Son has a powerchair (1 Viewer)

stagger321

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Hi there,

Looking into the possibility of getting a motorhome. My eldest 16yr old son has a progressive disability and uses a powerchair full time.

Going anywhere on vacation can be a nightmare unless we take 1/2 the house with us, so a motorhome seemed the best option.
But which one, and what conversions to make.

As the powerchair is large and heavy and he needs to be hoisted into it I need a lift to geting in via a widened door I assume, plus enough turning circle for him to get around, in at least the lounge area.
He will need hoisting on/off bed and toilet, so space for a travel hoist or (the more expensive option) get a track hoist fitted.
I need 3 belted seats (driver + two passengers) and additional clamping/belts for a powerchair passenger..

As they are close by, recently we visited CoachbuiltGB and saw their operation/facilities. We also tried the adapted Bessacarr motorhome they hire out for vacations, but it was too small. He got in the doorway but could not turn around much from there. I know they are adapting a larger one next year, which we may look at. The cost of their new larger models are very expensive though (80-90k) - much too much for me.

So I was looking at the possibility to get a second hand model and then have CoachbuiltGB adapt it, or soem other company.
I would say my max budget is about 40-50k including all adaptations.

So which model to start with. Not looking for LHD RV btw.

Thanks

Stagger.
 

Mel

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First of all welcome to fun

I cant help but wish you all the best in finding what you need.

I am sure you will find something.

But what about new then you will not pay VAT on the Motorhome.

Mel
 

Mel

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Also dont forget this is one club where you would be very welcome on rallys and meets.


Mel

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ourcampersbeentrashed

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Hi and welcome to fun.

You will occasionally find fully adapted and partly adapted 2nd hand motorhomes on the market.

My best advise is to get you to consider

a) what you will use it for

I know this sounds funny, but if you are staying on sites with full disabled facilities you may not need to worry about a large shower or wetroom conversion. You will still possibly need to worry about accessing the motorhome toilet during the night.

If you are just using the motorhome to sleep in and to cook, then he should not need to move around too much in the powerchair. He will need access to his bed, in and out of the motorhome and to the toilet and dinner table.

If you are going to use it all year round and wild camp or stay where there are no disabled facilities you will need a completely different layout that is totally self sufficient for his needs.

b) what length you are comfortable driving and fuel consumption. You dont want to buy something you then cant afford to use very much.

Have you thought about putting a wanted ad on ebay, gumtree and preloved. Might be worthwhile.

We have a number of disabled funsters I am sure some will come along with more helpful advice soon.

Good luck
 

old-mo

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Welcome...

This may be of interest, and give you some idea`s..

= Link Removed

Good Luck... :thumb:
 
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stagger321

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Hi there,

Thanks for the replies Mel and ourcampersbeentrashed

@ourcampersbeentrashed
WRT your suggestion, yes had considered the loss of toilet/shower, in fact there was a unit with these removed in CoachbuiltGB being converted for one customer.
We'd still like the option to have the toilet and shower though, as we can't guarantee we will be close to a toilet. Not worried too much about the size of the shower as the rest of us would use it, but we do want space for my son to be hoisted on to the toilet.

Personally I am not phased by the larger/longer vehicles. but we may have to consider where we over-winter a large unit.
I had looked online at some of the larger Auto-trail 840 motorhomes but not been able to check one out. So looking for suggestion as to whether these are suitable and what others to consider.

Cheers

Stagger


EDIT @old-Mo - yes that was the one I was refering to. :) Pity its a long way away, otherwise I'd check it out.
The only issue I see is the corridor width to the rear section, plus any other adaptations (wheelchair clamps etc) may blow the budget.

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ourcampersbeentrashed

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Give that ebay seller a call.

Adapted motorhomes are sold only to a small market. Ask if they could meet you half way to view it. I am sure if they wanted a sale and are a disability friendly company, there should be no reason why they couldnt oblige you

Alternatively ask them if they are doing the lincoln motorhome show and can bring it there, I am sure a funster somewhere could check it over for you but you would need to give them a clear brief of what you wanted checking eg. door width size etc
 

Gorse Hill

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Hi stagger
We too have a severely disabled son (SLD) who is 25 and needs to have access to a toilet throu the night, we try to stay on CC sites as we have the radar key and these sites cater for disabled adults with excellent facities.
We purchased the hobby van as the toilet area was the biggest we could find (wanted a reasonable sized van 7.5 meters, not to large as this creates it's own problems with storage and access to some sites) and had the shower taken out so more room when toileting because at the end of the day the shower is not much use to our son and probably your self as it can only provide 10ltrs of hot water (couldn't find a MH that had a bigger boiler than 10ltrs) which doesn't go far when trying to shower a disabled person
We to looked at GBcoach

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Gorse Hill

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We to looked at coachbuiltGB and were impressed but expensive, like someone has mentioned you can claim the VAT back on the adaptations on a used MH which as you will find out can be an expensive exercise but necessary for you to enjoy your holidays with your son, unless your willing to go for a large MH unfortunately compromise will be required but rest assured u will enjoy the freedom a MH gives u and your family and especially your son as we have found it very rewarding with our son
 

geo glasgow

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firstly welcome to the clubs , motorhoming when you get one and disabled career/ parent ,,, i have twins 21 yer ild boy girl ,, kurtis and zoe,, nightmare logisticaly to move around ,has to be methodically done,,
your kid with one wheelchair has to be thought out ,
simply put you want to get out and about,
you want it easy which it will never be in any motorhome what you can achieve is that little bit easier to achieve tasks ,
firstly brand new motorhome addapted to what you think you need is £45k minimum,
even this wont be what you want to a T,
SO i would suggest you look at a large motorhome used but great condition,, £25k apprx then simply get it modified , side door middle of side is a must, this can be modified with an extra width taken away and hinged alsmost like a double door ,,, you can get a electric fold out ramp with hoist to pull in wheelchair,, from that the chair can be clamped down and your son strappd in ,, if he is able to be moved he can sit on a sofa seat with straps as mine do,, toilet and showers i would suggest that most of this could be done within shower and wash facilities on camp sites well up to date some even have disabled shower and toilet rooms that even have baths there great,, this is suggested because the bedding areas to me are more important parents and your son need space , traveling and sleeping need to be enjoyable so space is premium within vans,,, again how big does the kitchen need to be are you happy just with a minimum kitchen ? eat out or simple kitchen to save space and gain this in the comunal moving around area on the door area,, any adaptions would be vat free as far as i know? i did most of it my self and was lucky to have bought a Auto trail with a wide door.. just took a second to come across this ,, Broken Link Removed

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Ambilkate

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What about the weight surely with lift ect it would be over weight

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Puddleduck

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I know this is a very old thread but at Stafford there was a company selling (I think they are called) 5th wheelers with slide outs which gave a huge amount of space. I know they also require a tow truck and there are other considerations but it might be another idea worth consideration.
 
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Does anyone know any dealers using the vat free scheme for disabled drivers

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