Arranging your Staircase Banister
There are several methods banisters may be positioned on stairways. Depending on your preference, banisters can be positioned with an angled top/horizontal base, angled top/angled base, or closed stringing.
Before I expound about the differences in each structure, allow me to define a helpful term. Rake or rake angle is the angle of the handrail above the horizontal plane. This angle is easily discovered by calculating the rise and run of your staircase. If your rise is 7 ½ inches and your run (tread depth) is 10 inches, then your rake angle is 7 ½ over 10.
In an angled top/horizontal base method the bottoms of the banisters are horizontal with the treads. The peak of the balusters follow the rake angle or the angle of the railing. These balusters require the machined portion to alternate in breadth from piece to piece to achieve the angle throughout the tops of the banisters.
Angled top/angled base suggests the tops and the bases of the balusters reflecting the rake angle. Although the overall length of these balusters varies, the “turning length” of the banisters is the same. In other words, the turned part of the baluster remains the same while the overall length changes to sustain the constant angle.
Closed stringer is like the angled top/angled base method with the exeption that the banisters are not secured to the treads. Instead there is a small “knee” wall that rises above the treads so the bases of the banisters are trimmed at an angle allowing the tops and bottoms of the balusters to duplicate the rake angle of the railing. To accomplish the closed stringer, the banisters are machined equal to each other.
Alternating banisters is different from the theme but it may be helpful to those planning stair project. One illustration of an alternating banister system would be where the balusters alternate between a spiral and plain. Alternating banister methods can be build incorporating the angled top/horizontal base, angled top/angled base, and the closed string systems. It should be noted that if you are emloying this technique, the baluster designs should be identical. The only exception should be that one piece has a circular taper while that segment on the other banister incorporates spirals, twists, or fluting.
I should also insert at this point that banisters can be set up two per tread or three per tread. The number of balusters per tread is not always an issue of selection but, in many communities, a matter of meeting requirements. Some building codes specify that a 4 inch ball cannot be inserted between two banisters (This is because a child’s head is larger than 4 inches and would prevent his or her head from being lodged between two stair banisters). It is possible to get by with two balusters per tread but, typically, when using a small banister and a deeper tread, you will be required to use three banisters per tread.
We hope this brief article is helpful to those in the midst of planning your next staircase project.
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Tags: architecture, home improvement, home remodeling, interior design