This piece is not about choosing a walker. It is about what breaks first after the walker is chosen and fitted. The frame is usually sturdy for a long time. The parts that touch the floor, the brakes, and the height pins are the ones that wear, and they wear quietly.

Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.

Name the one person who checks

Pick one person for the weekly check, and write that name on a card that stays with the walker or in the folder. If two people think the other one is checking, nobody does. The check takes a few minutes and can be done by a family member, a hired helper who is there for other tasks, or the parent with a second person standing by.

The parts to look at each week

Start with the tips or glides at the bottom of each leg. Look for flat spots, cracks, and missing caps. A worn tip grips the floor poorly, and the first sign is often a slide on a smooth surface. If the walker has wheels, turn each wheel by hand and look for flat spots, wobble, and debris wrapped around the axle.

Next, squeeze each brake lever. Both brakes should stop the wheels with the same firm pull. If one brake feels loose or travels far before it bites, stop using the walker on slopes and call the supplier. Check the brake cables or pads for stretch, fraying, or wear.

Then check the height pins. Each pin should click fully into its hole on both sides, and both sides should be at the same height. A pin that sits halfway out is a fall risk even if it looks fine from a distance.

Check the grips for splits and for tightness. Stand the walker on a flat floor and look at each leg and each joint for bends, loose bolts, or a frame that rocks when pressed.

Check the height against the therapist's setting

The height was set for a reason, usually to put the hand grips at the wrist crease with the elbows slightly bent. If the height has changed, because the walker was moved, the parent wore different shoes, or someone adjusted it, reset it to the setting the therapist or clinician gave. If you are not sure what the setting was, call the clinician or the supplier before you guess. Do not change the setup from a guess.

Know what the supplier replaces and what Medicare replaces

Keep the warranty and the signed equipment paper with the walker. Medicare's equipment rules set narrow conditions for replacing a walker, and a worn tip or a bad brake is usually a repair or a part, not a new walker. Ask the supplier which parts are covered by the warranty, which are covered by Medicare if the rules apply, and which you will pay for yourself. Get the answer in writing before the part is ordered.

When a worn part is a clinical question

If your parent says the walker feels different, wobbles on a level floor, or the parent starts leaning on furniture that was not used before, do not wait for the next weekly check. Tell the home health nurse, therapist, or the doctor's office. The NIA and MedlinePlus both publish general guidance on falls and walker use at home, and they are useful reading for the family. They are not a substitute for a clinician looking at the parent.

Put the check on the same list as the rest of the house

Add the walker check to the list you already use for the smoke alarms, the doorway rugs, and the other things that need a glance each week. A walker that is checked every week at the same time is easier to keep working than one that is only looked at when something goes wrong.

If the walker is one of several things in the house that need an owner, Start Here: Reading Order shows the order we suggest for working through them.

The Walker Wears Out at the Feet: The Weekly Check of Glides, Brakes, and Height