Reachers, pickers and grabbers

Reachers, pickers and grabbers are generic names for a number of different devices, all of which have the objective of helping someone to pick something up without the need to bend, reach or stretch.

They are all lightweight and most use a hollow tubular design. The open tube can also be used to house and hide any cables or pulleys used to control the grabbing mechanism at the end of the picker.

Most of these grabbing aids have a long handle to enable an extended reach, combined with some sort of claw, closing jaw, mechanical hand or magnetic head. These different grabbing mechanisms enable an object to be picked up and retrieved when it would otherwise be out of reach.

Some of these devices can also be made portable by the use of a telescopic action or a folding mechanism. When this is the case they can be folded up or retracted and carried around with ease.

How they work

The way in which different reachers pick things up varies, however most have a lever or trigger on the handle and this is used to control the grabbing action (normally through a cord or wire). A minimum of effort is required to make the grabbing action function.

It can be a good idea to select a reacher whose head combines a claw like grabber with a hook, this adds to the multi-tasking ability of the device. It also makes it possible to pick up a number of objects without the need to use the grabbing mechanism.

Mechanically controlled suction tips and a design that incorporates a magnet into the reacher’s jaws can also add to the flexibility of the aid.

Different reaching devices come in different lengths and some can be adjusted to make them longer when required. All of these reaching aids are lightweight and easy to use. Most have ergonomically designed handles and the trigger style claw controllers prove easy to operate for most people.