Try metal stairs in your custom home

Want something different for your stairs in your new custom home? Try having the stairs built out of metal instead of wood.

In a recent project we installed a set of metal stairs in a new custom home that we built. The stairs went from the 2nd floor of the house to the 3rd floor of the house.

The stairs were built with a winding treads on the bottom and open risers, the upper portion of the stairs went straight up to the door leading to the next floor.

The treads were solid oak, we used a router to create lines in the treads for traction. The stringers where made from a single piece of metal I joist. All manufactures marks were left on the steel and the metal was bolted together with 1/2 inch bolts that were zinc coated at regular intervals.

The railings were made out of metal and directly welded to the stringers. Between the metal supports that held the railing up there where large panels of glass installed to comply with safety regulations and to allow the maximum amount of light into the stair openings.

The whole metal frame of the stairs was painted a dull dark grey colour which was in stark contrast to the white walls and ceilings throughout the home.

The overall look was very modern and helped give a small room that housed the stairs a feeling of openness that you usually don’t get from a stairwell.

The railings underneath the stairs that protected the opening of the stairwell leading to the 1st floor got the same treatment being made out of metal painted a dull dark grey colour. Large pieces of glass where also used to help bring the railing to code and to allow the maximum amount of light into the stairwell.

The glass in the railings didn’t just help the railings with the building code, light and safety, it also helped the metal steps look cleaner. If you had to use all metal for the pickets then it would have looked like a jail cell. Using glass always helps open up a room and gives it a feeling of being larger than it really is.

To complete the dramatic look a light pink stain was applied to the oak treads. The overall look was quite striking when it was completed.

The metal work was done by a local welder who built them and installed them with the help of the carpenters of Village Builders Inc.

All the oak treads were glued up, planed, cut to size and routered to fit by the carpenters at Village Builders Inc.

So when you are wondering how to liven up your design in your new custom home, try having metal stairs installed, the effect can be very satisfying.

www.villagebuilders.ca/miami-beach-style/

Rob Abbott
Operations Manager