Stair Types for New Home Construction
| A stairway is a series of steps with or without landings
or platforms, which is installed between two or more floors of a building. Stairs provide easy access
to various levels of the home. All styles of homes, except the ranch with no basement have stairs. Prime
considerations in stair design should be easy ascent or descent and safety.
A house may have a main stairs) from the first floor to the second floor or from a split- level foyer to the first floor) and/or a service stairs. The main stairs are usually assembled with prefabricated parts and are much better quality than service stairs. They are generally made of hard woods such as oak, maple, or birch. Service stairs are frequently constructed on location and are ordinarily made of Douglas fir or pine. Six general types of stairs are commonly used in residential construction. They are the straight run stairs, L stairs, double L stairs, U stairs, and spiral stairs. |
| The straight run stairs are the stairs used most in new home construction. Straight stairs, as the name implies, have no turns. These stairs are not as expensive to construct as other types of stairs. |  |
| The L stairs has one landing at some point along the flight of steps. If the landing is near the top or bottom of the stairs, the term Long L is used to describe the difference. L stairs are used when the space required for a straight run stairs is not available. |  |
| Double L stairs require two 90 degree turns along the flight. They may be used when space is not available for either the straight or L stairs. Double L stairs are not frequently used in residential construction. |  |
| U Stairs may be constructed may be either as wide U or narrow U stairs. Both have two flights of steps parallel to each other with a landing between. The difference between wide and narrow U stairs is the space between the two flights. Narrow U stairs have little or no space between the flights while U stairs have a well hole between. |  |
| Winder stairs have “pie-shaped” steps which are substituted for a landing. This type is used when the space is not sufficient for the L stairs. If winder stairs are used, the width of the triangular steps should be sufficient at midpoint to provide a tread width equal to the regular steps. |  |
| Spiral or circular stairs are gaining in popularity and the components are now manufactured by several companies. They may be used where little space is available. Most spiral stairs are made from steel and welded together, however, it is possible to construct them from wood. Spiral stairs, as a rule are not very safe since they generally have winder steps |  |
 Taken
from: Author: Clois E. Kicklighter Copyright: 1984, The Goodheart-Wilcox Company, Inc. |