Getting the Right Fit for Your Riser Recliner Chair

At Cavendish Health Care & Mobility, we’ve spent time sourcing the best chairs available. It’s extremely important that you buy a chair that suits your posture, otherwise, it can cause more harm than good as outlined below.

Our tailor-made service enables you to have your ideal chair with the most suitable dimensions, recline action, cushioning and fabric. That’s why we’ve put together a series of useful guides showing why getting the seat height, depth, width, and softness is essential to good posture and pressure relief.

With these of these guides, we hope that you’ll be able to make an informed decision on the right product for your needs.

Seat Height

The correct seat height should make rising easier for the user. As a general rule, the higher the chair the easier it should be to get up from.

It’s also extremely important to make sure that the feet never dangle, and that the height is in proportion to the length of the lower leg – if this isn’t correct it could cause the sitter to experience severe pressure problems and/or discomfort.

How do I measure the correct seat height?

1. Make sure that the customer’s feet are flat on the floor while they are wearing footwear associated with relaxing.
2. There should be a right-angle bend at the knees so that the upper leg is flat on the seat cushion.
3. Measure the length of the lower leg from the floor to the top of the seat cushion.

Seat Depth

Having the correct seat depth will eliminate the need for extra pillows or cushions to bolster the user in position.

• If it’s too deep the user will slide forward, losing posture and increasing localised pressure.
• On the other hand, if the seat isn’t deep enough the pressure will be concentrated on a smaller area and not as well distributed.

Legrest length plays an important part in overall seat depth measurement. The user’s heel should just roll over the edge of the leg rest pad.

How do I measure the correct seat depth?

1. The user should be sitting upright with their back against the lumbar support.
2. Make sure the seat cushion is deep enough so that it’s supporting the length of the upper leg (to the back of the knee) without the cushion causing pressure on the calf.
3. Measure the user’s upper leg length (from the front of the seat cushion to the backrest of the chair).

Seat Width

A correct seat width will give the user a supported posture. If the seat is too wide it can be difficult to maintain posture. On the other hand, a chair that’s too narrow could hinder the user’s ability to sit back in the chair.

How do I measure the correct seat width?

1. Ensure that the user is upright with their back firmly against the lumbar support.
2. Having a 20mm gap each side of the buttocks should ensure that the arms sit comfortably on the armrests.
3. Measure the user across the and take the internal width of the seat between armrests.

Back Height

Once the correct backrest height is achieved the back of the head will be supported when sitting or lying in the chair. If done incorrectly, the head will hang over the top of the backrest causing the user to slide forward.

How do I measure the correct back height?

1. Make sure that the user is sitting upright with their back against the lumbar support.
2. Take measurements from the top of the user’s ears to the seat cushion.

Armrest Height

Having the correct armrest height will help the user’s arms to rest naturally on the armrest with the shoulder in a neutral position.

· Chair arms that are too high will cause neck & shoulder pain

· Chair arms that are too low will cause drooping and dragging on the shoulders.

How do I measure the correct arm height?

1. Make sure that the user is sitting upright with their back against the lumbar support.
2. Measure the user from the top of the seat cushion to the top of the armrest.

Other guides include:

1. Motor Actions Explained 
2. The Different Types of Back Support 

If you've read these guides or just want to talk to a member of our team, you can call us on 02392 255 600 for Waterlooville or on 01803 220 378 for Torquay.  In both showrooms, we have a wide selection of seating options for you to test.