What are the different types of stairs?

Our job is not only to move your items safe and securely, but to use our expertise to educate our customers. Stairs are an important detail to discuss during a move - how many stairs, what types of stairs, with railings or not, what size or dimensions of the stairs, are there any landings or split-levels, etc. The below detail will help provide some useful information for when we speak.

 
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Straight Stairs.

What are straight stairs?

Straight stairs are stairs without any changes in direction. They are certainly one of the most common types of stairs found in both residential and commercial properties. Straight stairs with a central landing are usually longer flights of stairs, that have a landing to break up the flight. Building codes require this for floor heights above 12 feet. Especially in commercial buildings, straight stairs often have platforms halfway up the run of the stairs. Above is an example of a straight stair with central landing (no railings).

 
 
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L-Shaped Stairs.

What are L-shaped stairs?

The L shaped stair is a variation of the straight stair with a bend in some portion of the stair. This bend is usually achieved by adding a landing at the transition point. The bend is often 90 degrees, however, it does not have to be. If the landing is closer to the top or bottom of the stairs it is sometimes referred to as a long L stair or a quarter turn stair. 

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U-Shaped Stairs.

What are U-shaped stairs?

U-shaped stairs are essentially two parallel flights of straight stairs joined by a landing that creates a 180-degree turn in the walk line.

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Winder Stairs

What are winder stairs?

Winder stairs are a variation of an L shaped stair but instead of a flat landing, they have pie-shaped or triangular steps at the corner transition.

 
 
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Spiral Stairs.

What are spiral stairs?

Spiral stairs follow a helical arc. They usually have a very compact design and the treads radiate around a central pole.

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Curved.

Like spiral stairs, curved stairs follow a helical arc. However, they tend to have a much larger radius and typically do not make a full circle. Curved stairs add elegance to any home or business. For this reason, they are almost always located at the entry where they make the best first impression.