A Guide to Proper Heights and Rises for Your New Stairs

09 October 2019

There are many great ways to improve the look and feel of a building. One of the most effective ways is by designing and installing new stairs. Whether you are looking to add some flair to your home or you are just bored of the same-old, new stairs have plenty to offer. With that being said, you can’t simply install new stairs without knowing what you are doing. Today, we are going to explore how to select the proper rises and heights of your new stairs.

Setting Proper Heights and Rises for Your Stairs

If you are reading this right now, the odds are good that you have a concept in mind for your new stairs. While it would be nice to snap a finger and make these new stairs a reality, there is still some work to do. In order to design stairs that look as good as they function, you are going to want to examine both the heights and rises of your stairs. Let’s first explain the context behind both of those metrics.

1) What are my stair risers?

When we mention the term ‘riser’, what comes to mind? The riser is the vertical piece that you find toward the back of your stairs’ tread. This riser establishes the height difference from one step to the next. Typically, your riser consists of a single piece of material that is matched throughout the entire staircase.

Installation Guide – For Australian homes, you are going to have to limit your riser heights to between 150mm and 180mm. Additionally, your riser height must be uniform across your entire staircase. Finally, to prevent potential trips and falls, your tread should never extend more than 30mm beyond your actual riser.

2) How do I select the proper stair height?

When it comes time to develop the height of your new stairs, you are able to get creative with your choices. Having said that, you need to pay attention to the headroom above all else. You wouldn’t want to hit your head when you go up and down your stairs, after all.

Installation Guide: For selecting your stair heights, maintain a headroom of roughly 2000mm. In doing so, you’ll maintain minimum Australian standards. From there on up, however, the choice is yours.

As you can see, designing new stairs can be a whole lot of fun. With that being said, you need to know what you are doing in order to create something that is both safe and visually appealing. If you’d like to hear more, contact our team at Planet Stairs.

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