Stair handrail question

[e hilton]

We are in the planning stage of a minor reno of a bank brach, and i have a question about the stair handrail. Old building, back to the 1960’s i think. Two floors, they installed a lift a year ago. As shown in the pictures, there's a continuous handrail down one side of the stairs, and a discontinuous rail on the other side. We’re planning to make both continuous.

That’s a large mirror on the wall, makes the narrow branch look much wider. And the hemisphere at the bottom of the picture is the mirror dome for a 360 camera we use for surveys. Very slick.

Here’s the question. The side wall of the stairs steps back at the floor line (that’s the demising wall to the next tenant) so if we continue the rail in a straight line the gap widens. I don’t have a measurement. Would that be acceptable, or should we fill in the space?

 

[Sifu]

I only know of a min. clearance, not a maximum.

 

[e hilton]

Right … except i found this older thread that seems relevant … (screen shot) …

 

[ICE]

Either way will probably work well enough. A straight line is what I would expect to find. The offset appears to be substantial and if there were an accident an offset hand rail might be blamed.

While I was working for ** ****** my office chair started breaking down. I requested a replacement. I was told to make an appointment for an Ergonomics Diagnostician to visit and determine what type of chair was best suited to my needs. Perhaps someone that anal can have an answer. Oh and I didn't get a new chair.

 

[e hilton]

Ice ... the handrail extension at the top would be a straight line from the existing rail. Like you played Hulk and stretched it to the top. Was not proposing an offset in the rail where the wall steps back. So that’s what’s driving the question: the resultant increase in offset from the wall. Will that cause a problem?

 

[Sifu]

It would not for me. I don't see a hazard and I don't see a detriment to the intended use of the handrail.

 

[Beniah Naylor]

I think that is the best way to go, I would happily approve that all day long.

 

[ICE]

I agree with Sifu and BN.

 

[tbz]

Ice ... the handrail extension at the top would be a straight line from the existing rail. Like you played Hulk and stretched it to the top. Was not proposing an offset in the rail where the wall steps back. So that’s what’s driving the question: the resultant increase in offset from the wall. Will that cause a problem?

The typical is to run straight and install on posts down to the treads and at the upper landing floor level, extend the minimum extension and then turn down and terminate into the floor.

The stringer then forms the visual line. And since you are not mounting to the wall at that point, because it is set back, it becomes a free-standing handrail, no different than an intermediate handrail down the center of a wide stair flight.

 

[e hilton]

Thank you all. Confirms my opinion. Now i just need to manage the architect.

 

[Paul Sweet]

There might be a structural challenge if you're depending on wall brackets for support.

 

[SCBO1]

While I was working for LA County my office chair started breaking down. I requested a replacement. I was told to make an appointment for an Ergonomics Diagnostician to visit and determine what type of chair was best suited to my needs. Perhaps someone that anal can have an answer. Oh and I didn't get a new chair.

ICE is this the chair you tried to order and was denied?

 

[ICE]

Is it too soon to drift the thread?


I was assigned to a contract city. I scored a beautiful leather office chair at a yard sale. It was plush, looked new and ridiculously expensive. The City Manager was miffed that my chair was nicer than his.

The County’s Ergonomics Diagnostician made several trips to the district office for other employees and they all got the same chair.

 

[e hilton]

There might be a structural challenge if you're depending on wall brackets for support.

I believe the gray wall below the paneling is concrete, i was going to drop legs to that.

 

[tbz]

Depending on the flight's tread and riser construction, I always found it was more stable to set two to the tread with compliant Hilti epoxy and threaded rod and some sort of bolt of fastener to the riser above and move the post back on the tread. Sometimes you can tap the stringer if the web is a minimum of 0.3125 thick and install a couple of spacers also.