A staircase in a country house – convenience or a tribute to fashion?

When thinking about which type of staircase would be preferable in a country house, the homeowner is faced with a choice – which type of staircase is best suited for the house and its inhabitants? There are several components of the correct choice – the purpose of a country house, the age of its tenants, temporary or permanent residence in the house, the layout of rooms, the number of floors, the internal area of ​​the building, the method of heating, etc. In some cases, it will be important what material a country house is built from – for example, a concrete staircase is completely unsuitable for a wooden building.

Manufacturers offer various types of stairs, moreover, they are ready to give in to any whim of the customer. However, there are several firm rules to the design of any ladder, ignoring which can lead to serious injury when going up / down a “non-standard” ladder.

A few must-have rules for staircase construction:

1. interfloor areas in width should be equal (or be greater) to the width of the flight of stairs;
2. ideally, if the staircase is surrounded by a solid wall, and between the attic (attic) floor and the staircase there is a partition with an opening for entering from the stairs;
3. the minimum width of the stairs is considered sufficient if two people freely disperse on it, one of whom goes up, and the second goes down. A span of 80 cm or more is considered acceptable (preferably 10-20 cm wider);
4. the optimal height is from 15 to 18 cm, the width is sufficient for the owner’s foot to fully step into the staircase;
5. the angle of inclination of the stairs is no more than 45 °. If the slope of the ladder has a greater degree, then only one person can descend / climb it at a time. It is difficult to move on stairs with a steep slope, such stairs must be equipped with handrails (standard height of handrails is 80 cm);
6. the staircase structure must be fireproof! By the way, wooden stairs are not necessarily fire hazardous, only treatment with compounds that prevent combustion is needed.

Staircase in a country house – shape, type and material

The choice of the optimal shape of the stairs for a country house is associated with the availability of free space – the smaller it is, the greater the angle of inclination of the stairs, there will be more bends and turns on it. Ladders are of different types – consisting of one or more flights, straight and curved, arched and elliptical. They can be internal and external, their design can be built on bolts, stringers and bowstrings, they can be assembled from ready-made fragments – modules.

The steel bolts that attach the steps of the stairs to the wall are called bolts. The ladders on the bolts take up little space and look spectacular – hanging in the air. In this case, the opposite side of the steps and the railing are attached to a stringer, a bowstring or to bolts – between themselves.

Kosour is called an inclined beam – the base for the steps of the stairs, while the steps lie on this beam.

The installation of steps along the inside of the supporting inclined beam is the so-called ladder on bowstrings, and the beam itself is called a bowstring.

A ladder formed from ready-made universal blocks is called modular. As the manufacturers assure, anyone can assemble it (at least two assemblers are required) without special training and special tools.

There are several basic materials from which stairs are made – brick and concrete, stone and metal, wood, glass and plastic. If two or more types of material are involved in the construction of a staircase, such a staircase is called combined.

Brickgood material for stair treads, strong and abrasion resistant, but – only suitable for outdoor stairs.

Concrete stairs(reinforced concrete) are quite common, they can be both external and internal. Such stairs are a mandatory attribute of multi-storey buildings. Concrete is a resistant material, it tolerates any weather conditions and temperature changes, and can withstand significant loads. However, the installation of a concrete staircase is difficult – due to the weight of the staircase, a crane and a solid foundation are required.

A rockin the staircase structure it forms the “body of the staircase”, on top of the masonry is filled with concrete. A stone staircase has all the advantages of a concrete staircase, is cheap, but takes up a lot of space and has significant weight..

Metal staircasehas a solid construction, it is reliable. Wrought iron railings and railings can transform an iron staircase into a true masterpiece. The metal is stable – no sound, vibration or shape deformation. Loads, dampness and temperature drops for a metal staircase do not present any problems. Stairs made of ferrous metal – a variety of “air” forms and an acceptable cost. Negative aspects of metal stairs – they introduce disharmony into some interiors, metal is prone to rust and needs painting from time to time.

Wood, as a material for stairs in a country house it looks very attractive. Indeed, what could be better and more natural than wood – a natural and environmentally friendly material. A wooden staircase is a decoration, a functional element of the interior that lends itself well to decorative processing. Among the negative factors of a wooden staircase – its cost, fragility (decay), ascent and descent along it is accompanied by an unpleasant creak over time. Wooden steps are not resistant to abrasion, dirt eats into them – they darken. Over time, the structure of the wooden staircase looses, especially the railings. In most cases, problems with a wooden staircase are related to the low quality of wood – not all types of wood are suitable, and the lack of professionalism of the performers also affects.

There are ladders that use material combinations: metal + glass (plastic, wood). In most cases, the combination of materials can significantly improve the performance of the staircase, and negative qualities are mutually excluded. Combinations of materials in combined stairs allow you to get a real masterpiece, decoration of any interior, and the right combination allows you to save space. For example, in a metal-wood combination, gains are achieved in all respects – it takes up less space, high strength (metal) and aesthetic appeal (wood). And the combination of metal + glass will give an ultramodern staircase.

The creation of a combined staircase requires the involvement of specialists in two (or more) different directions – hence the high cost and duration of execution.