"Electric Walker" Helps Wife Get Around

"Electric Walker" Helps Wife Get Around FARM HOME Miscellaneous 31-6-31 When Fabian Schaaf's wife became too weak to walk on her own, his son Kenneth built her an electric-powered walker to help. The power lift helps her out of her wheel chair and supports her while walking. "Once she's upright, I can push the walker along, and she can get some exercise walking across the floor," says Schaaf. "Without it, she could easily fall if she tried to walk." The walker consists of a frame, made from 1-in. dia. steel tubing, mounted on a U-shaped wood platform fitted with caster wheels. A 12-volt drum winch from a boat trailer mounts on the platform along with a 12-volt battery. A steel cable runs up to a rope at the top that lifts a homemade sling. The wheelchair is rolled into the opening in the platform and she's lifted straight up out of her chair. The rig may not be fancy, but Schaaf says it's built solid. Most important, it does what it's supposed to do. "When her exercise is finished, I can lower her back into her wheel chair. Without this and a second lift that lets me move her in and out of bed, I couldn't take care of her at home," says Schaaf. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Fabian Schaaf, 1800 145th Ave. N.E., Foley, Minn. 56329 (ph 320 968-7685).

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