Licensed #EASTGB744B1. Insured. Senior discounts available. Eastside Grab Bars is owned and operated by Mark Costello, and the business helps seniors and families across East King County stay safer at home through careful, personal grab bar installation.
A well-placed grab bar gives the user something solid to hold when a foot slips or a knee gives way. Every install is quiet, clean, and built around what the household actually needs. Residents of Issaquah, Bellevue, Redmond, Sammamish, Newcastle, Kirkland, and nearby communities can usually be scheduled within a few days.
Falls are the leading cause of injury among adults 65 and older in the United States, and most of those falls happen at home. According to the CDC, one out of four older adults falls each year, and the bathroom is one of the most common rooms where it happens. A solid grab bar, installed into studs or backed with approved heavy-duty anchors, can hold a person’s full body weight when it is needed most.
A grab bar is not the same as a towel bar. It is a safety device rated to carry real load, usually 250 to 500 pounds when installed correctly. A bar screwed into drywall alone will tear out the first time someone leans on it hard. Eastside Grab Bars locates studs, works with blocking where it exists, and uses proper toggle anchors where it does not. Every bar is tested before the job wraps up.
Good placement is about how the person actually moves. The assessment watches how the homeowner steps into the shower, stands up from the toilet, and turns at the bedroom door. The bar is then marked where the hand naturally lands, not where a generic diagram says it should go. Standard heights matter too: shower bars typically sit 33 to 36 inches above the floor, and toilet grab bars often work best 33 to 36 inches above the seat line. Each placement is adjusted for height, grip, and mobility before any hole gets drilled.
Every visit follows the same quiet rhythm so the household knows exactly what to expect.
A call or message kicks things off with a conversation about what is going on at home. A recent fall. A new cane. A parent moving in. The first step is listening, then asking practical questions about bathroom layout, stairs, and bedrooms. Most consultations take 10 to 15 minutes.
An in-home visit usually follows within a few days. The walkthrough covers wall construction, hidden blocking, reach measurements, and a conversation about bar styles, finishes, and locations. A clear quote is provided before anything is installed.
Every tool and part arrives on site ready to go. Drop cloths go down, and work happens in one bathroom or area at a time. Most single-bar installs take 30 to 45 minutes. A full bathroom with three or four bars usually takes two to three hours. Every speck of dust is cleaned up before the job ends.
Before leaving, Mark walks the homeowner or family member through each bar, showing exactly how to grip it and when to rely on it. A follow-up a few weeks later confirms everything still feels right. If a bar ever loosens or a location no longer works, a return visit is part of the service.
Mark Costello started this business after years of helping his own aging family members stay in the homes they loved. After retiring from the US Small Business Administration in Seattle in 2021, he built Eastside Grab Bars as a hands-on, practical, and local next chapter.
Mark is a proud member of Age Safe America, the largest aging-in-place advocacy organization in the country, and he holds the Aging in Place Home Safety Advisor designation. He also volunteers with Rebuilding Together Seattle, installing grab bars for low-income seniors across King County. That work has put hundreds of bars on real walls and taught him what actually holds up and what does not.
Pricing depends on the bar, the wall it is going into, and how many bars are needed. A single standard bar installed into studs usually runs less than a full bathroom package. A clear written quote follows the in-home assessment so there are no surprises.
Yes. Diamond-tip drill bits made for ceramic and porcelain are used with slow, careful pressure, and every penetration is sealed to keep water out of the wall. Tile showers across Bellevue and Issaquah get worked on regularly, and the careful drilling process is designed to keep tile intact.
Having the homeowner or a family member present is preferred so placement can be confirmed with the person who will actually use the bar. Adult children who live out of state often join by phone or video during the assessment. Caregivers, occupational therapists, and property managers are also welcome points of contact.
Call Mark directly at (425) 522-8663, or use the contact form to request a same-day response. A safer home can be just one short appointment away.
Senior discounts are available.
