Stair rails in turning

Dedekind

Hi

In our house we have the stairs going upstairs with a balustrade. At some point the stair turns 90 degrees to start a new short section before arriving at first floor. On that section the balustrade is straight that means parallel to the floor, and not following the stairs. So the balustrade is a bit high to grab from the bottom of those 5-6 steps.


It's kind of hard to explain.. the stairs somehow go inside the first floor landing when they finish, instead of finishing when the landing start, if that even makes sense. That's why the balustrade is paralell to the floor, because that section of stairs has the floor to one of the sides.



Previously there were many wall handrails installed as a 102-year old was living here but we are thinking to remove them as we redecorate. Do you see any downturns?

Dedekind

Easier to explain with a picture
https://m.imgur.com/a/d6rXtwA

aliby21

They are there to stop people falling into the stair well. Leave them.

Dedekind

The wall mountes handrails? Not sure I follow. All the builders and people around say that almost no one has those except elderly or people with movrment difficulties?

pramsay13

The balustrade is there to stop people standing on the landing falling down the stairs, it is not there to grab onto while climbing the stairs.
If the last part is tricky you can put a handrail on the right hand side coming up, similar to the one you have on the main part of the stairs.

EssexExile

I don't think other posters have understood your question. Being old (but not 102) I would like something to steady me as I go up, a handrail is nice because you can just slide your hand up it as you go & grab hold if the red wine has taken effect before you get to bed. If you don't want them leave them off, you may get dirty handprints on the wall though.

Dedekind

Yeah I'm not asking about removing the balustrade, it's about the rails on the wall.

We don't like them at all but if they are a necessity then we can live with the sight.

Lorian

I'm not old and I like the handrails - I often use them when going up and down the stairs quickly. I would be looking for a more modern finish than the one I see there though!