I showed a Cary home last week with a feature that I don't see often enough. Pointed it out to the clients, and they agreed it was pleasant.
The stairs. The staircase was not endowed with hand-carved balusters or tacked-on mass-millwork MDF trim. It was not a dramatic sweeping complex curve of exotic woods.
It was just "gracious to the gait." Easy to walk on. You got to the second level without feeling like you climbed a ladder. It felt, well, "classy."
See, there is a little science to stairs, and sometimes common stairs forget the pleasing aspect of that science.
As you climb stairs, you are moved up and forward. "Up" is because of the "risers." "Forward" is because of the "treads." Treads and risers are laid out in equal increments for the entire run of the staircase. A change in height or forward motion in one step tricks our minds. We are mentally programmed for all the steps to be equal in run and rise. This comes into play when hardwoods are added to floors where the stairs are not calculated to allow for a change in rise. The first step on either end can be traumatic when we are fooled and stumble. It happens often on porches and decks, when the stringers are good, but the bottom step is onto uneven ground, stone, or concrete.
Stairs in residential applications are classically laid out so that the riser and the tread dimensions total 17" to 18".
A high riser and short tread makes for a steep staircase. A longer tread makes for a more gradual angle to the stairs.
Here are photos of utilitarian basement stairs:
The basement stairs have a 7 1/2" rise, and an 8" tread. So, for every 7 1/2" you go up, you go forward 8". You climb 101" in a 102" walk. That steep staircase is nearly a 45 degree angle, and a little daunting when viewed from above.
And here are photos of a stair step from first to second floor of a common tract house.
The house stairs have a 7 7/8" rise, and a 9 1/8" tread. So, for every 7 7/8" you go up, you go forward 9 1/8". You climb 126" in a 140" walk. That staircase is just a little less daunting when viewed from above.
The home I showed last week is a custom-built colonial from the 1960's. I did not measure the risers and treads, and have no photo, but I would guess that the risers were 7" - 7 1/2" and the treads were 9 1/2"-- 10".
It was a very comfortable staircase, and, yes, gracious to the gait. It costs more to build like this. More materials. And it consumes coveted square footage.
When so many folks are looking to downsize into senior housing, or at least to one-level living, I wonder if more accommodating and less daunting staircases wouldn't help some remain in their beloved homes a little longer.
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