Open tread stairs and cable side
Im just wondering if anyone has this with kids? We are building a house and want to do this but Im not sure how safe it is. we have no kids yet but soon.
Im just wondering if anyone has this with kids? We are building a house and want to do this but Im not sure how safe it is. we have no kids yet but soon.
How much would a stairway like that cost to have installed? I’d like to install something like that to open up a room. Obviously I could spend an unlimited amount of money on such a project, but what could I expect reasonable price range to be?
According to a strict reading of the building code open risers are not allowed not are horizontal railings.
People generally do what they want when it comes to single family residential units but responsibility would fall to the owner.
I don’t have a beautiful open staircase like that one, but I have two children, a staircase that is dangerous for different reasons, and a spiral staircase that is open.
Our children have each had an accident on the spiral staircase — only one and not serious. They manuever it most carefully now.
A standard rule in my house is NO PLAYING ON OR NEAR THE STAIRCASE. Visiting children are informed and mostly respect the rule. Disregarding the rule is a Capital Offense, resulting in undesirable adult attention and possible banishment to the bottom floor. No visiting child has ever had an accident on either staircase.
cgfan/minard/nokilissa- I don’t see how this stair per se is more dangerous (or has less of a kid-height handrail) than a regular stair is… you can fall down a boring stair as easily as you can fall down a vaguely design-y stair.
Kids falling down a stair is a problem of kids and stairs, not kids and design-y stairs. A temporary gate is a solution to that.
In consideration of the 4″ sphere (I agree with Denton- I saw it broken in the real world all the time, back when I was working as an architect and grumpily paying attention to such things), you should also make sure those cables don’t have any flex; they might be <4″ apart, but could deflect under pressure to more than 4″. Shouldn’t be a problem with a proper installation, but something to consider.
CGfan, smaller children can hold any of the stainless steel cables instead of the top railing while going up and down. This is no different from a standard stair where small kids may grasp the balustrades rather than the rails as they climb the stair.
The danger to children that could come from this is if they decide to climb the cables. That is a danger, and it’s why the architect 60designers has mentioned that it is apparently not to code. Which makes sense, but like I said mine was signed off on and there are quite a few of these around.
Saturday, the 4″ rule is anywhere a kid could fit his head thru. In this case, the horizontal wires. In the case of a standard staircase, the vertical balustrades. Hubby is wrong, at least in NYC you need railings. What do I win?
As the parent of two rambunctious little boys, including a 2 year old, I am biting my tongue. This is a design choice, and certainly one you can make, but if you are planning children soon, I think you should consider very carefully.
I have had a few heart-stopping moments with my kids as well as some accidents that bled like crazy. It is always awful, and you do the best you can. But why court the potential for a seriously awful fall? A toddler in socks, moving too quickly up these stairs, slipping and falling through, while knocking his head or worse on the way through…
I’ll head you off at the pass. Calm down Lissa. Okay.
Will someone explain the 4 inch rule to me? I’m confused about where the spacing has to be less than 4 inches. And can anyone point me to the rules about railings? I want to win a bet with my husband, who doesn’t believe that a staircase in a residential home has to have a railing at all.
I’d say no.
“Mommmmmmy!!! Ahhhhh…!!!”
***Bid half off peak comps***
Get a grip yourself, cmu. I already told nybk01 that his kids can learn to adapt. The point is, if you are happy to “supervise” your kids’ friends every time they go up and down the stairs more power to you. I guess I’m just a lazy parent who doesn’t want the bother. But I’ve never seen parents following around their 5 year olds on playdates to make sure they don’t run down stairs.