Your home renovation has finally reached the staircase stage. As you admire the various stair treads, risers and wood handrail options, you realize that aside from the main stair components, your knowledge of staircases is nil. Terms such as riser height, total run and tread width, leave you perplexed. Here are a few tips that will help you understand the basics.
Staircase definitions that you should know!
-
Stair tread: The horizontal part of the stair; the piece of wood that you step on!
-
Riser: The vertical part of the stair, located between the stair treads.
-
Total run: The horizontal measurement of the staircase from the face of the top riser to the face of the bottom riser.
-
Total rise: The vertical measurement from one floor to the next.
Now that you are familiar with the basic terminology, let’s talk about indispensable staircase calculations. These will let you know how many treads you will need.
Comfortable riser height
How far will you have to lift your leg every time you go up a stair? Take the time to carefully consider riser height. A riser that is too low (10 cm) will make for a very long and shallow staircase. A riser that is too high (20 cm) will make your staircase very steep, possibly dangerous.
Number of risers required
When you have a general idea of the riser height, you will need to gauge the number of risers. To calculate this, you need to use the total rise and the riser height. Let’s suppose that the total rise (vertical measurement) of the gap between floors is 290 cm and that you have opted for an 18 cm riser. To calculate the number of risers, divide the total rise by the riser height. (290/18 = 16.1) Problem: You can’t have a staircase with 16 risers at 18 cm and one riser at 0.1 cm! Based on this calculation, the staircase requires 16 risers. So, using the number of risers, we will do the reverse and figure out the exact riser height: 290/16 = 18.12. Each riser will be 18.12 cm.
Number of stair treads required
Once we know the number of risers, we can figure out the number of stair treads. By subtracting 1 from the number of risers (16), we obtain the number of stair treads, 15. Knowing the number of stair treads, you will need to decide the width of each tread which will allow you to calculate the total run; where will the staircase end up? In our example, 15 stair treads, at say 25 cm wide, would make our total run 375 cm.
Knowing the terminology and the numbers will not make you a professional staircase builder, but can help you make some intelligent decisions. Be sure to use an accredited contractor that has the knowledge and experience to build you a beautiful and safe wood staircase. View the selection of wood stair treads, wood handrails and other wood stair parts at Menuiserox, a stair parts manufacturer with 30 years of know-how!
http://www.renovation-headquarters.com/stair-terms.htm
http://www.extremehowto.com/xh/article.asp?article_id=60182
http://www.askthebuilder.com/B215_Building_Simple_Staircases.shtml