The result should be between 550mm and 700mm. However, building industry recommendations suggest a minimum stair width of 600 mm (23.6 inches), with a recommended width of 850 mm (33.5 inches). In normal circumstances, therefore, the acceptable stair width for apartment blocks would be as follows: Non fire-fighting stair: 900mm (between handrails) Fire-fighting stair: 1100mm (between walls/balustrade) In this example you can see that the minimum width for this stairway is 60 inches. A stair is the clear width between the walls or balustrades. The UK building recommendations (called "Document "K") does not impose a minimum width of stair tread. The landings can have two purposes. Minimum headroom 17 4. The building regulations also state that the tread should be a minimum of 50mm tread width at the narrow end. Minimum Size For A Downstairs Toilet. The shoulder should be no less than 1.8metres. There must be a minimum of 2000 mm headroom at every stage while going up on a staircase. Uncategorized. Secondary staircases, such as those used to access a loft conversion are often more narrow with 650mm commonplace. Minimum 10 inch stair tread depth with nosing or Minimum 11 inches with no nosing. The distance between the first or last step and any door should be at least the width of the staircase. Factor the Best Position in to Your Staircase Design Semi-public and public stairs: refer to Dcument M (mentioned before) to facilitate access for disabled people and to the Technical Guidance Document B – Fire Safety for … The minimum headroom above stairs should be measured vertically from the pitch line. Stairs … The width of one stair, after all, will need to be consistent with the rest of the stairs. This would be a minimum of a 1370mm diameter spiral in any of the cast aluminium ranges. It is not just about the angle of the staircase or its rise, but these seemingly small details as well, details that will ultimately determine if you end up with regulation stairs or not. Stair details refer to the standard requirements for each of the various components of a flight of stairs. Building regulations for loft staircases. A kite winder also has rules that must be adhered to. The minimum headroom above stairs should be measured vertically from the pitch line. Building stairs for a loft conversion are subject to certain building regulations. Alternating tread stair 22 11. (b) minimum unobstructed width. Minimum 36 inch clear width for stairway. Minimum 6′-8″ headroom height clearance for stairway. The minimum requirements 800mm clear width (900mm in Scotland) and a centre going of 190mm. 600: 1448: Private spiral staircase — a main staircase within a home A staircase or stairway is one or more flights of stairs leading from one floor to another, and includes landings, newel posts, handrails, balustrades and additional parts. A stair, or a stairstep, is one step in a flight of stairs. For stairs serving a single user (typically private residential), a minimum of 36” (91 cm) is required. Reduced headroom for loft conversions 17 5. For dwellings 1.16 In exceptional circumstances where severely sloping plots are involved, a stepped change of level within the entrance storey may be unavoidable. How much does timber treatment cost in the UK? Exceptions. Approved Document K includes advice on protection from falling, collision and impact. The new staircase must not be worse than the original (in terms of the regulations). Cupboard onto landing 20 9. Under staircase dimensions mistake I've come across several homes where this staircase design mistake has been made. For existing buildings, alternatives may be proposed if the dimensional constraints do not allow these requirements to be followed. You do not need to place a handrail above the first two steps if you don’t want to. 4. You should also complete this simple calculation: Double the rise, then add the going. The maximum height or length of a staircase is measured by the number of risers. If it was calculated to be less, such as 40 inches for example, a width of 44 inches must be used since that is the minimum as noted above per Section 1011. An escape route is the width at 1,500 mm above floor level when defined by walls or, elsewhere, the minimum width of passage available between any fixed obstructions; A stair is the clear width between the walls or balustrades. Dividing flights 18 6. The width and number of stairs required is dependent on the number of persons using the floor area and travel distances to a place of safety. 4) Headroom; Length of Staircase. This is important for obvious safety reasons. Staircase Width: 36 Inches, Minimum Staircase width refers to the side-to-side distance if you were walking up or down the stairs. Staircase width refers to the side-to-side distance if you were walking up or down the stairs. However, the 2 kite winders would not comply with the regulations but 2 different kite winders might. For dwellings, for external tapered stairs that are part of the buildings, the going should be a minimum of 280 mm. The minimum headroom is 2 metres, however, there are different rules for stairs that lead to a loft conversion. These are quite complex as it depends on where the spiral staircase leads to, whether it’s a single room upstairs or an entire floor with multiple rooms. On staircases with a turn, it’s acceptable to have each flight a different width, like on the example to the right. Fig.7: Width of landing determined based on the stairway they serve. Stairs that have treads narrower than this are considered narrow and it may pose a potential safety risk to install a seated stairlift in such a small space. 600mm clear width; A centre going of 145mm. Maximum 4-1/2 inch handrail projection into stairway width, on either side. Minimum going from the centre of the tread: 190mm. The width and number of stairs required is dependent on the number of persons using the floor area and travel distances to a place of safety. The space between any door opening and the staircase should be at least 400mm. If DIY isn’t your strong point, hit the button below to see how we can help: The Most Powerful Moss Killing Chemical You Can Buy, 6 Major Home Improvements You Can Do WITHOUT Planning Permission. Compare prices for hundreds of jobs and find the average cost. Amazingly, under UK building regulations, there’s no minimum width for domestic staircases. minimum of an 1830mm diameter (2083mm in Scotland) spiral in any of the cast aluminium ranges. Maximum 7-3/4 inch stair riser height. See Our Full Price List The Gardener’s Corner Get a Quote Calculators Budget Planning Spreadsheets Tradesman’s Day Rates & Wages Help Guides See All Of Our Polls Free Photos Visit Our Blog Login, Privacy. In buildings, stairs is a term applied to a complete flight of steps between two floors. By browsing our site, you agree to their use. Because of that, in most building regulations these are called “private stairs”. Staircase Width: 36 Inches, Minimum . In design compliance for buildings, the minimum stair width will be the minimum to satisfy Building Regulations B (or BS9991), M and K, all at the same time. Bear all of these regulations in mind when choosing what kind of staircase to install. This is normally known as a Category A staircase. For fire escape purposes from small blocks of flats BS9991 requires a 750mm wide stair. If the staircase is only a secondary one and serves only one room though, it should be 60mm wide with a rise of 220mm and step length of no more than 145mm. (b) minimum unobstructed width. For public buildings the length of a staircase is limited to 16 risers maximum. Change of direction in flights 19 7. The minimum width of stairs for the different types of buildings is shown in the table above. Narrow stairs make it more difficult to carry items up and down the stairs. For dwellings, for external tapered stairs that are part of the buildings, the going should be a minimum of 280 mm. You can learn more about cookies and how to control or delete them here. Building regulations. Here are some of the basics: • Loft conversion where to put stairs • There must be at least 1.9m of headroom at the centre of the flight • There must be at least 1.8m of headroom at the edges • The maximum pitch of stairs is 42 degrees • There is no minimum width. 1450mm x 1450mm minimum for a 1400mm diameter flight). There must be at least two metres headroom around all parts of the staircase. There is no maximum width of commercial staircase but they must be split into sections no wider than 2000mm, including adding an extra handrail, newel and spindles to divide up the staircase Private stairs: widths no less than 800 mm (please refer to Technical Guidance Document M – Access and Use for facilitating people with disabilities). The UK building recommendations (called "Document "K") does not impose a minimum width of stair tread. spindles and handrail instead of a handrail fixed to the wall. There are different rules for commercial buildings. Gaps between the handrails should not be big enough to allow a 100mm sphere to pass through them. Max Elevation Angle = 42º. You should also consider how furniture will be transported upstairs. Dividing flights 18 6. Building a staircase is often tough on its own, but UK building regulations make this task even harder. Spiral staircase building regulations are slightly different. The minimum, in … For stairs that form part of a means of escape, see Fire below. This distance must be at least 36 inches and does not include handrails. A stair flight is a run of stairs or steps between landings. Open rises, which are steps with a gap between them, should be constructed so that a 100mm sphere can’t fit through them. Widths of stairs. COMMERCIAL STAIR WIDTH. The good news is that the building regulations state that you can replace an existing staircase with an identical one even if it doesn’t meet the current regulations. Stairs that are too narrow are a hazard in many ways. In buildings, stairs is a term applied to a complete flight of steps between two floors. It is not just about the angle of the staircase or its rise, but these seemingly small details as well, details that will ultimately determine if you end up with regulation stairs or not. A stair, or a stairstep, is one step in a flight of stairs. Private stairs: widths no less than 800 mm (please refer to Technical Guidance Document M – Access and Use for facilitating people with disabilities). Landings must … Alternating tread stair 22 11. Stair category: Clear width (mm) Minimum Staircase Diameter (mm) Small private spiral staircase — used by a limited number of people e.g. These are minimums, if you can achieve a 2 metre headroom then you should do so. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. A stair with kite winders normally has a combination of straight treads and winder treads. Here are some of the basics: • Loft conversion where to put stairs • There must be at least 1.9m of headroom at the centre of the flight • There must be at least 1.8m of headroom at the edges • The maximum pitch of stairs is 42 degrees • There is no minimum width. To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. Now let’s take a look at some of the most important details that will help us understand the specific circumstances a little bit better. This article shows how UK Bathroom Guru added a downstairs toilet under the stairs of a semi detached house in Leeds. These could very well become the difference between enjoying regulation stairs and paying a hefty fine. Living up to subjective criteria is not easy always easy to comply but one has no choice, whenever it is necessary. We offer two diameters of spiral stairs, 1400mm and 1600mm. Domestic staircases shouldn’t be more than 36 steps long; another staircase must be installed separated by a landing if you need more length. The only exception is when you build a staircase where a landing separates two sets of flights. Landings should be level; however, a ground floor landing can have a gradient of no more than 1:20. Where an exit is approached from a stepped gangway, place a landing the width of the exit and a minimum of 1100mm deep immediately in front of the exit doors. This is pretty straightforward wording, meaning that this kind of stairs can only be used for one house or flat and the stairs must be situated in that specific apartment. The distance between the spindles cannot be greater than 99mm. a. Staircases with alternating steps and those found in commercial buildings are not covered by this guide. Maximum 12′-3″ vertical height (rise) for a flight of stairs. In order to determine this the code refers us to Section 1005.1, but before we look at this section the code does say that the minimum width shall not be less than 44 inches. We can help! STAIRCASE CATEGORY: C A small semi-public stair intended to be used by a limited number of people, some of whom may be unfamiliar with stair for example a stair in a factory, office, shop or common stair serving more than one dwelling. General guidance on staircase design is contained within … The clear headroom (h) over the entire length and width of a stairway, including landings, should be 2.0m. It will take only 2 minutes to fill in. In that case, these two flights can have different rises compared to each other. For other stairs, a minimum width of 1,200 mm, and 1,000 mm between handrails. An individual rise must be between 150mm and 220mm, An individual going must be between 220mm and 300mm, All risers must be the same on a flight of stairs. If stairs are more than 1000mm wide it must have a handrail on both sides. Buy standard staircases to order online from £159.99 excluding vat, we have straight staircases available ready made and we have a selection of standard sizes winder staircase designs fixed sizes from a UK ISO9001 staircase manufacturer s12n2600 s12n2700 s13n2800 standard sizes … As an example, if you want to build a regulation staircase, all risers will have to come at the same size. However, to ensure that a staircase is visually pleasing and comfortable to use, we recommend that your stair width is greater than 860mm including the strings. Other stairs can be usually be deemed to be for escape purposes only and be of the Utility Stair type. No recommendations are given for minimum widths in England, Wales and the Isle of Man. Minimum 6′-8″ headroom height clearance for stairway. 1.14 For stairs that form part of means of escape, refer also to Approved Document B: Fire safety, Volume 2 – Buildings other than dwellinghouses. The maximum rise of a step should be 220mm. For three simultaneous users, a minimum of 74” (188 … Building stairs for a loft conversion are subject to certain building regulations. Replacing existing staircases with a like-for-like. Spindles on the handrail should not allow a 100mm sphere to pass through, this is to prevent young children from getting their heads caught between the spindle. If the width of the staircase is over 1000mm an additional handrail should be installed, more about handrails further down this page. A 100mm diameter sphere cannot pass through any openings. A secondary spiral stair assessing a loft, basement, or mezzanine will require a 600mm clear tread width. Measuring tapered treads 21 10. Staircases come in all sizes, shapes and materials and can be custom made to suit your property. In general public spaces a minimum of 44” (112 cm) must be met—providing ample space for one person and allowing the tight passage of two people. 1.1. a staircase in a home which doesn’t go to a communal room like a kitchen or an access stair to a small room not used by the public for a commercial property. The height of handrails should be between 900mm and 100mm. Do You Consent to Our Data and Cookie Policy? Staircase Building Regulations. The default safe standard to work to for private and public stairs is 1 metre unobstructed width, measured between handrails (or walls, where there are no handrails.) Going Maximum Outer Going: Category A – Small Private Stair. Min Going (mm) = 250 mm Max Going (mm) = 400 mm. All the buildings handrail height should be between n 900mm and 1000mm. Stairs that are too narrow are a hazard in many ways. The edges of steps, referred to as the lip or nosing, should be at least 16mm. If you want to pass spiral staircase building regulations, for example, you will have more homework to do. Change of direction in flights 19 7. 6.6.7 Headroom and width Staircase openings shall be adequately sized. General guidance on staircase design is contained within the new Approval Document Part K - 2013. Semi-public and public stairs: refer to Dcument M (mentioned before) to facilitate access for disabled people and to the Technical Guidance Document B – Fire Safety for facilitating means of escape. Maximum 4-1/2 inch handrail projection into stairway width, on either side. For a staircase with a kite winder, if the stairs are more than 1000mm wide then please contact us. Minimum headroom 17 4. UK building regulations stairs are no joke. The Scottish building regulations also stipulate a clear width of stair for domestic use which is completely omitted from the part K regulations used in the rest of the UK. It also shows the steps required to … Currently, the maximum number of risers allowed in a straight line is 36, after which there should be a change of direction of at least 30°. In other words, you cannot have some risers at 200mm and others at 205mm. 1. Minimum width of stairs designed for phased evacuation 48 9. There must be a landing at the top and bottom of every staircase. The rise has to fall between 150 and 2… The length of each step is referred to as the “Going”. Luckily for us, these stair regulations for buildings are fairly straightforward for the most part, making the whole process at least a little bit easier. A staircase or stairway is one or more flights of stairs leading from one floor to another, and includes landings, newel posts, handrails, balustrades and additional parts. Speak to a staircase installer or architect for more information about what type of staircase will best suit your property. However, building industry recommendations suggest a minimum stair width of 600 mm (23.6 inches), with a recommended width of 850 mm (33.5 inches). There are different rules for spiral staircases. As the diagram below illustrates, the clear tread width does not refer to the radius – the centre column and handrails must be factored in to establish the actual diameter. The guide above is for standard domestic staircases in a private dwelling. There are rules on widths for disabled access and direct fire escapes but unless your property was built specifically for disabled access there’s no guarantee your staircase will be wide enough for a stairlift.. Properties built later than 2010 generally have a minimum of 800mm clearance … However the recommended minimal with should be between 800mm and 1000 mm, to allow not only to only climb that staircase with comfort but you can actually bring something up on it. Fig 1: Staircase Width. If the stairs are more than 2 m wide, then they should be divided into flights of no less than 1,000 mm. Treads and Risers. This figure includes the manufacturer, supply and install of a typical staircase with one winder (turn). For buildings other than dwellings. When it comes to the width, there is no regulated minimum. No recommendations are given for minimum widths in … Exception 1 in Section 1005.3.1 allows for a reduction in size when a building is … Building regulations. Widths of stairs. In exceptional circumstances, particularly where severely sloped plots are involved, a … The Complete TV Aerial Installation Guide. The Staircases Building Regulations cover the design of a staircase and is covered by BS5395: Part 1, BS5395 Part 3, & BS 5960 Part 5 and others British Standards. - A minimum stair width between enclosing walls, strings or upstands of 1200mm. If staircases are less than one meter wide they should have a handrail on at least one side. If the stair width is more than the minimum specified width, handrails are to installed in the stairs. Width of flights of stairs. Unlike residential stairs per the IRC, where the width is just a given measurement, commercial stair width per the IBC is based on capacity. UK Staircase Landing Regulations. Width. Twice the individual rise plus the going must be between 500mm and 700m (2R +G) and will only create problems in extreme situations. var id_conf = '68f79e6f435275e52eada043a12c0902'; When it comes to the headroom, regulations are once again pretty clear. When it comes to spiral staircase dimensions, what size the diameter should be is an extremely common question in which there is no straight forward answer as it depends on the usage of the staircase. The minimum staircase width is the same as the minimum circulation zone width of 3ft / 0.91m. The maximum pitch is still 42 degree but the minimum going (tread depth) required is 225mm in Scotland opposed to the 220mm minimum elsewhere.