Category Archives: wheelchair stories

Message Body:
Al, this is David and I bought a Nifty-Lift awhile back. I actually forget exactly how long I’ve had it but I wanted to let you know how it’s working for me and some of the things I’m doing with it. In case you don’t remember I’m in a wheelchair since 1980 after a car accident. I would say I use the N-L everyday for something. I keep it with me in case I need it or find a use for it and want to try it. First, I have a standing station that is made to standup and do various exercises in. You can also extend the arms up about 9 ft to do chin ups. It has a very heavy base so it isn’t too tippy. This is what I use a good part of the time to hold the N-L. I modified it and put some spare wheels on it so it is now mobile. I then take the wheels off to take advantage of the weight of the base. My wheels pop on and off just like my chair so it’s easy. I use this setup for lifting things, moving furniture, working on something I want up closer to me and even lowering myself to the floor and back up to my chair. I’m not doing anything that is testing the limits of N-L or the cord just things I want or need to do and need a hand. One example is I have an old kitchen table that has been in my family since before I was born. I wanted to tighten the legs on it and put it in the kitchen to use and move the table that was there out of the way. I hooked the table to the N-L which was connected to my standing station. I lifted the table and turned it over to work on the legs. I was well balanced and right in front of my face so I left it attached and tightened the legs down. I left it connected and moved it to the kitchen where I turned it back over and lowered it. The table probably weighs around 100lbs. That’s a guess but all seemed sturdy so I left the wheels on the standing station for this so I could roll it to the kitchen. I know this doesn’t sound that impressive but I’m a paraplegic who lives alone and I did this without any help which is a big deal for me. Without the N-L I would have had to call someone and when they could come help me. Actually they would have done it all because without the N-L I’m not much help moving and lifting. I also modified my wheelchair to allow me to take advantage of the N-L and the mods I did have been a big help for several thing even without the N-L. Some of this I think would be better to show you but what I’ve done to my chair I wish I would have thought of 35 years ago. It makes things easier to carry and move around. Even my own weight I can use my mods to get comfortable or pull my pants up or do lots of things I would have to get out of my chair to do. One thing I use N-L with my chair is I have a humidifier I bought this year because when the furnace runs in winter I am miserable because it drys everything up. So the humidifier takes 4 gallons of water which meant endless trips to the sink and back with a pitcher. Which by the way is not easy because when I carry a pitcher of water I hold it with 1 hand and push the wheels with the other. Then I alternate from side to side so I make sort of a zig zag pattern to try to keep forward momentum but without spilling the pitcher. With the N-L and my chair mods I fill a 4 gallon bucket 1 time lift it in the air leave it suspended so it doesn’t take the bouncing it would sitting on my legs. But then I have both hands free to much my wheels straight to the humidifier. I lower it to the fill opening and just tilt it to pour in. Of course I still have to be cautious but as long as I move slowly and pour slowly I can fill it without a mess in 1 trip and I don’t actually lift a thing myself. And that’s what 8lbs per gallon which doesn’t sound like much but it would be very tricky without the N-L and my mods. I know this is alot to hit you with in this message but I wanted to let you know how I’ve been using it. I noticed you now have a less expensive version of the Nifty-Lift and the deluxe. I believe I have the deluxe but I wanted to ask what the difference is. I want to purchase at least 1 more N-L and possible more so if the cheaper model works the same I could go that route. That way I can leave 1 or 2 setup and don’t have to go through any setup to use them. Anyway we can talk on the phone if you’re curious and I can make some videos so you can see some of this. Sorry this is so long but I wanted to give you some idea of what I’ve come up with. I have a friend working on a simplified version of what I added to my chair which I think will really give people in chairs some independence when they want to do heavy lifting or work by themselves without having to get someone to help them. That is one of the most frustrating parts of being in a chair as a man. And I think this is all just scratching the surface of ways to use the N-L everyday. I’ll leave it there so get back to me sometime and we can discuss in more detail without me writing a novel for you to read. Thanks, David.