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Speaker BThe House with Eric G. Your go to source for everything home Improvement Whether you're a DIY enthusiast or just looking to make your space shine, Eric G. Is here to guide you through the latest tips, tricks and trends coming up in this week's second hour of the show.
Speaker BIn this hour of the around the House show with Eric G. He is going to give you 10 solid things you can do around your house to help age in place.
Speaker BIt doesn't matter if you are in your final home or just have a surgery coming up, you might want to catch these tips to make access easier for your home.
Speaker BSo grab your toolbox, put on your thinking cap and let's get to work right here on around the House with.
Speaker CEric G. Welcome to the around the House show, the next generation of home improvement.
Speaker CI'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.
Speaker CWe've got a great show coming up.
Speaker CThis hour is brought to you by my friends at Monument Grills.
Speaker CI've got two of these things.
Speaker CI have one at the beach house.
Speaker CThe I tell you what, I've got the six burner at the beach house.
Speaker CCooked on it last weekend.
Speaker CIt was amazing.
Speaker CAnd then of course I've got the smaller four burner over at my girlfriend's place because I wanted the nice grill, but we have a tight small space back there.
Speaker CI wanted to be able to make sure to have the right grill for the right size and the right amount of people coming over.
Speaker CAnd that's the great thing.
Speaker CAnd you can find them all@montymc grills.com killer warranty build stout more heat than you'll ever need and you can control it, which is the big key to using any outdoor grill.
Speaker CTo find out more, head to monumcrills.com today we're going to be talking about steps that you can do around your house to help age in place.
Speaker CAnd what is aging in place?
Speaker CAging in place is basically a theory about how can you stay in your home the longest if you're 35 years old and you bought your first house?
Speaker CYeah, I know people used to buy 25, but houses get expensive.
Speaker CIf you're thinking about, hey, this is going to be a house that I'm going to have for a while, or you're active and you get hurt every once in a while or you've got grandparents that come visit or your parents, it doesn't matter.
Speaker CThere's a time that you're going to need these things in life.
Speaker CAnd here are 10 little tips and tricks that you can do to make it better and easier to age in place.
Speaker CSo that way you know when you get up in your elderly years, I'm not talking 65, but it's depending how well you took care of yourself or what health issues you have.
Speaker CIf you can make it so it's easier to navigate and it's safer and you don't have to have help, it can really change how you live and the way you live.
Speaker CSo the first one here is an obvious one, but it's a big one.
Speaker CAnd these are all things that you can be doing now, or even more importantly, thinking about as you do renovations around the house.
Speaker CInstalling grab bars in key locations is one of the bigger ones to do.
Speaker CNow this can be a little more difficult and here's why.
Speaker CThere's plenty of homes out there built with fiberglass tub showers.
Speaker CThose are very hard to add grab bars to because you can't just hook it to the fiberglass.
Speaker CIf you go through the fiberglass and grab the stub behind it, there's probably a space behind it.
Speaker CSo it's not great.
Speaker CBut if you've got a tile shower or if you've got a wall with drywall or plaster and you can grab a stud with it.
Speaker CNow your money.
Speaker CAnd here's the cool thing.
Speaker CThe grab bars you used to be able to get looked like they were out of your 40 year old best Western hotel that hadn't been remodeled.
Speaker CAnd you got the ADA Room because it was the last one available.
Speaker CThey got the ugly stainless steel kind of radiused ends and the plate that covers the screws.
Speaker CThey look horrible.
Speaker CThey're not awesome.
Speaker CNow they've got stuff that decoratively matches.
Speaker CIt looks more like a towel bar that'll hold you and they can be really part of that.
Speaker CNow you could put them in next to the toilet around there, so you've got a place to help.
Speaker CYou could put them in the bathroom, in the shower or bathtub, depending on where you need them.
Speaker CAnd you can plan these out.
Speaker CNow there are options to be able to get in there.
Speaker CI've gone into a back of a closet before, remove the drywall.
Speaker CI've gone in there and installed them there.
Speaker CAnd you can actually block in behind it, fill it up.
Speaker CReally fill up that space so you can drill through that fiberglass.
Speaker CSo on the outside it's a little bit harder.
Speaker CNow you're taking siding off and going that route.
Speaker CBut if you're doing a remodel, it's a good way to go.
Speaker CSo you want to make sure you put those into the studs.
Speaker CAnd you want to make sure that if they're in a wet location that they're caulked and waterproof correctly so you don't have water damage going behind it.
Speaker CBut really putting them near toilets, inside, showers, bathtubs can prevent balls, really, because you have something to grab.
Speaker CSo really there are now ADA compliant designs that are going to really blend in with what you're trying to do and make it look good.
Speaker CAnd I tell you what, from someone who has broken their leg, had knee surgeries, hurt themselves doing DIY projects, sports, whatever, having those in the right places can make a big difference whether you have the ability right now or not.
Speaker CSo that's a big one.
Speaker CNow here's the other one here.
Speaker CWhen it comes to doorknobs around the house, this is a solid rule.
Speaker CGet rid of those knobs for lever handles.
Speaker CNow here's why.
Speaker CIf you have somebody that's dealing with, let's say they've got some ability issues with their hands, maybe it's a weak grip, maybe you've broken a finger or two, maybe you've got arthritis.
Speaker CMy rule is to be able to operate something with a closed fist.
Speaker CSo if you can come up and open a door with a closed fist, you're doing pretty good.
Speaker CNow, knobs can be troublesome that way because you've got to grab it and twist it and that can be troublesome.
Speaker CNow if you are a dog owner, this can be problematic.
Speaker CLike my house, I had to change from levers to knobs because my dogs were smart enough, they knew how to open the door, they could come up, hit the handle, open the door, and then rooms I didn't want them in could be easily accessed.
Speaker CSo think about how smart your pets are and maybe it's something you change out later.
Speaker CBut having a lever handle and that works for faucets as well, if you can operate that with a closed fist, that single lever, or depending on the knobs and stuff, you can have that 8 inch widespread faucet in the bathroom.
Speaker CYou've got to open your hand.
Speaker CIf you can do it with a closed hand, it's nice.
Speaker CNot a bad way to go.
Speaker CAnd that works in the kitchen or anywhere else.
Speaker CSo think about that one.
Speaker CNow here's a big one.
Speaker CAnd this can be something.
Speaker CWhen you're changing out things around the house, you can really start to think about.
Speaker CFlooring is a big deal.
Speaker CThat overly plush carpet with the thick massive pad underneath, it can be problematic with a wheelchair.
Speaker CIt can be problematic with a walker.
Speaker CNot so bad if you're on crutches.
Speaker CBut these are things that you have to worry about.
Speaker CNow the biggest issue that I see when we're running into this and we designed it this way in my mom's house, which style wise to me wasn't the best because I don't like it as much.
Speaker CBut all of her walkways around the house were tile.
Speaker CAnd then we did carpet in the living room in certain areas that she wanted to have something softer.
Speaker CNow a lot of people say I want to go carpet everywhere because if I fall, I want something softer.
Speaker CLook, if you fall, you're going to fall.
Speaker CAnd to be honest, having the tile floor or a soft pad floor probably isn't going to make the biggest difference.
Speaker CBut really what you want to consider is why are you falling?
Speaker CAre you falling because you have a transition strip that goes between because you remodeled the kitchen or somebody remodeled the kitchen 20 years ago and went right over the top of the flooring.
Speaker CSo you got a half inch or a three quarter inch lip going into the kitchen or into a bathroom or another room.
Speaker CYou want to keep those basically transition free.
Speaker CSo you want to make it so the carpet is flush with the tile, but the linoleum in the kitchen is flush with the hardwoods in the hallway.
Speaker CYou see where I'm going?
Speaker CIf we can get that, those are places where people trip and if we can stop trip hazards, you're doing really good.
Speaker CNow the other thing is here is when you're thinking about flooring, you want to make sure that whatever you're putting in those entryways or water areas is something that's got grip to it.
Speaker CNow tile these days if you get a porcelain tile or one of those that's it's very durable.
Speaker CThey now have basically tiles that have a anti slip coating on it.
Speaker CNow if you've got that marble, I want to be Hollywood bathroom that's got the marble or the entryway that's got it.
Speaker CThere are some nano coatings out there that is absolutely amazing that you can put down that really stops that from being a slippery surface which is super cool.
Speaker CSo with that non slip coating you can go through and really get that so it's not slippery and that can really change how you do it.
Speaker CWe got a lot more of these when we come back around the house.
Speaker CWe'll be right back after these important messages.
Speaker CDon't change that top.
Speaker BTo find out more, head to aroundthehouse online.com Eric G. Will be back with more tips for aging in place.
Speaker BJust after a quick note from our sponsors.
Speaker BWe will be right back.
Speaker ABut kids these days will never understand what it's like to play an instrument, to be in a band.
Speaker CWhat's up?
Speaker CThis is Sticks it in ya and Satchel from Steel Panther.
Speaker CAnd you are listening to around the.
Speaker BHouse with Eric G. Yeah, we love Eric G. And you should too.
Speaker CWelcome back to the around the house show, the next generation of home improvement.
Speaker CRuben.
Speaker CI'm Eric G. This hour is brought to you by my friends at Monument Grills.
Speaker CCheck them out@monument grills.com and if you want to get a hold of me, if you've got questions about what we've been talking about now, our number one or our number two of the show or you want something maybe talked about in a future episode, reach out to me.
Speaker CJust head over to aroundthehouse online.com and message, message me there and I'll get back to you as fast as I can.
Speaker CWe were talking about tile here a minute ago and it's interesting stuff.
Speaker CSo we were talking about I had to cut it short because we went out to break.
Speaker CBut there is a product that you can put on that overly polished marble or whatever else.
Speaker CAnd it's used a lot in, in hotels and things like that.
Speaker CBut I tell you what, this is cool stuff and what I like about it, it's called Surestep.
Speaker CSo it's a non slip treatment for tile stone.
Speaker CAnd it just basically gives you this nano coating on the top, whether it's a shower floor or anywhere else.
Speaker CSo it's really cool.
Speaker CI can get you in touch with these guys.
Speaker CYou got to find an authorized distributor.
Speaker CIt's not something you could buy because they got to put it on correctly.
Speaker CBut it's called Surestep and it's affordable stuff because they're doing it in hotels, hospitals, things like that all around the country.
Speaker CAnd really cool stuff.
Speaker CYou want to find out more?
Speaker CMy buddy Michael Stroppa is the, I think the Washington, Oregon guy for that.
Speaker CBut neat stuff out there and I think it's a really cool product that will help people out there and really help them not have a slippery surface like that where they could trip, fall, slip.
Speaker CAnd it's a cost effective solution for dealing with that, which makes me happy.
Speaker CThat's good stuff.
Speaker CSo that's important there.
Speaker CNow we've been talking about here those things that you should be doing around the house here to really help you age in place.
Speaker CAnd we were talking about eliminating those thresholds, tripping hazards, things like that.
Speaker COne of my favorites is adding better Lighting with motion sensors.
Speaker CNow you can do this simply one of the biggest things I have stairs to go to my second level.
Speaker CThat's where the bedrooms are.
Speaker CNow in a aging in place that is not your best situation.
Speaker CBut sometimes finding that house, it's a ranch type house with everything on one level can be hard.
Speaker CSo my staircase I have a really sturdy railing and then I did under tread lighting.
Speaker CSo I have LED lights that come down that are always on.
Speaker CDon't use that much energy.
Speaker CBut I tell you what, they're super cool the way they work.
Speaker CSo you now have a lit staircase.
Speaker CSo the chance of tripping and falling with that is a lot better.
Speaker CYou're going to really increase your odds of not falling, which is key.
Speaker CSo that's good.
Speaker CNow you can have it where you walk into a room and it sees that it turns on.
Speaker COr you could have it where a certain time of day you can turn those lights off and on.
Speaker CSo there's ways to do it without having irritating motion sensors.
Speaker CBut things like under cabinet lighting, toe kick lighting underneath the bottom toe kick of a cabinet in a kitchen or a bathroom.
Speaker CAnd just having the proper lighting with the right lighting controls works well.
Speaker CYou can have it where it's voice activated.
Speaker CYou can really have it where motion sensing lights make it so you can see what's going on.
Speaker CAnd that can really help prevent trips and falls.
Speaker CAnd these are things you can add.
Speaker CNow this is just a cool little project but it's going to keep it so you have a less of a chance of falling and that's good.
Speaker CNow this next one here, number five was a big one that we did at my parents house because I had a opportunity here about 15 years ago.
Speaker CMy parents had a seven level 1970s house whereas four boys grew up in.
Speaker CAnd we knew that was way too much for them.
Speaker CMy dad was coming down when he was alive with health issues and we knew that was going to be a problem.
Speaker CSo I got the opportunity to help design their home to really make it foolproof for them having the most access and to be able to stay there the longest they can.
Speaker CAnd here's the thing, and this is really the whole basis behind aging in place.
Speaker CYou really want to stay out of those assisted type living places as long as you can.
Speaker CAnd most people don't have insurance for that here in the United States.
Speaker CSo you think about assisted living costs.
Speaker CThey vary Significantly across the U.S. if you're in Hawaii, you can spend on average $9,340 a month.
Speaker CThink what you can do to your house over time to help alleviate that.
Speaker CMy friends in New Jersey, you're 7 to 9, $500 a month.
Speaker CCalifornia, a little lower, 6250.
Speaker CIt adds up.
Speaker CNow if you're in Mississippi, you're way cooler.
Speaker C3, 800 bucks or Iowa, 3420.
Speaker CBut really, you're looking in that 3 to $9,000 or almost $10,000 a month.
Speaker CSo you're spending well into the six figures to take care of yourself a year.
Speaker CLet's say somebody's in there for five years.
Speaker CMan, you're getting into the price of a house pretty quick.
Speaker CSo these things make a lot of sense when you're trying to make things work and trying to make it all work right.
Speaker CYou want to make it so you can live in these places, your home, for as long as you can.
Speaker CAnd that's a big one.
Speaker CSo think about what you can do.
Speaker CSo we created my mom's house, dad's house, when he was alive.
Speaker CWe designed it so there were no steps going up to the front door.
Speaker CSo we had it.
Speaker CSo there was a little bit of a covered walkway that came up that was ada ramp available to walk up.
Speaker CSo we had the right slope to it.
Speaker CIt made it so you could roll right out of the garage right up into the home.
Speaker CNow, of course, we had to have the stairs up into the garage, but we could really make it so you could roll right in the front door.
Speaker CSo we had a no step entry.
Speaker CAnytime that you can do a zero step entry to get you there is super smart.
Speaker CThat will get you right into the spot where you can really have some fun with this.
Speaker CSo you're not having to put in an ugly ramp.
Speaker CYou're not ha.
Speaker CAnd it could look gorgeous.
Speaker CWe did it out of stamped concrete that looked beautiful, colorful, looked great.
Speaker CAnd you don't ever have to worry about steps coming in.
Speaker CIt's better for everybody that way.
Speaker CSo think about that.
Speaker CThink about the same way with any other place in the house.
Speaker CMaking sure that you have that access out to a back deck, no steps, build the deck flush.
Speaker CThink about all those kind of things, what you could do with that.
Speaker CAnd there's a lot of tricks you can do.
Speaker CKind of recessing the sliding glass door down a little bit.
Speaker CThere's a lot of little things you can do with tracks to make things work a little bit better and a little more functional.
Speaker CNow the next one here is what we did originally.
Speaker CAnd this is something.
Speaker CWhen you're changing outdoors, it can be a bit of work.
Speaker CBut if you're doing a remodel, it's smart.
Speaker COr if you're building a new house, it's even smarter.
Speaker CWe widened the doorways.
Speaker CWe did three foot doorways in the entire house because here's what happened.
Speaker CWhen you get a wheelchair going through there and you've got a smaller doorway, the chance of dinging that doorway up with the walker with all that stuff can be a really big issue.
Speaker CNow the other thing I want you to think about, it's not on here, but when you're thinking about designing cabinetry for a bathroom remodel, for a, for a kitchen remodel and you have kids, or if you're worried about that ADA type stuff down the road or aging in place, really what you want to be thinking about is staying away from the softer woods like alder.
Speaker CBut think about using more natural hardwoods with wood grain.
Speaker CIt will hide more sins of things bouncing off of it than a painted finish or a stained alderman.
Speaker CEven birch will be softer.
Speaker CSo you want to stay away from the softer woods on cabinetry because it will.
Speaker CThat's a little side note.
Speaker CLearn that one the hard way.
Speaker CTalk about that trick when we come back just as soon as around the House returns.
Speaker CDon't go anywhere.
Speaker CHey, this is Ron Keel, the metal cowboy from Keel, the Ron Keel Band and stuff dealer.
Speaker CWe are rocking around the House with Eric G. Raise your fist.
Speaker CWelcome back to the around the House show, the next generation of home improvement.
Speaker CI'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.
Speaker CThis hour is brought to you by my friends at Monument Grills.
Speaker CCheck them out@monument grills.com if you want to find out more about us or if you've got a question or comment about anything we're doing on the show.
Speaker CYou can find out more at aroundthe house online.com make sure you follow us on social media, all those kinds of things.
Speaker CAnd if you want to be one of the around the House insiders, we're gonna be shipping out a couple stickers as long as supply lasts for anybody that joins up there.
Speaker CAnd you can find out more over@aroundthehouse online.com you get the podcast a couple days early so you can actually listen to the show on Thursday instead of Saturday and you get a full access to our back catalog.
Speaker CSo we got something over there and surprise, a cup of coffee or less.
Speaker CSo not too bad.
Speaker CA month and you get all this access as well.
Speaker CWe've been talking about those tricks and tips to make sure that you really have things going right for designing Your home for aging in place, for maybe that upcoming knee surgery from your skiing accident, or the shoulder injury from out on the wakeboard or whatever.
Speaker CThis stuff can help you now instead of waiting till you're later on in life.
Speaker CAnd these are all little tricks and tips.
Speaker COne thing we were talking about in the kitchen design, which was really cool, is now you've got dishwasher drawers out there that have really changed how you can design out.
Speaker CSo if somebody's in a walker, let's say, or you're in a wheelchair, that bottom rack on the dishwasher can be problematic.
Speaker CSo sometimes using a couple dishwasher drawers up high can make it easier for you.
Speaker CAnd then you can be actually, if you have two of those top dishwasher drawers and regular drawers down below, you can actually almost work out of those and not have to put those dishes away in a top cabinet.
Speaker CNow, there are tons of things if you're doing a kitchen model for somebody that is in a wheelchair or something like that, where we've got cabinets that can drop down, we've got cooktop heights that can raise up and down, sinks that can raise up and down, there's a lot of things that you can do out there, but that's a much more detailed situation, and that comes with some significant expense.
Speaker CWe're talking about widening doorways, and that's a big one.
Speaker CI'm not the biggest fan on barn doors, but they can be better than a pocket door.
Speaker CSo I'd rather do that because it gives you more to work with those pocket doors.
Speaker CYou've got that little latch on there that can be really problematic that I worry about.
Speaker CSo that's something to consider when you're dealing with doorways.
Speaker CNow, the next one here is a big one, and this is one that I think is super important.
Speaker CAnd you've heard me talk about it before when we've had other people on the show.
Speaker CBut I think this is one of the most important ones out there.
Speaker CI say installing a comfort height toilet couple inches taller that has at least a nice bidet toilet seat on it that plugs in can be a game changer for people that have limited abilities.
Speaker CHear me out on this.
Speaker CNobody wants to have to yell out for somebody to help them when they're in the bathroom.
Speaker CIt is demoralizing.
Speaker CIt is not easy.
Speaker CNo one wants to have somebody come in and help clean them up.
Speaker CAnd if you can give yourself or others in your family the power to be able to do this on their own by punching a button on a Remote like on a Toto washlet.
Speaker CYou have changed the game of needing help if you are able to get up and get out off that toilet seat.
Speaker CIf you can push a button to help clean yourself up, guess what?
Speaker CYou have now eliminated the need for maybe helping the house on something that is so hard to manage.
Speaker CAnd you've given yourself such easy independence for really adding an outlet and spending three to $800 on a toilet seat that plugs into the wall.
Speaker CAnd for people that have texture issues or anything, that warm toilet seat is game changer as well.
Speaker CYou're adding comfort, you're adding cleanability, you're adding style, and you're adding access where you can take care of yourself.
Speaker CSo I cannot say how important this is for installing a comfort height toilet with a bidet seat.
Speaker CThis is one of the most important ones on here because it's really going to eliminate some need to help and it's going to make things a lot easier.
Speaker CNow, the other one here is a bigger project and this might not work, but the more you can move essential living areas to the main floor, the better off you are.
Speaker CIf you've got a place for a bedroom, a full bathroom, a kitchen and a laundry on the main level, you're set.
Speaker CEven if they're not your primary rooms, you're okay.
Speaker CNow, I will say elevators have become more accessible for people.
Speaker CSorry for the pun, but they have.
Speaker CYou can access the price of these so much better than you can.
Speaker CThey have some that are more like bank fault tubes where they lift you up and put you back down again.
Speaker CNot having to come in and put the massive elevator in.
Speaker CThey have more compact ones, but then you have to have the real estate to do it.
Speaker CMany times inside the house you don't have the rooms and I got to do it outside permits, all that stuff can be expensive.
Speaker CSo really the more you can do to give yourself everything on one floor, the better you are.
Speaker CIt's just really that simple.
Speaker CNow, there are things that you can do.
Speaker CWe've seen the stair risers, we've seen that where you ride the cart up those.
Speaker CI dislike those greatly.
Speaker COne, I think they are dangerous for the people that are trying to use the stairs.
Speaker COne, I think they're not as safe and two, if you can put an elevator in or find a house that has that access, the better off you're going to be.
Speaker CNow, the next one here is going to be important and we're going to give some other tips here that I want to talk about as well that are important but anytime that you can have at least one shower, be curbless or a walk in shower, the better off you are.
Speaker CThat curbless shower, one, you're not stepping your toe on it, I like that.
Speaker CTwo, if you've got a walker, a wheelchair and a stool, you can get in there and take care of yourself.
Speaker CGrab bars in the right location, you're hanging a towel on it anyway, a washcloth, who cares?
Speaker CIt'll look cool.
Speaker CIf you match it up, you can really give yourself some access there.
Speaker CAnd I think that's super important when it comes down to this, to be able to really have that.
Speaker CAnd here's one trick.
Speaker CIf you're putting in a new bathroom and you're gonna do this for ADA or just for access, if you're going heated tile, keep it going.
Speaker CDo the heated tile on the floor, do it on the floor of the shower and do it on the bench.
Speaker CNobody likes sitting on a cold tile bench.
Speaker CMake sure it's waterproof correctly.
Speaker CAnd I'm not talking about just doing membranes, I'm talking about using wedi, one of those, a good waterproof system that will last.
Speaker CYou want to go with the teak bench because you want that look cool.
Speaker CBut making sure that is built correctly with the right tile, that's not slippery, it's got the great lighting.
Speaker CThe other thing I think is important too is while you're at it, put in like airmada's system where it dries the shower so you won't have any of those issues in there with air.
Speaker CMaking sure that you've got a vent fan that's going so you don't have mold in there.
Speaker CAnd that's a side mark here that I want to tackle before we go out to break.
Speaker CI think putting in the right H vac system that keeps the temperature consistent, that sized correctly for the house, that has some virus capture and kill technology at least to keep the particles down and to keep it so you have less pollutants in your air, that's going to be important too.
Speaker CBecause if you've got people coming over to take care of you, or maybe you're just getting older and your immune system is not what it used to be, Having a safe place to do that is key.
Speaker CAnd I think that's super important to be able to do that.
Speaker CSo think about that when you're doing these kind of things.
Speaker CI think really having that system to keep the air clean that you can monitor as well, I want to see you be able to go, wow, okay, why is my.
Speaker CWhy do I have unhealthy air in my home.
Speaker CWhat's the issue?
Speaker CIs it mold?
Speaker CThat could be a problem?
Speaker CIs it radon?
Speaker CThat could be a problem.
Speaker CI guarantee that could be a problem.
Speaker CIf you're measuring radon, you want to make sure that's at zero or as close as it can.
Speaker CSo you don't want to get in there and go, ah, it's okay.
Speaker CNo.
Speaker CEspecially if you've got some health issues.
Speaker CWe come back, I've got a few more here for you.
Speaker CAnd we're going to talk about some other things you could do to make sure that you're independent in your home as long as you can.
Speaker CAnd this is not really for you people out there that are listen to the show that are 70, 80 years old.
Speaker CThese are for my friends out there in the audience.
Speaker CThis is for you that are in your 30s, 40s and 50s that are planning ahead, going, what happens if I get hurt?
Speaker CWe'll do that just as soon as around the House returns.
Speaker CDon't change that top.
Speaker BTo find out more, head to aroundthehouse online.com Eric G. Will be back with more tips for aging in place.
Speaker BJust after a quick note from our sponsors, we will be right back.
Speaker CAll right.
Speaker ABaby is drunk.
Speaker AIt's the end of the show.
Speaker ANow drinking down, people.
Speaker AIt's time to go.
Speaker AIt's that time again.
Speaker CWelcome back to the around the House show, the next generation of home improvement.
Speaker CI'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.
Speaker CThis hour is brought to you by our friends at Monument Grills.
Speaker CCheck them out@monumentgrills.com and if you want to find out more about us or you just want to reach out to me with some questions, head over to aroundthehouse online.com we've been talking about my top 10 tricks here to make sure that you're aging in place correctly or you've got a house that you can really grow old in or if you've got that surgery coming up from that sports injury from 10 years ago or you're at water skin and you hurt yourself.
Speaker CAnd guess what, you might need to do a few of these things now sooner, of course, rather than later.
Speaker CNow to wrap up my top 10 here, the last one is an important one.
Speaker CAnd I've got some honorable mentions over here that are good to think about as well.
Speaker CWhen we get towards the end of the segment here, the last part of the show, really using smart home tech for independence.
Speaker CThings like cameras, video doorbells, smart locks.
Speaker CThere are new fall detection systems out there.
Speaker CWe've Talked about them on the show here.
Speaker CSo really, if you're sitting here and this can be done without having to use cameras inside the house.
Speaker CBut if you have a strong WI FI signal in the house, there is technology now to make sure that you can tell when people are in rooms by the WI fi shadow they create by moving around.
Speaker CSo you can tell if grandmother's up moving around because somebody's walking in the kitchen.
Speaker CCool.
Speaker CGrandma's out of bed.
Speaker CYou can do this without having to worry about or fall detection.
Speaker CWhen it senses somebody falls, it can do that as well.
Speaker CNow, of course, there's all the things you can do.
Speaker CMy Apple watch has fall detection on it.
Speaker CIf I go tripping and falling, it's going to ask me if I'm okay.
Speaker CAnd if not, it's going to contact my emergency contact to make sure I'm okay.
Speaker CAnd if not, depending on what settings you do on some of them, it can even call an ambulance for you.
Speaker CSo these are things you can really do.
Speaker CSome of these things are smart.
Speaker CLike, I've got a family member that has seizures.
Speaker CThey've got a seizure watch.
Speaker CSo if they are getting ready to have one, it can sense it and warn them to get into a safe space.
Speaker CThere is a lot of smart home technology out there that you can use to make things safer, better, and more livable.
Speaker CWe were talking about smart home stuff.
Speaker CIt is so nice to be able to turn on the heat, turn on the radio, turn on the lights, turn on whatever you want to do within the house.
Speaker CI can see if my laundry's done on my phone because I have an LG washer and dryer setup that sends me a push notification when the dryer's done or the washer's done.
Speaker CI have to go walking into there to see it.
Speaker CIt tells me right there I've got cameras that tell me when a package is delivered.
Speaker CMy front door will tell me a package is delivered before I can even see it on the camera.
Speaker CJust about it's there, but it'll give me a notification that a package is delivered.
Speaker CSo these things are so much smarter.
Speaker CAnd now here's another one here that I think is really smart.
Speaker CWe had on last week in the Best of, we had a really good system for a Dropbox.
Speaker CNow this is something that we have an issue that I'm gonna have to do some remodel at my mom's place.
Speaker CBut her biggest problem is her mailbox is down the steeper driveway down at the street.
Speaker CIf she orders something on Amazon in Her rural area compared to many.
Speaker CThey throw it in the mailbox, hard for her to go get it.
Speaker CSo to me, having a package delivery system that lets you drop those packages into your house, like NB Sentinel, that really helps you in that aging in place.
Speaker CBecause they could put the code in, drop the stuff in there, and it's inside the house so you don't have to go walking out in a walker, leaning over, tripping on the front door threshold.
Speaker CYou see where I'm going with this?
Speaker CHaving a place that can be designed for those online deliveries.
Speaker CMaybe you're ordering groceries off Amazon, maybe you've got your local grocery store delivering to you or medications.
Speaker CYou want to have access to it so you don't have to go outside to get it.
Speaker CThis can be something that's super important.
Speaker CSo that's one of the ones that I think is really big there.
Speaker CNow another one that's important here as well.
Speaker CAnd it's little stuff.
Speaker CI like to have rocker light switches.
Speaker CAnd when in doubt, you can move them a little lower.
Speaker CLarge rocker switches are good.
Speaker CBut here's the other thing that's interesting.
Speaker CYou can control some lights and this is really cool.
Speaker CLutron Casita has remote controls or little remotes that you can actually stick onto things.
Speaker CYou could technically install this on a walker right on the edge of a wheelchair.
Speaker CSo they could turn on the main lights off and on without even having to move.
Speaker CAnd it's got a battery, it would operate just like any other dimmer switch.
Speaker CAnd you can program that to control whatever lights you want without having to go to your phone and use an app.
Speaker CSo that's an important one there.
Speaker CThe other one that we talked about here as well I think is smart, is using contrast.
Speaker CDesigning with contrast is big.
Speaker CSo if you've got counters, floors, anything you can do to visually distinguish one surface from another to prevent missteps.
Speaker CIf you've got reduced vision, putting a contrasting color at the edge of the step down from the living room into a sitting area or one step up someplace, that can be a huge deal.
Speaker CI really doing that.
Speaker CSo that's a little design aspect you can do to make it look really good.
Speaker CNow the other thing is if you're designing a kitchen, I like drawers compared to pull outs.
Speaker CIf you're designing a kitchen, go with a drawer versus a pull out.
Speaker CHere's why pull outs, you have to grab one or two doors, open them and then pull out.
Speaker CAnd that can be very hard to do in a wheelchair or a walker.
Speaker CYou want to be able to have one motion instead of three or four.
Speaker CSo just anything you can do to give access is going to help you out.
Speaker CNow here's the thing, guys.
Speaker CIf you are going to be starting a new project, like you're going to be building a house, if you're going to be renovating, doing a kitchen or bathroom, this is where you want to really reach out to your professionals.
Speaker CI like certified kitchen and bath designers for designing cabinetry in spaces like that.
Speaker CThere are aging in place specialists out there that are certified.
Speaker CThose are all important things.
Speaker CThat is I think a really important thing to get the help as you're going through this.
Speaker CSo it might be worthwhile if you're thinking about doing this.
Speaker CYou really want to be able to work with somebody that is a CAP certified or one of those kind of different things to really be able to work with this.
Speaker CSo there's a lot of studies, a lot of smart.
Speaker CThere's a lot of people out there that specialize in this.
Speaker CSo if it's something important, maybe doing a walk before you do the remodel, Spend a minute.
Speaker CWas your mom, father, grandparent, uncle.
Speaker CIs somebody be gonna be living in your house?
Speaker CDo you have a child that has limited abilities that it's not gonna get any easier as they get older?
Speaker CAre there things that you can do?
Speaker CYes, there are.
Speaker CSo really you want to be able to do what you can.
Speaker CAnd there's a lot of resources out there for that.
Speaker CAnd I think there's a lot of things we can do to make sure that we live independently and need these other places a lot less.
Speaker CIt is so crazy.
Speaker CI've helped so many friends and family members that have had people have to go in now memory care, whole other situation.
Speaker CAnd a side note on that, you want to make sure that you're getting appliances.
Speaker CThis is a big one.
Speaker CIf someone's working on the memory care thing, I think one of the biggest things is being able to control them from not leaving, not turning on a stove, not flooding things.
Speaker CSo really creating situations where you can turn off that cooktop.
Speaker CI've had these things go badly.
Speaker CThere was a girl I was dating up in the Seattle area when I lived up there 15 years ago.
Speaker CHer dad unfortunately was going through that and he took a plastic like Big Gulp style coffee mug, the ones out of the 80s and 90s, put it on the coil burner cooktop cause he wanted to heat his coffee.
Speaker CSeemed logical to him.
Speaker CHe was a smart builder, was way deep into the dementia slash Alzheimer's game and turned it on and we had a fire.
Speaker CI used three big fire extinguishers getting that thing out.
Speaker CAnd when the third one was sputtering, I didn't know if I was running out the door.
Speaker CAnd I already got everybody out of there.
Speaker CI was trying to make sure to see if I could get it because he had plastic everywhere.
Speaker CThese are the things we want to prevent.
Speaker CThese are the things we want to see if we can help.
Speaker CThat's a whole other situation that we're really not going to deal with on the radio.
Speaker CBut being able to control some of those things and making sure that they can't just go wandering off can be an important one.
Speaker CAnd keeping them safe is our highest priority, as well as keeping them comfortable.
Speaker CAll right, guys, if you've got any questions, feel free to reach out to me@aroundthehouse online.com and I'm here to help you.
Speaker CI'm Eric G. Thanks for tuning into around the House.
Speaker CWe'll see you next week.
Speaker BMake sure and catch our back catalog of podcast episodes on your favorite podcast player.
Speaker BAnd to find out more, head to our new website ataroundthe house online.com.
Speaker Bthank you for listening to around the House.
Speaker BWe will see you next time.
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