Kitchens by Riland

ADA was enacted initially in 1990. This defines the term American Disabilities Act which provides protection and ensures equal access to public services and goods and people with disabilities. The ADA standards ensure that facilities both commercial and public used by people with disabilities must meet their requirements in at least having one type of feature or fixture. These requirements are extended to people with multifamily housing. In technical terms the ADA bathroom sinks should not be in excess of 34 inches in height. For an individual in a wheelchair there must be clear floor space available. This should be in the range of 30 inches in width and 48 inches in height. The ADA bathroom sinks placed on the countertop must be within 2 inches for accessibility from front. There must be no sharp edges. For further protection a shroud or panel can be installed. Controls for ADA bathroom sinks must be within the right distance to an individual with disabilities and it should be activated by the use of only one hand. The pressure required to activate such a control must not exceed more than 5 lbs.

When one creates a bathroom for a handicapped person much thinking must go into the designing of the bathroom. The entire bathroom must be fixed in such a way that there is easy accessibility for the individual. Some of the features that are placed such as a sink should have an easy access to the wheelchair. First discuss from a personal point the disabled person’s requirements. An individual may require a sink that a little bit of bending may be enough. If they are wheelchair bound, then they will need to sit in their chair while reaching out to the sink. These requests need to be considered very carefully when designing a sink or making adjustments to the current one.

In case there is an old sink, remove it and expose its pipes. Cover the pipes by building a box or insulate it. When an individual is accessing the sink in a wheelchair, he or she won’t burn their knees if the pipes are covered properly. Provide protective padding to the outside of the pipes so it does not cause any harm if there’s accidental bumping. Old faucets must be replaced with new ones. The new faucets must be easy to control. Test faucets to ensure that the individual is comfortable using them. While the designing and selecting of sinks is taking place it is best if the individual also participates in this process.