Canes and wet floors in restaurants
 

Anyone else here having problems using canes in restaurants that have tile floors?

I went into an Arby's tonight. It was raining. The employees had taken up the rugs in the entryway (that was full of water because there was no awning over the door and the rain was coming into the doorway every time someone opened the door. (oh, and no handy "Wet Floor" sign anywhere in sight to warn people that the floor might be wet)

So, there was an inch of standing water in that doorway. I had to hang onto the wall to get inside to avoid slipping. Get inside, and they'd taken up the rugs in there too so they could mop in there. I couldn't use my cane on the floor in there either.

When we were leaving, I thought the floor would finally be dry, put my cane down, tested the weight a little bit, and just about killed myself when the cane slid away from me. My dad also uses a cane, and he really uses it to hold himself up, so he was having a harder time than I was walking across that floor.

Anyone know how to walk on slick, wet tile floors with a cane without killing themselves?

Doesn't life stink sometimes? My "Ramp of Death" (built by my husband off deck, NOT ADA compliant, nothing on side to prevent me going right over, STEEP (I catch air at the end with my rear tires). When the wood gets wet with rain, no way can I go down it! Learned the hard way. It had rained one early norning but by time I went out sun was shining brightly so I set off down it. OMG!!! The chair slid off it towards end (I wasn't even braking), rear tires on ramp, front tires on grass, all at an angle. My NJ acquired snow driving skills allowed me to manuver to safety. Needless to say, I always think about possible ramp wetness before going down, make sure I have my cell pnone. etc. My life is is video game.

I don't think there is a way, Erin. Whether there's an inch of water or a drop in just the right spot, rubber-tipped canes will slide. How about a suction cup tip that can be disengaged from the handle? Is there such a thing? But that would only work if you know the floor is wet - not with the unexpected drop of moisture.

When there is rain, there will be wet floors. This is of no help to you now of course, but the restaurant should have at least put something down!

Glad you weren't hurt.:)

Sheesh Erin, other than suction cups at the end of your cane,
I don't thing there is a solution. Maybe skid strips would work?

Kicker, ask DH to put skid strips on your ramp..:eek:.. and you
should have a rail to hold onto to stop you from toppling over.

It wasn't even that late. Like 8 at night. The restaurant didn't close till 10pm, and they'd already taken up the floor rugs so they could mop. They should have left the rugs down till after close.

Plus, I watched the girl mop the floor. No one teaches anyone how to mop anymore. (she was using dirty water, and just putting a wet mop of the floor and slinging it back and forth getting the floor wet, and not actually using the mop to clean. Explained why the floors looked gross)

I emailed their feedback link on Arby's website to kind of complain a little bit about the lack of wet floor signs and having a totally unsafe entrance. Yeah, their floor mats would have been soaked in the entry way, but a wet floor mat would have been easier to walk on than tile floor with an inch of water floating on it.

to the list of peeves: the greasy floors in restaurants/fast food places - argh!

I can rec'mend Thomas Fetterman's crutch (& cane) tips designed to resist slipping in wet places; they can be used everyday, rain or not. Not foolproof, but a vast help.

Good for you, writing to them, and letting them know you had troubles there. :eek: mopping with dirty water?! Yuck!

Glad you are OK, though!!

After reading Erin`s post, it reminded me I have had similar situations on wet bathroom floors. The tip will simply slide making it easy for you to fall.

I also remembered that when the tip was new it had some sore of thread that provided better grip on wet floors. But after 2 months or so of usage, the thread wore out.

I decided to replaced it. This is what I did. I took a GOOD knife and CAREFULLY cut patterns on the tip, pretty much like a pizza.

Do not go too deep 2mm (millimeters) should be more than enough.

I tested my NEW tip on a wet muddy floor, with no slide.

Oh course use common sense and don`t put all your trust on the cane, but this new thread will sure provide a better grip. I hope it can help some one.

Hello Peter Solano and welcome to NeuroTalk :)

I don't use canes.

If I need a mobility aid I use Trekking Poles. My poles are Black Diamond (brand) and the "feet" are Leki (brand). The link below will show you what the feet (tips) look like. They definitely have tread :)
http://www.backcountryedge.com/leki-...-tip-pair.aspx

Thanks for the link, those sure are mean tips. My solution was a last minute cheaper option, and it has worked for me. Better traction on wet and dry floors.