How to Install a Summit Stair Lift

The Summit brand stairlift consists of a motorized seat with an armrest and seatbelt. It sits on a track and safely moves a person up and down the stairs of his home. It installs on the wooden molding of your stairs. Using a stairlift lowers the risk of falling and becoming injured. Someone who is unsteady on his legs, has a hard time walking up and down stairs or suffers from episodes of dizziness can benefit from having a stairlift installed in his home.

Things You'll Need

• Wrench
• Allen wrench
• Electric screwdriver
• Box, 1/2-inch thick
• Level

Instructions

1. Examine the track sections of the stairlift to find the bottom track section with the metal end plate. Set the bottom track section on the stairs with the end plate resting on the bottom or landing, beneath the first step and the open end on the third step above it.

2. Determine where the track mounting brackets need to go on the track. The track can be mounted to the molding on the left or right side of the stairs. Place one track bracket at the bottom step, one at the top step, and two near where the track ends will be joined together on the steps. Fasten the brackets on the same side of the track sections by sliding the bolt through the hole on the long end of the bracket and into the first nut in the pair of nuts on the side of the track. Tighten the bolt with your fingers. Leave the bolt loose enough so that the bracket can slide in the small track that the nut is in.

3. Examine the track section open ends to find the splice bars. The splice bars hold the joined ends of the track sections together. Use an Allen wrench to loosen the splice bar hex screws and slide the splice bars out halfway. Tighten the hex screws to secure the splice bars in place. Insert the splice bars on the lower track section into their corresponding holes in the upper track section. Tighten the set hex screws in the upper track with an Allen wrench to secure the tracks together.

4. Move the track over to rest the brackets against the molding. Place a 1/2-inch thick box at the bottom landing of the stairs and prop the bottom end of the track up on it. Fasten the brackets to the molding of the stairs with the wood screws provided and the electric screwdriver. Start with the last track section on the molding 1/2-inch up from the floor of the landing of the steps. Drive the wood screws into the molding with an electric screwdriver, halfway. Remove the box you used to hold the track end up and finish driving the screw the rest of the way in. Fasten the rest of the brackets to the molding.

5. Attach the yellow bracket of the track's electrical wire to the second nut up from the bottom end of the track with a bolt and a wrench. Thread the electrical wire attached to the yellow bracket through the top channels located on the wall side of the tracks. Insert the looped plastic chain or traveling power cable into the track. Insert one end of the chain into the bottom channel of the center of the track, then insert the other end of the chain into the channel on the other side of the track. Hold the chain taut and set the chain mounting bracket onto the track. Insert self-drilling screws into the bracket holes, then drive them into the track with an electric screwdriver. Plug the power cable into the socket located on the upper track cover at the top of the stairs. Insert the batteries into the black plastic power box, then plug the black negative wire into the battery on the motor located at the top of the track.

6. Tighten the lower limit cam, located on the track near the bottom landing. Move the cam to the bottom of the track so that it is resting next to the bottom track end cover. Tighten the cam with a wrench. Find the upper limit cam, move it to the top of the track, and install it 1/2-inch from the top track cover and tighten the cam to fasten it to the track.

7. Assemble the seat by screwing the backrest to the seat's back bar. Remove the four screws and washers from the motor unit chassis. Plug the seat control's plastic wire connector into the motor chassis control wire connector. Set the seat on the motor, fasten it to the unit with the four screws and washers that you removed. Move the lift motor/seat assembly down 1 foot on the track with the control button located on the armrest of the seat. Place a level on the top center of the complete track to ensure that it is even. If it is not, use the screws on the mounting brackets to move the track sections up or down to make it level. Tighten the bolts on the brackets with the wrench to secure the track to the molding.

Tips & Warnings

• Take your time

• Do not ride stair lift if track is not secured.

References

• Summit Lifts: FAQs
• Summit Lifts: Guide to Installing Your Summit Stairway Lift pages 6-15