# ask the guy getting a new wheelchair **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 29, 2010, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536 "2010-09-29T23:37:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/21 "2010-09-30T13:36:24Z")
> [@bartleby](#): > > My son just got a new chair. > > it’s worth more than both our cars put together. > > yay insurance! Wow. What makes the chair so expensive? (or what makes the cars so cheap :D). Also in general, what sort of price ranges do wheelchairs go for? My mental image is of the generic hospital wheelchair which hardly seems like it would cost more than a few hundred, but I suspect those aren’t great for everyday use. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/22 "2010-09-30T13:44:03Z")
Will yours have the “assist” handles on the back? (Is there a proper name?) I ask because a friend and neighbor was very touchy about the prospect of anyone ever helping him and when I first became aware of that it kinda caught me by surprise. Don’t answer if that’s too personal, I just found it interesting. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/23 "2010-09-30T13:45:35Z")
Here’s a pretty [high end chair](http://www.sportaid.com/quickie-ti-titanium-wheelchair.html). Once you start customizing, it really goes up. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/24 "2010-09-30T16:46:49Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Will yours have the “assist” handles on the back? (Is there a proper name?) I ask because a friend and neighbor was very touchy about the prospect of anyone ever helping him and when I first became aware of that it kinda caught me by surprise. Don’t answer if that’s too personal, I just found it interesting. It will have “push handles” (that’s what they are), mainly so people can boost me in less accessible family member’s homes. ---
**Author:** ![clarkstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@clarkstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clarkstar)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/25 "2010-10-01T06:28:31Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > Here’s a pretty [high end chair](http://www.sportaid.com/quickie-ti-titanium-wheelchair.html). Once you start customizing, it really goes up. would a chair that expensive be covered? what kind of limits does medicare have? ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/26 "2010-10-01T09:36:17Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > > [@bartleby](#): > > > > My son just got a new chair. > > > > it’s worth more than both our cars put together. > > > > yay insurance! > > Wow. What makes the chair so expensive? (or what makes the cars so cheap :D). > > Also in general, what sort of price ranges do wheelchairs go for? My mental image is of the generic hospital wheelchair which hardly seems like it would cost more than a few hundred, but I suspect those aren’t great for everyday use. A fair amount of thought goes into buying a chair … think about it. Take me, female, I can stand so I can transfer to a car, but I have to be on crutches or holding the vehicle to turn and sit [then I use my hands to lift my legs into the car] so if I have mrAru or my roommate [or someone else] with me, they can fold and shove the chair into the back of the car. If I am alone, I have to be able to sit in the car seat, with my legs outside, lean over, fold the chair and lift it into the car [i am currently looking at a minivan with a left slidy door that I can take the drivers side back seat out of to make it easier for me to heft the chair in alone] If I go for a non foldy frame chair, then I have to be able to take the wheels off, then flip it over and sit it upside down on the seat, then shove the wheels in. Or I can buy a modified van that has a chair lift, and then has the drivers seat removed, and tiedowns for the chair, or a captains driver seat that turns so I can transfer into it. So, the chair has to be light enough for me to heft into the vehicle [my current chair weighs 35ish pounds, obviously not an ultralight =)] yet sturdy enough to last more than a couple months. I have to have a vehicle that I can put the chair into solo, or is modified for a chair user unless I am willing to never drive anywhere alone [and I admit that I tend to not want to go out alone, just so I can be lazy and have help shoving my chair into the damned car though in an emergency I will just hop in the car and go with just the crutches in an emergency. I actually keep an old folding chair in the trunk] ---
**Author:** ![Claude\_Remains](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@Claude\_Remains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claude_Remains)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/27 "2010-10-01T09:48:19Z")
With hindsight, I hope that my post isn’t taken as being jerkish or insensitive. ---
**Author:** ![clarkstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@clarkstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clarkstar)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/28 "2010-10-01T11:23:11Z")
> [@Claude\_Remains](#): > > With hindsight, I hope that my post isn’t taken as being jerkish or insensitive. lol i think people here have a sense of humor. i thought you might have posted [this one](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu2plXY1MlM) ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/29 "2010-10-01T14:36:44Z")
> [@Claude\_Remains](#): > > With hindsight, I hope that my post isn’t taken as being jerkish or insensitive. I thought it was pretty neat, I am way too old and fragile to try anything like that, but I bet he was having a blast [and ended up with some serious bruises:eek:] ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/30 "2010-10-01T14:41:04Z")
What happens to the old one? ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/31 "2010-10-01T18:22:01Z")
Meanie: We use it a spare. ---
**Author:** ![clarkstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@clarkstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clarkstar)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2010, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/32 "2010-10-02T04:47:51Z")
> [@clarkstar](#): > > > [@runner pat](#): > > > > Here’s a pretty [high end chair](http://www.sportaid.com/quickie-ti-titanium-wheelchair.html). Once you start customizing, it really goes up. > > would a chair that expensive be covered? what kind of limits does medicare have? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/33 "2010-10-03T21:51:18Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > Solid folding. (back folds foward, wheels pop off) Sounds like my new one, which just arrived last week. Quickie? (Yes, that is a wheelchair brand :D). I actually started the process last spring, but Alberta Aids to Daily Living (which heavily subsidizes wheelchairs as well as a great many other things) takes 3 months to authorize a purchase these days. What kind of tires did you get (I ask because my old one has pneumatic ones, and my new one has puncture-proof ones; I was shocked at how much less traction I have now)? ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/34 "2010-10-03T22:22:46Z")
I’m getting solid tires, so I don’t wqorry about nails/tacks. Was told: 6-8 wks for approval, 6-8 weeks for construction/delivery. ---
**Author:** ![Gukumatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/74df32/32.png) [@Gukumatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gukumatz)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/35 "2010-10-03T22:27:30Z")
Quick question - I was on wheels for a month this year (broken leg), but how the hell do you deal with slanting sidewalks without getting massively lopsided arm muscles? I mean where the sidewalk goes down a 6-8 degree slope towards the road. Or is that just bad, Norwegian infrastructure? ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/36 "2010-10-03T22:35:08Z")
I see that in Boston occasionally. But I avoid them if I can. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/37 "2010-10-03T22:39:08Z")
Do you require/order any special padding or anything? I’ve got a friend with severe CP, and I swear, her custom made padding just about doubled the price of the chair! But she’s in it all day, every day, and can’t make small adjustments to her position, so yeah, she absolutely needs it to prevent pressure ulcers. Just wondering if that expensive molded padding is needed for a more mobile wheelchair user. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/38 "2010-10-03T22:51:56Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Do you require/order any special padding or anything? I’ve got a friend with severe CP, and I swear, her custom made padding just about doubled the price of the chair! But she’s in it all day, every day, and can’t make small adjustments to her position, so yeah, she absolutely needs it to prevent pressure ulcers. > > Just wondering if that expensive molded padding is needed for a more mobile wheelchair user. if you can self adjust and move around, not so much. I do have a fairly inexpensive gel seat but that is for comfort not to prevent sores as I am only in the chair part time. If you can transfer out of the chair into another chair for sitting, it helps a lot. There is a fair number of adjustments that can be made to chairs, angle of the legs position, back, the actual wheels [there are so many variants - way more than the generic $900 Invacare that you see in hospitals] so it ranges from the 90/90 generic invacare to some of the odder sport chairs, to power chairs that actually recline flat or do the transformer thing to stand you up … to the lifesupport enabled chairs like Christopher Reeves had. Some of the odder chairs cost as much as my damned house…:eek: ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2010, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/39 "2010-10-03T23:45:14Z")
I can adjust easily, but I am getting an air cushion (they’re moving away from gel). I have Spina Bifida, so I don’t need as much pading. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2010, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536/40 "2010-10-04T22:06:02Z")
> [@Gukumatz](#): > > Quick question - I was on wheels for a month this year (broken leg), but how the hell do you deal with slanting sidewalks without getting massively lopsided arm muscles? I mean where the sidewalk goes down a 6-8 degree slope towards the road. Or is that just bad, Norwegian infrastructure? Cross the street occasionally so that the sidewalk slopes the other way and you exercise the other arm. That said, I have no idea how bad a 6-8 degree slope would be; I can’t picture that angle in relation to how much typical sidewalks around here slope. If the slope is steep and extended then I just have to avoid it. The worst slopes I run into tend to be the exits from parking lots; in that case I go up into the parking lot, across the exit at the top of the slope, and back down the other side. Also, if you had a crappy hospital-style wheelchair while you had your broken leg, keep in mind that my wheelchair (and I assume ekv78’s) is much lighter than a hospital-style wheelchair; it makes a major difference. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-getting-a-new-wheelchair/555536.md?page=3)