How to calculate the stairs to the second floor: basic calculation parameters. Features of complex structures

Competent and accurate calculation of the ladder is a guarantee of convenient and safe operation. For those who have decided to manufacture and assemble the structure themselves, it is necessary to know how to calculate the stairs to the second floor correctly. Depending on the choice of the ladder type, the calculation can be more or less complicated. It is possible to obtain a functional design only if all technical standards are met and all the main parameters of the stairs are taken into account: length, width, angle of inclination, depth and height of the steps.

Accurate and competent calculation guarantees the ease of use and reliability of the staircase structure

• 1 How to calculate the stairs to the second floor: basic calculation parameters
  • 1.1 Types of stair structures
  • 1.2 The main elements of stair structures
  • 1.3 Parameters of calculation of ladder systems
• 2 Calculation of stairs to the second floor with a 90 and 180 degree turn
• 3 Features of calculating the stairs to the second floor with your own hands: screw construction
• 4 Calculation of the stairs “goose step”
• 5 Design parameters of handrails and railings for stairs
• 6 Calculation of stairs with an online calculator

How to calculate the stairs to the second floor: basic calculation parameters

So that after installing the stairs to the second floor you do not have to find out that it is too steep or narrow, it is very difficult to climb up or it is inconvenient to descend, you need to ask in advance how the stairs to the second floor are calculated. To do this, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the types of stair structures and the requirements imposed on them.

Types of stair structures

One or another type of staircase to the second floor is chosen based on the design features of the building, the purpose of the staircase, the general style of the interior and the availability of free space for its installation.

The design of the stairs is chosen based on its purpose and the availability of free space in the room

The main types of stair structures:

• straight marching stairs with one flight;
• single-marching with a 90-degree turn with radius (rotary) steps;
• single-marching with 180-degree rotation with radius (rotary) steps;
• straight two-marches connected by a platform;
• L-shaped double-marched, connected by a platform;
• U-shaped double-marched, connected by a platform;
• three-marches connected by two platforms;
• screw (spiral).

Stairs installed inside a house or apartment can be simple — they include straight structures, and stairs with platforms. Stairs in the house, which contain several flights, are right (turn clockwise) and left (turn counterclockwise). More complex structures are rotary and spiral staircases.

The main requirements for the operation of stairs are:

• convenience and safety when moving up the stairs;
• the staircase should be located as close as possible to the entrance to the house building;
• the ladder should be deployed by steps to the entrance to the room in which it is installed. If there is no such possibility for the entire structure, then it is necessary to deploy at least a few first steps to the entrance;

The correct selection of the parameters of the steps will ensure the safety and convenience of movement on the stairs

• the staircase should occupy as little room space as possible, but taking into account the safety of the structure;
• the place where the stairs are installed is provided with additional lighting.

Useful advice! If the planned staircase is located in the guest room, the passage from the entrance to the stairs must be shifted to the wall of the room, it should not cross the room diagonally.

The main elements of stair structures

In order to calculate a staircase structure, it is necessary to orient yourself in the constituent parts of which it consists.

Marching L-shaped staircase with running steps

The main parts of stair structures include the following elements:

• a flight of stairs is a structural element connecting two platforms and consisting of steps;
• kosour is a load—bearing beam with triangular cutouts, on which steps are attached from above. The ends of the steps with this attachment are viewed from the side;
• a bowstring is a load—bearing beam into which steps are inserted into special sockets or grooves from the inside;
• tread — the horizontal surface of the step;
• riser — the outer vertical side of the step, the width of which is equal to the height of the steps;

Useful advice! In order for the staircase structure to let in more light and have a fairly light appearance, it is recommended not to use risers in it.

Marching U-shaped ladder on bowstrings

• run—up steps are steps, one edge of which is smaller than the other. They are used for turning stairs;
• a platform is a horizontal surface connecting flights of stairs;
• balusters are vertical pillars supporting the railing and acting as a fence for a flight of stairs;
• support bollards — balusters installed at the beginning and at the end of a flight of stairs, are a fixture for railings and handrails;
• handrails — a fence located on top of the balusters, which is held when descending or ascending the stairs.

Elements of the staircase structure: 1 — march; 2 — platform; 3 — railing; 4 — load—bearing beam (scythe or bowstring); 5 — line of ascent; 6 — starting step; 7 — exit step; 8 — tread; 9 — risers; 10 – support bollards; 11 — balusters

Having familiarized with the basic elements of staircase structures, you can safely proceed to the calculation of the stairs, without fear of getting confused in the concepts and names of its components.

Calculation parameters of ladder systems

For those who have decided to calculate the stairs to the second floor on their own, it is necessary to make a project. According to the project, you can calculate the dimensions of the structure: the length and width of the stairs, the number of steps, the angle of inclination. It is necessary to calculate the ladder consistently so as not to make a mistake in the required values, since even minor miscalculations can lead to undesirable consequences during the operation of the ladder system.

The calculation of the staircase structure includes several points:

• the angle of inclination (steepness) of the stairs. The angle of inclination of the stairs, at which movement along it will be quite comfortable, ranges from 40 to 45 degrees. But it will take a lot of space to accommodate such a structure, which is not always possible. Therefore, such constructions are rarely used. In view of this, stair structures with a steeper slope of 36 degrees are arranged. Moving up such a ladder will be quite convenient, which cannot be said about descending (perhaps only backwards). It should also be taken into account that the distance from the surface of the foot to the overlap or to the protruding elements was more than 2 m. This rule is taken into account when calculating rotary stairs with platforms and radius (running) steps;

Diagram of the convenience of the slope of the stairs and the size of the steps

• dimensions and number of steps. The number of steps in one march should be from 3 to 18 pieces. For the convenience of moving up the stairs, it is recommended to have an odd number of steps in one march. When calculating the steps of the stairs, they are guided by a formula that shows that the two heights of the step in total with the width of the tread (the surface of the step) should be equal to the average value of a person’s step, i.e. about 60 cm. With simple calculations, it can be found out that the recommended width of the step is 27-28 cm, and the height of the step, called the riser, will ideally be 17-18 cm. In the calculations of the wooden staircase, the width of the overhang (spout) is also taken into account. About 4 cm is released on it . I would like to note one more important point: the steps along the entire length of the stairs should have the same height and width so that movement along it is convenient and safe;

The main parameters required for the calculation of the stairs

• the width of the flight of stairs (march). The width of the stairs to the second floor depends on the intensity of its use. The standards provide for the width of the staircase at least 100 cm, maximum 140 cm. With such a width, it is possible to move one or two people up the stairs, as well as lifting oversized pieces of furniture. However, for wide stairs, it is required that the room does not differ in the lack of space. More often in practice there are stairs with a span width of 70-90 cm . With such a width, it is quite possible for one person to move freely and climb the stairs of small objects and things. The width of the marches of two-marching and more structures must necessarily be the same along the entire length.

Useful advice! If the staircase has two or more flight spans located in the opposite direction, there must be a gap of at least 50 mm between them.

Recommended width of a flight of stairs for ease of movement

Calculation of stairs to the second floor with a 90 and 180 degree turn

Considering that straight single-marched structures require a sufficient amount of space for installation, in cottages and dachas, rotary structures with platforms or radius steps are used. When calculating the stairs with a platform to the second floor with a 180 or 90 degree turn, the device of a rectangular or square bar is taken into account, from which a turn is performed by the appropriate number of degrees.

Useful advice! When calculating stairs with platforms, it is necessary to be guided by the fact that the length of the platform between the marches should be more than 140 cm (two steps), and the width should correspond to the width of the flight of stairs.

When calculating the stairs to the second floor with a 90 turn with runaway steps, the fact that there are three or more runaway steps per turn is taken into account.

180 degree rotatable staircase with run—up steps – top view

Basic requirements for turntable structures:

• the width of the turning step from the wide edge should be at least 40 cm, and in the middle — at least 20 cm;
• the turning radius of the ladder is 30 cm;
• all the steps of the march, including the turning ones, should repeat the march line in a measured manner. This will ensure comfortable movement on the stairs.

In the calculations of stairs with 180 and 90 degree pivoting steps, it should be taken into account that the width of the tread (step) in the narrowest part should be at least 14 cm. Then, the width of the run-up step in the middle line area will be optimal for human movement, since it is along this line that the movement along the turning part of the ladder will be carried out.

Features of calculating the stairs to the second floor with your own hands: screw construction

The design of a spiral staircase consists of steps arranged in a circle, one side of which is wider than the other. The main advantage of screw systems is a much smaller area occupied by a staircase, in comparison with marching analogues.

 Stairs to the second floor on a metal frame: beauty, elegance, ease of installation. Types and types of metal frames. The railing is made of metal. Independent production of stairs.

To install a spiral structure, the area of the circle is quite sufficient, in the center of which there is a supporting bearing rack.

Compared to marching structures, the spiral staircase takes up less space

When calculating a spiral staircase, it should be taken into account that the radius of the circle along which it is located will be the length of the step. If the length of the spiral staircase step is 100 cm, then such a structure will occupy 1.5 times less area than a straight marching structure with the same length of steps.

In screw structures that consist entirely of rotary steps, the width of the step in the narrow and wide parts is 10 and 25 cm, respectively. The height of the steps is calculated identically to the main staircase systems.

When calculating the spiral staircase, the following points must be taken into account:

• determine the installation location of the central support post;
• the width of the span and the length of the step are calculated as the distance from the central support to its boundary line;
• the shape of the step is a trapezoid, the width of the narrow edge of which should not be less than 20 cm, and the width — less than 40 cm;
• for convenient movement, the height of the spiral staircase steps is made lower than recommended for straight flights of stairs;
• important for comfortable movement is the distance between the turns of the stairs: it should be at least double the diameter.

Calculation of the stairs “goose step”

Very compact stairs “goose step” — so called due to the shape of the steps, symmetrically installed relative to the line of travel and associated with the goose step. They are mainly installed when it is necessary to significantly save space and have an angle of inclination of 45-65 degrees. For comfortable movement, such stairs have a wide tread surface only at half the length of the step. The rest of the stage is reduced to a minimum.

When calculating the “goose step” stairs, when the angle of inclination of the structure and the area of the space occupied by it are determined, the following parameters are taken into account:

• the width of the tread in the place where the foot rests should be approximately 30 cm. Sometimes a smaller width is also used in order to make the stairs compact;

Compact staircase with steps “goose step”

• the width of the narrow part of the stage can be determined based on the design solution and the material used for its manufacture;
• the gap between the steps in such a staircase is not closed;
• the recommended height of the steps is 15 cm, although it is often increased to save space occupied by the stairs. However, it is not necessary to make the height of the steps too high — this will negatively affect the safety of movement on the stairs.

It should be noted that the stairs “goose step” can be marching with the use of bowstrings or bowstrings, as well as screw.

Design parameters of handrails, handrails and railings for stairs

Having decided on the main parameters of the stairs to the second floor, they begin to calculate the railings and fences of the staircase structure. At this stage of the calculation, it should be determined:

• the height of the fence (balusters);
• length and width of handrails and railings;
• the height of the support bollards (extreme balusters).

The recommended width of railings and handrails is 10 cm. Thanks to this size, any person will be comfortable to rely on them. The optimal height of the ladder handrails is 90 cm. In this case, the balusters will have a height of about 80 cm. But here it is necessary to take into account the fact that the balusters are inserted into a special groove, so its depth is taken into account when determining the height of the racks.

When calculating the height of the support pedestal, the method of its installation is taken into account. If the support baluster is fixed on the step, then its height will coincide with the height of all balusters. If it is mounted in the floor, the distance from the floor to the step should be taken into account.

The length of the handrails and handrails corresponds to the length of the entire flight of stairs. In some models of stairs, there are handrails that slightly protrude beyond the march. We offer you to get acquainted with various photos of railings for stairs.

Reliable railings are the key to safe movement along the staircase

Calculation of stairs with an online calculator

Another way to calculate stair structures on the second floor is to calculate stairs with an online calculator. The requested data of the parameters of the staircase structure are entered in the specially designated fields. Resorting to the help of a calculator, you can make accurate and correct calculations of stairs of any design: marching, rotary, screw, combined.

How to calculate the stairs to the second floor with a calculator? To do this, you need to set the main parameters online in it:

• type of ladder structure;
• height and length of the opening;
• number and depth of steps;
• the place where the stairs are installed is near the wall or in the middle of the room. If the construction is planned along the wall, then the handrails and railings of the stairs can be arranged only on one side;

Types of staircases depending on the method of embedding frieze steps into them

• the number of marches in the planned structure is determined depending on the area of the room;
• the ceiling height and the area occupied by the future staircase — these data are necessary to calculate an acceptable angle of inclination of the structure.

If all the initial data is entered correctly in the appropriate fields of the calculator, you can be sure of the accuracy of the calculation and the output of the drawing in color or black and white.

Useful advice! In order to get a correct calculation using a calculator, it is required to make all measurements of the main input parameters with one tape measure.

The space under the stairs can be arranged usefully

It is worth noting that the basis of the online calculator program is based on the technical standards and requirements imposed by GOST for staircase structures.

Having made a competent calculation of the stairs to the second floor, you can independently manufacture and install the structure, being sure that it will meet all the required operational standards.