Building a ramp

[vykus]

Well it was a busy winter and spring so I have not had anything to submit here in a while. But I have been looking in on everyone else's wonderful work.  If you recall (and if you don't, that's OK) my saw broke near the end of fall last year with no way to repair it. That continued this spring for a while but I was able to fix it finally and now that I am done building this ramp I can get back to scrolling. This ramp is in my parents garage. My Mom slipped on some ice last Dec. 23 and shattered her femur right above her artificial knee. Thankfully there was a new type of knee and femur replacement that they were able to use and save her leg, otherwise they likely would have had to had it amputated to above the brake, very high up. She spent more than 3 months in a rehab facility and my Dad was convinced that when she came home she would be able to handle the small step from the garage into the house. She did OK most times but it scared her and once she was very close to falling. So it was up to me to build the ramp my Mom would have rather had there when she got home. Having seen other ramps of this type I am aware of some of the pitfalls that can happen. The platform would be 5 3/4 off the floor so I needed boards of 5 in so I had to rip cut those myself with a circular saw   The main concern I had was the stability of the posts, I did not want them to be wobbly so that meant joinery. For the post meeting the wall I used a modified dovetail, I don't remember it's proper name but I did get the idea out of a book on timber framing. A full dovetail would have compromised the footprint of the 4x4. The next post would be joining with the 2x5 of the platform and the rib going from there to ground level. I lap jointed the two boards and then I cut a channel down the center of the 4x4 so it could sandwitch over the lap joint, added a little glue and some screws and it was solid as a rock. The final post was done the same, I made a 1 1/2  wide channel down the center angled to correspond to the spot on the rib that I wanted to place it. I installed it with glue and screws but due to the fact that the rib was so shallow at that point it was not as stable as I wanted it to be. I thought about it for a few days and decided that I needed to add a buttress to add extra stability.  It took a while to get the piece modified to the point that it supported the post rather than just be a piece that is screwed to it. The rail is just a rail off the rack from home depot which I secured with some walnut dowel I had left over from a previous project. I knew that would be strong enough that it would not splinter like your average dowel likely would while you pound it down into the hole.  I finished the rail with plastic covered wire threaded through the posts. At some point there will be some textured painted added to the walking surface things get slippery here in the winter. So now that is project is complete I have started on my scrolling again and hopefully I will have something to post soon, I am working on a cribbage board and a Green Man intarsia, I'll let you know how those turn out. 

[realfEZ]

Well done!

Moms are well worth all care and consideration.

[JOE_M]

Looks good! You might consider putting a handrail on the wall side. Then if she gets tired or starts to slip she can lean into the wall, not over a railing, and when she gets up to the door it's easy to hold on to with the right while turning the doorknob with the left.

 

 

[rdatelle]

Looks good. I agree with Joe. Definitely need a hand rail on the wall side. Try to catch the studs.

[vykus]

A rail on the wall side is not needed since she will be using a walker from now on and it's unlikely that she will be free of it. If she were walking alone or even with a cane I would agree but she has the support she needs from the walker.

[wombatie]

My husband's job years ago was building ramps and putting in hand rails, whenever he put a ramp in he always had to put a rail on the wall, just saying.

 

Marg

[lawson56]

Ya did a Super Job.

[amazingkevin]

13 hours ago, vykus said:

Well it was a busy winter and spring so I have not had anything to submit here in a while. But I have been looking in on everyone else's wonderful work.  If you recall (and if you don't, that's OK) my saw broke near the end of fall last year with no way to repair it. That continued this spring for a while but I was able to fix it finally and now that I am done building this ramp I can get back to scrolling. This ramp is in my parents garage. My Mom slipped on some ice last Dec. 23 and shattered her femur right above her artificial knee. Thankfully there was a new type of knee and femur replacement that they were able to use and save her leg, otherwise they likely would have had to had it amputated to above the brake, very high up. She spent more than 3 months in a rehab facility and my Dad was convinced that when she came home she would be able to handle the small step from the garage into the house. She did OK most times but it scared her and once she was very close to falling. So it was up to me to build the ramp my Mom would have rather had there when she got home. Having seen other ramps of this type I am aware of some of the pitfalls that can happen. The platform would be 5 3/4 off the floor so I needed boards of 5 in so I had to rip cut those myself with a circular saw   The main concern I had was the stability of the posts, I did not want them to be wobbly so that meant joinery. For the post meeting the wall I used a modified dovetail, I don't remember it's proper name but I did get the idea out of a book on timber framing. A full dovetail would have compromised the footprint of the 4x4. The next post would be joining with the 2x5 of the platform and the rib going from there to ground level. I lap jointed the two boards and then I cut a channel down the center of the 4x4 so it could sandwitch over the lap joint, added a little glue and some screws and it was solid as a rock. The final post was done the same, I made a 1 1/2  wide channel down the center angled to correspond to the spot on the rib that I wanted to place it. I installed it with glue and screws but due to the fact that the rib was so shallow at that point it was not as stable as I wanted it to be. I thought about it for a few days and decided that I needed to add a buttress to add extra stability.  It took a while to get the piece modified to the point that it supported the post rather than just be a piece that is screwed to it. The rail is just a rail off the rack from home depot which I secured with some walnut dowel I had left over from a previous project. I knew that would be strong enough that it would not splinter like your average dowel likely would while you pound it down into the hole.  I finished the rail with plastic covered wire threaded through the posts. At some point there will be some textured painted added to the walking surface things get slippery here in the winter. So now that is project is complete I have started on my scrolling again and hopefully I will have something to post soon, I am working on a cribbage board and a Green Man intarsia, I'll let you know how those turn out. 

I'm going to need a ramp that dumps me into my car soon.i struggled to get in my car for years.only to find a lever out of site that tilts the wheel.Nice workmanship!

[daveww1]

nice job on the ramp, I'm sure it will be a big help for your mother

[vykus]

Keven, I also had to make her a sturdy non-slip step to take with in the car. It's only 3 1/2 in. But it gets her high enough to sit and then pivot into her seat.