about the cleaning hassles because with the Simpro bathlift it is only the thin sheet that comes into direct contact with the bath water. There are no difficult to reach areas on the sheet so it is easy to clean in a jiffy with just the normal sponge and scourer that you normally use to clean the bath after it has been used.

The bathlift does not require electricity to operate and there is no maintenance which saves you more money over time.

easy to use

easy to clean

easy to move

no electricity

weighs only 9 kilograms

no maintenance and saves you money

Prolonged luxury bath relaxation

When you lean back, the bath lift provides extra back and neck support for relaxing. It's like sitting in a comfy chair except that you're in the bath. 

One simple to understand advantage of the Simpro bathlift over other bathlifts is that the Simpro doesn't steal any space from the bath. No one likes to bath in a half empty bath and unfortunately most bath lifts, because of the mechanisms below the seat, it is not possible to utilize the entire bath space. The support sheet of the Simpro bathlift is a fraction of a millimeter so this allows 100% submergence into the bath.

Not only is the sheet not in the way of your bath enjoyment but it also holds you and actually ads comfort to your relaxation. 

The bathlift weighs only 9 kilograms so moving it is easy.

Watch the video above and maybe you can work out a way to make the bathlift from the video but if you think that working from a set of plans will make your project easier then contact me.

simprolaw@gmail.com

WARNING

Every machine that exists has safety risks. Some more and some less and so caution is called for when using any machine.

The Simpro bathlift is relatively safe for the person being lowered into the bath but there is a danger to the person who is operating the winding handle because once the brake is released then it is important not to release the handle of the winding mechanism until you manually reinstall the braking device. The handle must be held firmly at all times when the brake is in the release position.

The brake mechanism is either on or off. The brake does not release gradually and it will only engage when you manually reinstall it. When you disengaged the brake and you are holding the winding handle it is very important that you do not release the winding handle when there is a load on the sheet.

When you wind the machine it does not feel heavy. This feeling of lightness on the handle is because the real load is being carried by the design and the bearings that have been built into the housing structure. It is very important to always keep this in mind because even though you can't feel the load you must always remember that the load is there.

You must never let go of the handle when you are lowering or raising someone on the sheet.

To let go of the handle when the brake is released will cause the handle to spin wildly which can cause injury to any object in the path of that spin. If any part of your body is in the way of that spin and there is a load on the support sheet then you will receive a heavy blow and you will get hurt.

With a little practice it is easy to learn how to use the machine with caution. The Simpro bathlift works in the same way that you lift water out of a water well with a bucket attached to a winding mechanism. 

Various safety brakes can be installed as for example the ones that you find in a car safety seat belt mechanism but such devices don't come without high extra cost and my driving factor in designing this machine was to produce something affordable so I made this safety sacrifice so that I can get the machine to you for less.

So here you have been warned but in any event at the end of the day you are the one who has to decide what is best for you and how much you are willing to pay for what you get.

Personally I prefer to pay less and just use the brain that God gave me and be a little more careful.