sagging landing - help!

There are a number of businesses in Brooklyn who do nothing but repair stairs in brownstones. Have you consulted with any of them to see what they suggest? You can find their names by searching on the forum.

cate

in Brownstoner Renovation 11 years and 11 months ago

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citizenjane | 11 years and 11 months ago

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Hi folks, We have a seriously sagging top floor landing in a brownstone and our stairway bounces a bit when walked on. It also appears that it was repaired once before (probably poorly, based on all previous repairs in the house). The stairs are just nailed to a ledger on the wall; the stringers seem to be nailed to 3 beams that come out from the side of the wall, and these beams are not connected to any longer beams that go under different rooms, but just to the side of the wall. Question: what is the best way to remedy the situation – repairing the existing staircase or putting in a whole new staircase? We could just reinforce the existing landing – but how??? That is the real question. There seems to be specific solutions that have developed over time for brownstones. Fixing the stairs might allow us to keep all of the original elements of the stairs (except for the risers and treads, of course) and I value them. Meanwhile with the goal of maximum structural integrity, an architect has designed a staircase that would eliminate the landing so the stairs go to a level even with the upstairs floor which would keep the stairs strong over time, but we would have to put a post on the top, and we would lose some of the original elements and putting the railing back afterward would be a challenge. Is there a strong weight of popular opinion/experience regarding the right approach to take in brownstones in particular? Any sage advice would be appreciated. And if there is a major cost difference, that would be helpful to know about too. Many thanks for your wisdom.