Aging in place shouldn’t require expensive home renovations. Sometimes, small changes can make the most significant difference. Doors, often overlooked, can become obstacles for older adults dealing with mobility or strength challenges.
The good news? Just three affordable updates – replacing doorknobs, adding hinges, or installing better lighting- can dramatically improve safety and independence. Here’s how to make these simple but impactful upgrades without breaking the bank.
Updating Your Doors Can Help Seniors Aging in Place More Successfully
Making an older adult’s home easier and safer is essential for successful aging in place.
Today, many home accessibility updates aren’t expensive or complicated. A few thoughtful changes can make a home senior-friendly.
We share three simple, low-cost options for updating your doors that can help seniors stay independent longer. These changes will allow seniors to use walkers or wheelchairs more easily and reduce fall risk, making life safer and more convenient.
3 Insider Tips to Update Your Doors For Aging In Place
1. Replace regular door hinges with offset door hinges
Standard room doorways can be tight for seniors using a wheelchair or walker.
Rather than a big remodeling project to widen the doorway, consider replacing the existing door hinges with these offset door hinges (also known as expandable or swing clear door hinges). These hinges allow the door to swing out of the frame and add 2 inches in width to the doorway.
Offset hinges cost about $25 per pair, far less expensive than expanding the doorway. If nobody in the family is handy, you might need someone to help with installation, but replacing the hinges should be quick, simple, and inexpensive.
This short video shows how an offset door hinge works differently from a standard hinge. Jump to the 38-second mark to see how a standard hinge opens, and then to 1 minute and 10 seconds to see how the offset hinge opens.
2. Change the direction of the bathroom door opening
Many bathrooms are small spaces that can be tough for older adults to get into and out of, especially if they use a walker or wheelchair.
A helpful, low-cost update is to change the direction of the door opening. Re-hang the door so that it swings outward instead of opening into the bathroom. This gives more room inside the toilet and makes it easier to enter and exit.
3. Make the door thresholds safer
Going into and out of the house can be dangerous, as the door thresholds could easily trip an older adult and cause a fall. A threshold also makes using a wheelchair or walker more difficult because of the flooring height difference.
Consider getting a portable threshold ramp instead of sanding down or remodeling those doorways. They’re relatively inexpensive and, if needed, can also be secured with heavy-duty double-stick tape or a couple of screws.
When your older adult visits family or friends, you could also take one of these ramps to make entering and exiting their homes easier.
These threshold ramps range in price depending on their height. For example, this one is 3/4 inches in height and costs about $50 (including shipping). A portable ramp that’s 1 inch in height costs about $70.
Recommended for you:
- 7 Sources of Home Repair Assistance for Seniors
- 6 Affordable Ways to Create a Senior-Friendly Kitchen
- Home Modifications for Seniors: A Room-by-Room Guide
This article contains affiliate links. For more information, see How We Make Money.
About the Author
Connie Chow
Connie was a hands-on caregiver for her grandmother for 20 years. (Grandma made it to 101 years old!) She knows how challenging, overwhelming, and all-consuming caring for an older adult can be. She also knows how important support is — especially in the form of practical solutions, valuable resources, and self-care tips.
