Information needed to design your spiral stair.

Some of this information should be confirmed with actual field measurements.

• Where will the stair start and stop? The most accurate way to design a spiral stair for your job begins with your floor plan drawings. Most architects, when specifying a spiral stair, will simply put a circle where the stair will be located. If you fax our office a copy of your upper and lower floor plan, we will fax back a shop drawing of a layout designed for your job. We can also itemize the cost of the stair based on the design you choose and provide an estimate of the delivery charges.

• What is the finished, floor to floor height? This dimension is the height from the finished floor upstairs to the finished floor downstairs.

• What diameter stair do you need? There are several things to consider when deciding what diameter stair you need:

How much space do you have? The amount of space you need will be the same upstairs as down stairs. For example, a 5 ft diameter stair will need 5’2" x 5’2" area, upstairs and downstairs, directly above one another. Within our technical specifications, we list the minimum finished well size required for each stair size. Keep in mind that this is a minimum size, and if you have the space, we recommend that you make the opening two or three inches larger.

Check with your local building inspector to see if he has any requirements. Most National Building Codes require the stair to be 5 ft diameter or larger. We manufacture specific stair packages that address these codes. Within this Web site, we list the normal, National Building Code requirements.

How much traffic will the stair have? The higher the traffic, the larger the stair.

• Will you be cutting a hole in the floor for the stair to travel through, or will the stair be installed off a balcony face? If you are going through the floor, will the hole be square or round and what size will the hole be?

• Safety for children. Whether you chose a large stair or a small stair, the space between the balusters should be considered. This is the area that a child could fall through. Our code stair package automatically includes enough balusters to maintain a four-inch space between the balusters. Our other packages come standard with one baluster per tread, and extra center balusters are sold individually. With one baluster per tread, Salter's stairs have a nice open affect, but the space could be as large as 18" between the balusters. If small children will be using the stair, you may wish to add additional balusters.

• What additional railings will you need around the stair well or at the balcony face? The layout drawings we supply will indicate where the railings should be located. We offer several railing styles designed to match our stairs, and they are made individually to fit your job.

• Is the stair being used for interior or exterior use? If the stair is being used outside, it's important to consider the durability of the stair and what amount of maintenance it will require. The primary concern is the steel rusting. If the stair is painted with several coats of alkyd based paint, this will provide a good durable finish in a mild environment. Steel stairs that are hot dipped, galvanized, or aluminum will be maintenance free even in the harshest environment.
  
  The most cost-effective is the galvanized stair. If the galvanized stair is left in its natural finish, you will not need to do anything to it for an indefinite period of time. If you paint a galvanized or aluminum stair, the only maintenance you need to be concerned with is the overall quality of the paint.