So you want a new staircase but you don't know where to start ?

Are you going to design the stair layout yourself ?

The first thing I do when sorting out a new staircase is to measure the rise, the rise is the measurement from finished floor to finished floor level. ( Floor to Floor) measuring

Once I have established the rise the next step is to establish the number of risers required for this particular staircase, for a domestic staircase you need a rise between 190 and 220mm to stay within building regulations. (Eg :- 2600mm Rise (floor to floor) divided by 13 would equal 200mm, equaling 13Nº risers.)Or just let Stairplan know the floor to floor measurement on your enquiry.

Now you have the number of risers required you also have the number of treads required, you require 1Nº less tread than the number of risers. (Eg :- 13Nº risers 12Nº treads.)(The top tread is only a nosing that attaches to your landing.)

The next thing you have to do is work out the tread size other wise known as the going, the going is the face of one riser to the face of the next riser. The minimum going for a staircase to comply with building regulations is 220mm and the pitch of a domestic staircase must not exceed 42º. Use the Rise and Go page to help you with this.

Does your staircase need to comply with regulations or not?

Width - there is no restriction with how narrow you can go with a staircase but the width of a standard flight of stairs is 860mm and I would not recommend a width of less than 600mm even for access to a single room.

Headroom - You need a minimum of 2000mm of clear headroom above the pitch line of the stairs, so take care when your planning on where to put your staircase especially when your going into your loft and make sure you stair well opening is big enough. Dont always rely on your architects drawings sort your stairs out while it is still possible to alter your stair well as it could get expensive to alter it later.

Corners - When it comes to corners you have a number of options the simplest option is a 90º quarter turn landing for this you only need to allow the width of the staircase, the next option is a 3Nº tread winder for this you need to allow approximately 900 x 900mm in the corner depending on your going and the width of your staircase, the next option is a 4º tread winder for this you need to allow approximately 1000 x 1000mm again depending on your going and the width.

We now have a number of layout drawings online you may find it easier to find the closest one of these to what you require, these drawings have detailed measurments aswell as a 3d view. Staircase Layouts

Now you have got a rough idea of the design of your staircase draw it using our Stair planner and send it to us for a quotation.

Choose a style ?

Standard closed string with risers ( this is the best value for money)

Open Plan ( no risers, good for letting light through, more expensive than standard closed staircases) Open Plan staircases have a restriction on the space you can have open (max 100mm) you can get over this in a number of ways the most common way is to have a riser down stand this can be straight or curved ect, the next option would be to have an upstand on the back of the tread this would provide the same effect, then you have the option of somthing like the Stainless steel bar inserts.

Or something more bespoke like a Cut String or even a Curved Staircase. (cut string very nice usualy with a continuous handrail system. Curved string prices start at around £8000.00 + vat)

Choose your opening step detail maybe a simple bullnose step or a Curtail or a double curtail.
(we reccomend a bullnose step at the bottom of most staircases for two reasons 1. the bullnose step makes the entry newel post more sturdy. 2. it can make your hall look like it has more space because the newel post is set further back by one tread.)

Choose a handrail system post to post or continuous, maybe Stainless steel with glass infills You choose.
( the most cost effective handrail system is the post to post option)

Choose your Spindles and Newels
With so many choices to make take your time now to browse the site and decide on what you want.

Choose a Timber ?

Think about what other timbers are used around the house?.
Think about the look you want to achieve?.
Are you going to carpet the Stairs?.
Are you going to paint part of the Stairs?

Pine.
Parana Pine & Hemlock.
Hardwood.
Beech.
Oak.
Other?

Costs?

Well as a rough guide if you had a Pine staircase costing £700.00 you would be looking at around £900.00 in Parana pine with Hemlock stairparts , £1400.00 in Dark Hardwood, £1900.00 in Beech and £2800.00 in Oak this would vary down to the individual staircase and the amount of landing handrails required.

Please note all staircases that Stairplan Quote in Pine or Softwood are constructed using Engineered Pine, this is so we can guarantee the stability of the timber and provide you with a quality staircase.

Things to Avoid

When selecting the material for your new staircase it is wise to stay away from materials such a s Whitewood on the strings and MDF on the Treads this specification is commonly used on large building
projects but offers a limited life-span and a sub quality finish. - We are replacing staircases of this specification on a daily basis.
Whilst MDF treads on Traditional staircases can offer a short term saving on the price, there are a number of issues to take into account,
EG:-
> When MDF is exopsed to Water (Standard, Moisure Resistant and Exterior Grades) it will take on the moisture and swell, this can result in a staircase needing to be replacedin the event of a small flood.
> If the staircase is installed by someone who isnt familiar with the behaviour of MDF it is quite common for the installer to split the MDF when fixing the tread through the back of the Riser although this is usualy fine in the short term you will find problems in the future with creaking.
> With a MDF tread staircase you will need to have the staircase carpeted - when the carpet fitter nails on the gripper strips onto the treads you will quite often find that the carpet fitter as either split the front nosings or enhanced any issues with any splits at the back of the tread.
In short alot more care needs to be taken during the installation of a MDF tread staircase and the savings on this over a Engineered Pine tread are minimal.

Use our selection of drawings we have online to find the closest design to what you want. click here

Phone Stairplan on 01952 216000 for further details.

News - It is now possible to order Staircases online at Tradestairs.com , Huge savings can be made by ordering online