Hand railing vs code in narrow Colonial stairs
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
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Comments (16)
- 7 years ago
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Narrow stairs, no railing now. What to do?
Comments (25)I think Saypoint's railing is exactly what I'll have to do and remind the carpenter who installs it that I need to be able to unscrew the brackets (using a drill screwdriver) when moving. The inset handrail would unfortunately, be at least a $10,000 expense. Those are load-bearing walls, so the studs can't be notched out. We'd have to open up the wall, install a new beam to hold up the 2nd story floor and attic, etc. Then, in the basement, we'd have to add another beam, open up the stairwell down-- and add new footings to fit the weight distribution. It could even involve removing the stairs and reinstalling. I saw what's involved when my dining room doors were widened. An engineer had to specify the correct beams for the door and under the first floor, along with these huge iron footings/jacks to hold up the new support because they couldn't dig new footings in the crawlspace. I'll have to add the rail on the left because the right side has two 1939 -era HVAC ducts going up through the wall. I'd have to have one of those punctured. On the left, there's the closet at the front, and the pantry at the back. Thanks for all the creative and thoughtful responses!...See MoreMetal horizontal stair railing advice!
Comments (11)Thank you all for your feedback! I appreciate it, and I’m actually really surprised that so many of you think it looks nicer this way lol. We are in touch with the builder and they have been pretty responsive and will get back to us soon with a resolution. At this point, I can live with it if it’s going to cause huge delays to get this fixed.. also excellent point about the safety aspect of things catching. Thank you all once again!...See MoreRailing stain vs paint
Comments (18)Its a major job to stain it, since you have to strip it all down. It looks very nice right now, and I wouldnt do a thing to it. If you want to paint the rail, a darker closer to black, that would look very nice too. I wouldnt touch the rest of it, and probably wouldnt paint the rail either, until it needs it....See MoreRailing or no railing? Per code, I can do either.
Comments (17)Looks much better without the railing. I don't like how the railing cuts the view of the windows. I will like it even less when the black shutters go back up. Without the railing, the house looks more stately. Railing frou-frou detracts from a stately look. Slightly beefier posts would look nice but the ones you have look fine, too. Disabled, injured, elderly aren't going to want to negotiate the sidewalk & sidewalk steps to get to the porch so the argument that it is necessary for them doesn't hold water AFAIC. Great looking house. I like it very much....See MoreRelated Professionals
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