This is one of those products when you first look at it and think, wow what a great idea! and in principle it is a great idea, easy to install, no drilling, screwing into the wall and quick and simple to stick to your chosen surface but you may be shocked to read that this suction grab and support rail review is far from complimentary of these suction supports to say the least.
Not going to go into great detail on this one, Mobility Shopper Reviews are proud of their no-nonsense approach and straight talking reviews, good or bad and this one is so bad that it shoul
d most probably be banned.
Strong words you might think but picture the following, granny has stuck this sucker-based grab rail onto the tiles of her bathroom to help her get out the bath and when she goes to pull herself up, hey presto it comes off the wall and granny goes with it. Trust me on this one I have been there, done that and got the T-shirt, these things are dangerous and only really designed for very light guidance and should never be relied on for support.
They connect by suction and if the surface is slightly uneven, greasy or its not fixed firmly to start with they become death traps.
Avoid at all costs and remember that any support that you want to rely on should always be firmly fixed to the wall with screws and raw plugs and fitted by somebody with enough knowledge to ensure that it won’t come off. This is not just important, it is essential if you value your health or your loved ones health. Buy a sturdy grab or support rail direct from good old Amazon by clicking this sturdy grab rail link.
I have to agree with your post 100%, I purchased one of these for my mother that came to stay with us for a few weeks and we used it on the bathroom tiles and exactly as you said, it slipped off and she fell back against the wall. Luckily she never hurt herself seriously but she could very easily.
I think your post is very honest straight talking and for once you are offering advice and not even trying to sell anything.
Your posts are very much appreciated, keep up the good work.
Thanks Mary, glad your mum is ok, lets hope the post has put some people off buying these things!
Hello,
I have the exact same suction support grab rails in my bathroom. I use them to provide additional support in the shower, I suffer from multiple sclerosis so my balance is poor. They are based on a sound and reliable concept, people who have to move large sheets of window glass for sky-scrappers and tower blocks use the same principle to lift and move the glass. In my home the suction grips are on shiny white tiles and they have never come off. I admit that I don’t put my entire weight onto them, I have not yet needed to. If the surface is uneven then the suction grippers are totally useless.
You are warned in the instructions that they must be used on a smooth polished surface.
1 for 2 against lol
Perhaps the answer would be to clearly mark the box as “not recommended for full body weight” ?
Just purchased one of these today from Ableworld, albeit it was one of the types with 3 cups that you can angle. The guy in the showroom demonstrated it on the glass window in the shop. I was impressed at how hard it stuck. However my enthusiasm wained the minute I got home and tried to apply it to my shiny clean and dry bathroom tiles. At first it stuck firm but in less than a minute, the cups popped off and it fell off. I made sure that it wasn’t overlapping any grout, was fixed properly and the tiles (as well as the cups) were clean and dry. After several failed attempts it kept falling off again in less than a minute of me attaching it to the wall. I will be returning the item to the shop ASAP. It obviously only works on glass and nothing else and even then I’d not feel confident of using it to bear weight. These things are dangerous and clearly not fit for purpose. I can’t believe a reputable mobility store is selling something which is an accident waiting to happen.
Thanks for sharing your findings, I wonder if there are any recorded accidents from using these things?