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When I met my husband 8 years ago he was living in this house. I wouldn't have bought it but we live here and there's no compelling reason to sell it, except I hate the garage set up. I would call it a "raised Ranch" b/c it is single story with garage and storage room underneath. Sits on the crest of a hill and you enter garage from behind the house. From the street it looks level but from the rear you can see the design.
So, unloading groceries means parking in front of the house and walking thru the entry and diningr oom to get to the kitchen, then driving around back to put the car away. Or, going straight to the garage and climbing stairs with groceries. I hate lugging groceries up the stairs. Anyone have a dumb waiter?
Do they work OK?
I think dumbwaiter is one word, to avoid confusion...
A long time ago, when living in a third story walk-up, I rigged a hoist for groceries. I suspect you will need to address the same types of problems that I had. If you do a major shopping, most lifts will be inadequate. That means either two people, with one loading and one unloading, or numerous walks back and forth.
Further, the dumbwaiters I used to use in a hospital were manual. While well balanced, they still required a bit of effort to operate.
Some houses are just poorly designed ergonomically. Have you considered having a child's little red wagon by the front door? That way you could load the groceries into the wagon, park the car, then go back through the house to pull the groceries through it to the kitchen.
I like unique layouts of houses so it wouldn't bother me.
Delivery not available in my area......I often shop when DH is home so he can come down to help haul. However, prefer to shop during weekdays while he's at work..... looking into the wagon/shopping cart idea!
Are the stairs enclosed? If not, you can rig a platform with an electric winch at the top of the stairs that drops to the garage. Then it's a simple matter of dropping the platform on the way out and then loading it up and winching it up when you return. It would need some sort of support frame, rollers to keep it from getting stuck and could be enclosed.
Don't have one but had a close friend that had one in a house she purchased (since sold). It was electric and was great. It was essentially a mini box elevator in that ran from basement (garage area) to a closet outside her kitchen. She used it for everything from groceries to laundry to logs for the fireplace.
Believe the weight limit was 100 lbs but not sure.
You can find them online if you check for dumbwaiters or elevators.
Hummmm.......living here now almost 6 years and should have posted then! Stairs are enclosed. About 12 steps up, platform, then turn and about 12 more steps up. Would require the same remodeling to accommodate as putting in a dumbwaiter......
Hummmm.......living here now almost 6 years and should have posted then! Stairs are enclosed. About 12 steps up, platform, then turn and about 12 more steps up. Would require the same remodeling to accommodate as putting in a dumbwaiter......
I guess your other option is to put in a elevator. That way you could ride up with the groceries.
We have 6 stairs up from our garage to our house due to flood construction requirements - but it looks like you have a full flight. Do you have enough space to put in a ramp (easier going up a ramp than a full flight of stairs). Robyn
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