[nfb-talk] Making Our Homes Comfortable and Accessible toBlind Folks

Mon Dec 19 18:35:39 UTC 2011

Dear All,

The subject has come up a couple of times about lights being turned on or 
off and blind people not knowing.
You can purchase some special switches that replace the regular wall 
switches or dimmers, that have a sensor in them that senses the body heat of 
a person, when they walk in the room and turns on the lights.  It also turns 
them off a minute or two after you walk out.
They really save energy because it turns the lights off when not needed 
based on the presents of someone in the room or not.
You can even get timers to turn on lights inside or outside your home too.
Having lights on outside your house, and inside for that matter, discourages 
break ins and intruders as they don't want to be seen and lights being on 
can make that very possible.
You can get a sensor switch with a solar cell in it that turns the lights 
on, as darkness falls, and turns them off as the sun comes up so you don't 
have to worry about remembering to turn them on or off.
Now as to wiring these switches.  The wires that are already there should 
work just fine, but who ever does the changing of the switches should know 
what they are doing.
I have only light and shadow vision now and can still do the wiring in my 
own home.  I have had lots of experience in working with electricity and 
know how to do it.  The only thing I have to do is identify the colors of 
the wires and make sure the electricity is off.
I start by turning on everything electrical in the room and then turn off 
the circuit breakers, one at a time, until all of the electrical stuff is 
off and not running.  I double check this fact with a "growler by touching 
the contacts of the wall switch I plan on removing.
Once it am sure there is no electric current present, I remove the switch 
from the wall and disconnect the wires.  I then take the new switch and 
reconnect the wires to the lugs on the new switch and replace the new switch 
into the wall and put on the new wall switch cover.
Now I can turn all of the electricity back on to the room at the circuit 
breakers and test my new switch.  I even have a outside light, by my front 
door that will turn on the light by the door, any time someone walks within 
20 feet of the door and you can even attach a bell/buzzer to it to sound 
inside the house to let you know someone is there outside, when the light 
goes on.

David Evans, NFBF and GD Jack.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Steven Johnson" <blinddog3 at charter.net>
To: "'NFB Talk Mailing List'" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2011 9:58 PM
Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Making Our Homes Comfortable and Accessible toBlind 
Folks

> William,
>
> I couldn't agreemore.  I had the same situation occur with me as I 
> purchased
> my home 11 years ago, and have done a lot to make it one of the nicest 
> homes
> on the street including major landscaping done all by myself.  I have a 
> huge
> flowerbed in the front and on both sides, while the inside is done in a
> contemporary outdoors with all of my rooms done in a theme.  It is very
> attractive, very eye-pleasing if you will and very inviting to anyone who
> enters.  However, I do on occasion have problems with either forgetting to
> turn the lights or in some cases, forget to turn them off!  This is one 
> way
> the neighbors know I am still alive!
>
> Thanksf or sharing everyone, this has been an interesting thread.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Wm. Ritchhart
> Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2011 10:28 AM
> To: 'NFB Talk Mailing List'
> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Making Our Homes Comfortable and Accessible to 
> Blind
> Folks
>
> This carries over to the outside of your home too.  I bought my home in
> 2006.  I did not even think about the color of the trim.  The house is
> stone.  Last spring my lady informed me that it had six different colors 
> of
> trim.  The former owners had seriously poor taste.  It did not even occur 
> to
> me to ask.
>
> Long story short... the trim is all one color now and (I am told), that
> color really pulls out the colors in the stone.  My house went from 
> looking
> stupid to looking like one of the best on the street.
>
> Thanks, William
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of David Andrews
> Sent: Saturday, December 17, 2011 4:50 PM
> To: NFB Talk Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Making Our Homes Comfortable and Accessible to 
> Blind
> Folks
>
> I think you answered your own question.  If you have sighted persons
> over regularly then you should do things to make them
> comfortable.  To do otherwise would be making yourself a bad
> host.  Where you draw the line is a personal decision though.  For
> example, if you have a working, and adequate TV, you may feel that it
> is not necessary to go out and spend hundreds or thousands of dollars
> on a HD model, or you may!
>
> Dave
>
> At 03:43 AM 12/17/2011, you wrote:
>>Hi there,
>>
>>
>>
>>Here's a question that I guess could also be somewhat philosophical in 
>>that
>>it will make us think about how we deal with and interact with sighted
>>people.
>>
>>
>>
>>As blind folks, do you think we have a responsibility to not only make our
>>homes comfortable and accessible for us and the folks with whom we live,
> but
>>also to sighted folks?
>>
>>I've heard comments in the past that basically say that since it's a blind
>>person's home, then the only thing that should be of concern is that 
>>things
>>are comfortable and accessible for the blind person.
>>
>>
>>
>>I've been thinking a lot about this over a long period of time.  I have
> some
>>friends that come over, and one in particular who stays in my guest room
>>when he's in town, and when all of that happens, I'm the only blind person
>>around.  All of a sudden, I begin to think about lights and the amount of
>>light in a room.  I begin thinking of making sure that appliances that are
>>labeled in Braille are done using clear tape so that they can also use
> them.
>>I even began thinking of the layout of my living room and how one of my
>>friends finally said that it was uncomfortable to do things like watch TV
> or
>>watch movies, because of how my furniture and TV are placed.  People have
> to
>>face sideways to be able to watch TV.  And, my TV is so old that it 
>>doesn't
>>support or have HD capabilities.
>>
>>
>>
>>I began wondering about the importance of a blind person having an
>>aesthetically or visually appealing house, not only for himself but also
> for
>>the sighted friends and family that come to visit.  Are we being selfish 
>>by
>>not considering these things, or should sighted company learn to live with
>>how we have things and deal with them?
>>
>>
>>
>>I'm beginning to think that if I care about my friends and family, then I
>>should do something to make them feel comfortable in a place where they
>>spend quite a bit of time.  But then, where does one draw the line?
>>
>>
>>
>>Anyway, hope you don't mind the question.  Just curious what other blind
>>folks (especially those who are totally blind) think.
>>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Jim
>
>
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