Outdoor stairs can perform a variety of functions in the house. Such structures are usually made of wood, metal, concrete, brick or blocks. Actually, the assembly technology itself depends both on their purpose and on the material used in the installation process.
Main types of outdoor stairs
The most popular type of such structures is, of course, the porch. Such a staircase is available in almost every home. In addition to porches, country buildings can also gather:
- stairs leading to the attic or second floor;
- firefighters.
Street structures of this type are shaped like:
- round;
- rectangular;
- trapezoidal.
Kosoura are often used as a support under the steps when assembling the stairs. Sometimes they are replaced with a bowstring. In the courtyards of cottages and residential buildings, stairs with or without railings can be installed. The location of these structures in relation to the building is also different. Convenient can beoutdoor stairs adjacent to the houses, and installed parallel to the walls or at an angle to them.
By design, mid-flight and spiral staircases are distinguished. The first type is considered much more convenient to use. Porches and stairs leading to the second floor or attic are usually made to be marching. Screw structures are rarely used in yards. They are mainly mounted only where there is not enough space to install a marching variety.
Vertical outdoor stairs can usually be seen only in the courtyards of urban high-rise buildings. But sometimes they are mounted in private homes. Such structures are mainly used only as firefighters.
Fences
The railings of outdoor stairs, like the steps themselves, can be made of different materials: concrete, wood, metal. The main requirements for fencing are strength and aesthetic appearance. To assemble the railing, it is not necessary to use the same material as for the construction of the march. So, concrete stairs can be supplemented with metal railings, steel ones with wooden railings, etc.
There is usually only one requirement for railing handrails - they must be comfortable to use. Therefore, this element is most often made of wood. Timber and board, as you know, have a low degree of thermal conductivity. Thanks to this feature, wooden handrails do not heat up in the heat and cold.
Fences for outdoor stairs: design
It is worth approaching the choice of design for the railingtake a closer look. It is their design that usually determines the appearance of the staircase as a whole. Wooden fences are often carved. Forged metal railings are also very beautiful. Galvanized modern steel fences also look good in combination, for example, with materials such as polycarbonate or safety glass.
Tiles or porcelain stoneware are often used to decorate the side monolithic walls of concrete mid-flight structures. Sometimes outdoor stationary stairs of this variety are also made using natural stone. Usually it is either granite or marble. In very expensive homes, concrete railings can be finished with jasper, serpentine, onyx, etc.
Step design
The choice of design for flights of stairs, as well as for railings, depends mainly on the material used for the manufacture. Wooden steps themselves look quite impressive. Therefore, they are usually simply coated with varnish intended for processing street structures. Metal steps are often sheathed with wood or rubber or plastic linings are used. Concrete structures, like monolithic railings, are faced with ceramic tiles or natural stone.
SNiP size requirements
Of course, outdoor stairs should not only be beautiful and comfortable to use, but also safe. When erecting such structures, the following SNiP standards are mandatory:
- The width of the stairs should not be less than 90 cm. If the marchwill be narrower, people moving towards each other along it simply will not be able to disperse. The optimal width of the stairs in terms of material costs and convenience is 1-1.5 meters.
- The depth of the steps themselves should be such that they fit the foot of a person walking up the stairs. According to the regulations, this figure should not be less than 30 cm. Narrower steps can only have an outdoor fire escape. For the manufacture of such structures, a corner with a shelf of 5-10 cm is usually used.
- In one march, according to the rules, there should not be more than 18 steps. At the same time, their minimum number is not limited.
- The optimal height of the riser on the stairs used to move the residents of the house is 15-20 cm.
- The height of the handrails must be at least 90 cm. At the same time, a distance of more than 15 cm between the balusters must not be left. It is especially important to observe this rule in those houses where children live. Toddlers are very curious and if the distance between the balusters is greater, they can put their head between them and get stuck.
The vertical staircase leading to the attic can be either fixed or attached. The latter option is mainly used to provide access only to unheated attics. Structures intended for lifting to a residential attic or to the second floor must only be stationary.
Features of assembling wooden mid-flight stairs
Street structures of this variety are usually assembled from pine. Suchlumber is durable, resistant to moisture and ultraviolet, and at the same time it is not too expensive. As a support for steps in wooden stairs, stringers are most often used. Sometimes strings are also used.
Marches on stringers look more solid and attractive. However, it is more difficult to assemble such ladders. They are kosour wide boards with landing nests cut into them along the edge under the steps. Bowstrings are simply installed parallel to each other. The support for the steps when using them is made from pieces of timber. This material is simply stuffed onto the bowstrings from the inside with a certain step.
An external staircase to the second floor or to the attic can be assembled from two or three marches. In this case, intermediate platforms are also assembled from the board.
Features of assembling metal stairs
Such designs are usually assembled on bowstrings. Moreover, only one such support (from a channel) is often used, launched in the middle of the march. In this case, pieces of a corner are attached under the steps themselves. Sometimes stringers are also welded under metal steps. Landing nests on such supports are made of bent steel strips.
Steel structures are usually more expensive than wood. Therefore, in most cases, only an external metal fire escape is used in the yard. Sometimes a corner and a channel, since they are more durable than wood, are also used to equip marches leading to the attic or second floor. Porches are still more often poured from concrete or knocked down fromboards.
Connect elements of steel stairs by welding or using bolts. The steps of such structures can be all-metal or lattice.
Building concrete stairs
With the use of cement mortar on the street, only the porches of houses are usually poured. Previously, under such structures, a solid foundation is arranged in the form of a concrete cushion. Next, the formwork is mounted. After pouring the first step, the space between it and the basement of the house is covered with soil or rubble and carefully compacted. Then the second stage is poured. The resulting "trough" is again covered with rubble. In this sequence, work is carried out to the desired height of the porch. At the final stage, the platform in front of the door is concreted.
The steps of the cement porch should be poured with reinforcement. At the same time, the rod mounted in their thickness should protrude along the edges by about 20 cm. This is necessary to connect the march frame with the reinforcement of the monolithic walls of the porch. The latter are also poured into the formwork.
Spiral street stairs
Assembling structures of this type, as well as marching structures, is not particularly difficult with your own hands. The main supporting element in spiral staircases is a strong pole. The steps are fixed on it by means of special fasteners. They are trapezoidal in shape. The spiral staircases look more modern and original than the mid-flight ones. However, they are inferior in terms of safety of movement.
What steps can be
Any timestairs, the most important is, of course, this particular structural element. All steps in the march must have the same size. Concrete stairs are usually made only "deaf". In wooden and metal risers (vertical part) are often missing. Such designs are cheaper. However, stairs without risers look less solid and reliable than "deaf" ones.
Sometimes it happens that when installing a marching structure, there is not enough space for arranging the site. In this case, the staircase is complemented by running steps. One side is narrower, the other is wider. That is, in shape they resemble the steps of screw structures.
Of course, this important element of the stairs, no matter what form it has, must be as strong as possible. In particular, carefully select the material for structures such as wooden outdoor stairs. The thickness of the board of steps should be at least 2.5-3 cm. It is attached to stringers or bowstrings only with bolts. Self-tapping screws cannot be used in this case. Otherwise, the steps will loosen very quickly and it will become unsafe to move up the stairs.
