Disabled Hands

Advancing Laundry Technology

As I have talked about before doing the laundry is one of the greatest challenges for those with disabled hands. Even more so if your disability has you using a wheelchair. Advancing technology is making laundry easier and easier. This Japanese unit from Panasonic is a washer and a dryer negating the need to transfer heavy wet cloths for one machine to the other. Additionally, it features a sloped drum that makes loading and unloading the machine easier than either front or top loaders. From an energy standpoint This unit saves energy by using a heat exchanger to provide drying without needing a heating element. Don't know how that works exactly but the point is that technology is innovating a chore that proves difficult for those with Disabled Hands.

Panasonic

[via] Thanks Tony for the tip

Technorati Tags: cloths washing, innovation, laundry, Panasonic

Help for Power Cords/Outlets: EZ PLug

I am sure you have that one appliance or vacuum and that one outlet that just don't like to get along. What is it about certain plugs and certain power outlets that are just plain hard to get plugs in and out of the receptacles?

Here's a simple gadget that features a lever that helps Disabled Hands push plugs into tight outlets and helps eject the plug after use. Nice.

Taylor Gifts: EZ Plug $7

[via]

Technorati Tags: EZ Plug, power outlets

Disposable Gloves for Disabled Hands

Disabled Hands reader Joy writes to ask about disposable gloves for those with Rheumatoid Arthritis(RA) whose hands are contracted. A possible solution would be to use food handling gloves that fit looser than latex or rubber gloves and may work for those with contracted fingers.

Amazon: Disposable Food Handling Gloves $6.90

Technorati Tags: Artheritis, bathroom, biohazard, RA, Rheumatoid Arthritis

Cleaning Wipe Hack: Pliers to the Rescue

I love disinfecting cleaning wipes. They do a good job and they're easier to use than trigger spray bottles for Disabled Hands.. One thing though. Even if you get the brands with the larger dispensing opening it's often difficult to pinch and pull the next wipe on the roll.

No problem. Just keep a pair of your long nose pliers handy to pull the next wipe from the package. As always, pliers are your friend for a myriad of uses around the home. Pliers, they're not just for the workshop!

Technorati Tags: Artheritis, cleaning, disabled, Disabled Hands, dispenser, lifehack, cleaning wipes

Sweep Easier with a Vacuum Dustbin

Disabled hands or not you have probably wrestled with a broom and dustpan enough to know that there needs to be a better way to clean up dry particulate matter from your floors. Aside from the bending, using a dustpan and broom can be a real pain in the hands and wrists. One challenge I have is dropping or spilling small scraps of food or small packaging scraps like twist ties or plastic bread bag clips and needing to pick them up. When your finger grasp doesn't cooperate that becomes difficult.

With a Westinghouse SweepEZE you simply sweep the particles to the base of the unit where an inferred beam senses them and activates a strong vacuum that sucks the dirt into an internal waist bin. No bending and no lifting of a awkward dustan. Nice.

Amazon: Westinghouse WZT 1810 SweepEZE Vacuuming Dustbin $49

Technorati Tags: cleaning, sweeping, SweepEZE, Westinghouse

Six Tips to Take Some Hand Stress out of Doing the Laundry

Tips for hands and laundry around the house.

• If you are remodeling, adding on or building a new home think through optimal laundry processes. Incorporate same floor laundry rooms where possible. Also consider the inclusion of laundry chutes and even dumbwaiters where space does not permit locating laundry equipment on the same floor level as the bedrooms and closets.
• Rather than carrying dirty laundry down the stairs in heavy laundry baskets consider using mesh laundry bags that can be tossed down the stairs.
• When it's time to move the clean cloths back upstairs ditch the heavy awkward baskets and consider using a backpack for moving smaller folded items.
• Carrying dry cleaning and hanging cloths can be very hard on delicate fingers and hands. Avoid wire hangers that cut into the fingers. Use good quality plastic or wooden hangers. The rotating hooks on wooden hangers can make them easier to carry. Use a carrying aid to reduce strain on the hands and fingers.
• Consider buying concentrated detergents and other laundry products that come in smaller easier to manage containers. It's not just carrying or rolling the products home from the store but dispensing the contents that can strain the hands.
• Even better is using packetized products that don't require dispensing of liquids or powders into your laundry. Just toss a pre-measured packet of cleaning product into the machine with the cloths.

Leave your tips for easing stress on the hands while doing the laundry in the comments.

Technorati Tags: disability, disabled, Disabled Hands, hand, laundry, lifehack, hangers

Spider Catcher Reacher Also Good for Dropped Food Items

I've bogged before about how difficult it is to catch bugs when you have limited hand function that makes it hard to smush bugs with paper towels. Here's a tool that can help you catch and release creepy crawlers in the great outdoors or the great toilet bowl depending on your politics. I'd consider getting more than one of these to use for picking up dropped food items. Be sure and keep the two functions seperate.

Solutions: Spider Catcher $20

Related:
Bug Vacuum: Why Not Suck at Catching Spiders

Does Mom have Arthritis? Disabled Hands recommends the Black & Decker Lids Off Automatic Jar Opener. Great gift idea for Mother's Day. Even though it has a plug and a warranty. Big on Thoughtful Points!

Technorati Tags: bugs, gift idea, practical gift, spiders

Wheeled Caddy to Move Heavy Planters

Mother's Day and spring are coming fast to Northern Hemisphere Americas and with it will be requests from Mom to help her move newly planted flower pots. I don't mind but some of those pots are seriously heavy. Here's a great hand truck like tool that looks to make short work of moving pots up to 100 lbs. and 30" high. When off duty it looks like this would be a great tool for moving that champagne bottle laden post Mom's day brunch recycle bin to the curb. It would also work to move heavy plastic toy bins around the house. Nice gift idea for Mom.

Solutions: Pot Mover Caddy $70

Technorati Tags: caddy, carts, flower pots, hand truck, moving, planters, recycling bin

Small Vacuum for Power Drill Holes

Swedish blog Smart Stuff has a new tool that clearly lives in a small market niche but would be very useful to some who have just the right application. This is a tiny wall gripping vacuum designed to catch all the drywall or plaster dust from a drill hole. I mention it because it would be a useful tool for a contractor who installs grab bars and other accessibility products. Not having tiny little dust droppings to clean up after an installation would be a real bonus for anyone especially those with Disabled Hands.

I hope other tool manufacturers begin to make products like these.

Smart Stuff: DD-50

Technorati Tags: accessibility, contractor, DD-50, drill vacuum, power drill, grab bars, tools, vacuum

Iron that Rises Above Hand and Wrist Stress

The Oliso cloths iron is a smart design that makes ironing easier for those with a variety of hand and wrist conditions. Anyone with arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, broken or sprained wrists, missing or injured fingers, chronic fatigue, or fibromyalgia can benefit from this innovative iron. The innovation? An auto lift system that raises the iron off the fabric or ironing surface when it detects that your hand has left the handle of the iron. This eliminates the hand and wrist stress and strain of repeatedly lifting and twisting the iron to set it down vertically. Excellent! Leaving the Oliso unattended in the horizontal position is also safer than vertical irons. Less prone to being nocked off the ironing board and less hot surface exposed to curious little hands.

Reminds me of the onboard jacking systems of Formula One and Indy race cars that pneumatically elevate the car off the ground during pit stops for tire changing.

Product Page: Oliso Iron Check out the video!

(via)

Disabled Hands also recommends the Black & Decker Lids Off Automatic Jar Opener for those with hand and wrist strength issues.

Technorati Tags: arthritis, broken arm, broken wrist, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, cloths iron, design, disability, disabled, Disabled Hands, fibromyalgia, Formula One racing, gift idea, Indy car racing, injury, iron, laundry, Oliso, Oliso cloths iron, practical gift, Repetitive Stress Injury, wrist cast, wrist injury, wrist surgery