My Grab bar lessons

YanniLazarus
YanniLazarus Member Posts: 366
edited June 2021 in Modifications & Upgrades
Just finishing up installing two old guy grab bars and wanted to share lessons learned. 

INTERIOR 320 ENTRY DOOR: 
The wood door frame is flexible enough to make it an unreliable fastening point for a grab bar.   My final wooden grab bar version buttresses against the outside wall to limit twisting,  and bolts through the wood door frame.  I installed a wood spacer between the wood door frame and the adjacent shelf unit to make the upper connection point of the grab bar stiffer (see photo).   I then added a steel angle which nestles under the rubber gasket that surrounds the door frame (see photo) . Every one of these moves seemed necessary to make the grab bar sturdy. 
Yanni Lazarus 2020 T@B320S, 2018 RAV4 Adventure, Central CT
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+

Comments

  • YanniLazarus
    YanniLazarus Member Posts: 366
    edited June 2021
    The second grab bar is in the bathroom.   As suggested,  I removed the television to install some blocking... not much room in that wall,  lots of wiring,  piping and control boxes... scarey! I managed to glue some wood blocking in to the side and just below the alde control for the upper mount of an 18" vertical grab bar. The photo shows me fishing blocking into the cavity for the lower mount.  The block sticking out of the wall is just to temporarily hold my blocking in place.   I ended up moving (sliding) the bathroom mirror about an inch to get better clearance for the grab bar.   More photos of this as my work continues. 
    Yanni Lazarus 2020 T@B320S, 2018 RAV4 Adventure, Central CT
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • YanniLazarus
    YanniLazarus Member Posts: 366
    Finished photos... I do think we're going to enjoy having these bars. 
    Yanni Lazarus 2020 T@B320S, 2018 RAV4 Adventure, Central CT
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • YanniLazarus
    YanniLazarus Member Posts: 366
    And the bathroom: 
    Yanni Lazarus 2020 T@B320S, 2018 RAV4 Adventure, Central CT
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • feministravelers
    feministravelers Member Posts: 10
    Great idea!!
    2021 T@B320S Boondock 
    TV: 2004 Toyota Tacoma
    Based in Tacoma, WA
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • Bclarke
    Bclarke Member Posts: 110
    Quite impressive!  These are a great addition. 
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • MuttonChops
    MuttonChops Member Posts: 1,943
    @YanniLazarus ; Well Done ! !
    If you searched all the forum Grab Bar Discussion you might have come across my Entry Door solution.  And I fully agree with you that the door frame area mounts are not as solid as one would like . . .

    However, since installing that grab bar I've found I'm not really using it as a grab bar . . . seems my body has learned how to approach / handle the exiting.  Of all the mods completed the Entry Door Grab Bar is one of the least used, clearly not the worse/worthless mod but it has not worked out as a big success . . . a disappointment considering all the effort to come up with a solution.

    For Grab Bars the one I placed outside of the shower and of course the one in the shower are by far some of the best mods completed . . . those two grab bars get a lot of use for their intended function.

    Will be interesting to hear how your Entry Grab Bar works out . . . will your body also learn how to comfortably exit without needing it ?
    '18 320 S,  pitched axle, 3020HE; PNW based
    TV: '17 Colorado V6 Z71 4x4, Tow Package, GM Brake Controller
    TV: '25 Canyon AT4
    Adventures:  58   Nights:  405  Towing Miles 50,180
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • BrianZ
    BrianZ Member Posts: 1,770
    Hey, @MuttonChops, refresh my memory, please..
    What was the intended function of the grab bar outside the shower, for which you get a lot of use?
    We've had tons of use for your inside-shower bar - couldn't live without it.
    -Brian in Chester, Virginia
    TV: 2005 Toyota Sienna LE (3.3L V6)
    RV: 2018 T@B 320S, >100 mods 
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • William_Keever
    William_Keever Member Posts: 37
    Here’s a picture of our grab bar. We use it (along with the outside grab bar) because we have the Boondock model, which is noticeably higher than the non Boondock. It is solid as a rock and very secure. In fact, it moves the entire trailer. 
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • MuttonChops
    MuttonChops Member Posts: 1,943
    BrianZ said:
    Hey, @MuttonChops, refresh my memory, please..
    What was the intended function of the grab bar outside the shower, for which you get a lot of use?
    Well intended use is a grab bar of course - - - can be an assist point when exiting bathroom, is an assist point getting up from the seats, and clearly very helpful when cooking after one too many during happy hour.


    '18 320 S,  pitched axle, 3020HE; PNW based
    TV: '17 Colorado V6 Z71 4x4, Tow Package, GM Brake Controller
    TV: '25 Canyon AT4
    Adventures:  58   Nights:  405  Towing Miles 50,180
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • Marceline
    Marceline Member Posts: 1,748
    MuttonChops said:

    However, since installing that grab bar I've found I'm not really using it as a grab bar . . . seems my body has learned how to approach / handle the exiting.  Of all the mods completed the Entry Door Grab Bar is one of the least used, clearly not the worse/worthless mod but it has not worked out as a big success . . . a disappointment considering all the effort to come up with a solution.

    I have to say that I've been a little confused by this mod. I bought my T@B just a couple of months after having total knee replacement, so I know what it's like to be unsteady. But I don't understand the utility of a grab bar on the inside of the door. If you exit face forward, holding onto the bar puts your arm behind you as you descend, which seems weird and destabilizing. If you exit with your backside facing out (like going down a boat companionway) then you can use the exterior grab handle. Or are people holding onto the grab bar and exiting sideways? 

    At any rate, my solution was to remove the bolt-on steps and get a folding aluminum step, which is much more stable. I would recommend this to anyone who has mobility issues.
    San Francisco Bay Area
    2013 CS-S us@gi
    2015 Toyota Tacoma PreRunner Double Cab
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • Denny16
    Denny16 Member Posts: 5,431
    I am with you Marceline, we go out backwards (rear first) like going down a boat companionway, old habits die hard.  I think this is safer too.  ;)
    cheers 
    2018 TaB400 Custom Boondock,  Jeep Gladiator truck, Northern California Coast.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+
  • YanniLazarus
    YanniLazarus Member Posts: 366
    Now that I've used the wood grab bar by the door for a few trips I'm more enthusiastic about it.   Really,  it is about making it easier to go from inside to out.   We used to grab the wobbly door frame for the first really difficult step.   Now we grab the inside bar with our right hand,   step down to the step while pivoting to face backwards,  while reaching to grab the outside bar with our left hand.   We actually end up holding onto both bars for a moment before releasing the inner bar and backing off the step to the ground.   Feels pretty perfect...
    Yanni Lazarus 2020 T@B320S, 2018 RAV4 Adventure, Central CT
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter Share on Google+

Categories