In this case study, we were called out to a stairlift repair. (See our page on repairs, servicing and maintenance). This was a problem with a Flow 2 a in Leeds, West Yorkshire. This stairlift had a retro-fitted “park point”. The park point is where the stairlift parks to charge the battery. After the original installation, (not one of ours), the owners realised that the parking position of the stairlift was a problem.
Situated at the top of the rail, the stairlift protruded too far into the stairs, when parked. Even when folded, this made it difficult to get past the stairlift for non-stairlift users in the household. Getting past the lift also had to be done on the narrowest part of the stairs, on the bend, which made it potentially dangerous.
In order to move the parking position, a new park point had been fitted, slightly further down the rail. This allowed the lift to park in the recess in the corner of the stairs (see images below).
The problem was, the park point mechanism clashed with the stairlift each time it passed it. This damaged the charge assembly, so the lift wouldn’t charge. The charge point assembly was bent out of shape when we arrived on the scene.
Stairlift Repair – Flow 2a Problem – A Retro Fitted Park Point On A Bend
Unfortunately a park point can’t be placed on a bend with this kind of stairlift (a Flow 2a). This particular stairlift doesn’t follow the exact same path each time when travelling around corners. This meant that each time it passed the park point, the stairlift charge assembly was clashing with the charge point. Eventually the part bent the assembly on the stairlift which meant it would no longer charge, and the stairlift couldn’t be charged. It eventually ran the battery flat.
Stairlift Repair – How The Charge Assembly Works
The charge assembly fitted to the stairlift has two prongs on springs. Here’s a picture of what it looks like (image below). As the stairlift moves on to the charge point (pictured right), the ramp on the unit forces the copper contact points to connect. This allows the battery to be charged.
With this stairlift type (the Flow 2a) you need a straight piece of rail in order to make this connection function correctly. What had happened with this stairlift was that the two springy copper connectors (above left) had bent out of shape. So they were no longer connecting properly.
So with this repair, we moved the charge point further down the rail. We found a straight piece where a better contact could be made. Below you can see the park point on the bend (pictured left) and the original park point at the top (pictured right).
We found another straight section of the rail where the park point could be moved to. This meant the stairlift could still be parked away from the top of the stairs. This gave more space for other home users to get past, when parked.
Removing Charge Point And Moving It
Removing the problem park point was the easy part of this job. This was simply a matter of removing two screws. But placing a new park point required finding the perfect placement for the new one and then drilling holes in the rail.
Then the stairlift had to be reprogrammed too, so it knew to automatically park in the new position. The two pictures below show the old park point position (on the curve, pictured left) and using a drill bit extension to see the straight part of the rail which we used for the new fitting position.
Before we could work on the rail, we had to bring it slightly out from the wall, to give us more room. So this meant unscrewing some of the feet, and pulling it out. We then secured the rail with a screw at the top, so it wouldn’t move as the work was done. (This doesn’t leave a mark on the carpet, as the screws are very thin).
After finding the straight part of the rail for the new park point, came the job of actually installing it. Two holes needed to be drilled in the rail, for the screws to hold the connector in place. We also needed a hole in the rail itself so we could connect the power.
Here’s a picture showing the holes drilled for the new charge point (left), and Scott on the right.
Summary
Once the new charge point was in place, we tested the lift to make sure it was working properly. The lift also had to be programmed – this was a Flow 2a which are a little like robots. They need programming so they know where to park from the remote control.
This was a tricky repair but Scott pulled his mechanical know-how out of the bag again! Another happy customer. Here’s a few pictures of the repair job and a video of the stairlift in place.
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