Handrails are the most important safety features. If your home has stairs that don’t have handles yet, it’s time to install them. It’s easier than you think.
I have it worked out on my hands after the narrow steps of our house fell off when I was pregnant. As I lay at the bottom of our steps, I silently cursed the people who had lived it before us for not instituting this important safety measure. A few days later, a friend unexpectedly came to the door with the materials. I watched as he installed our new stair railings and was amazed at how simple the installation was.
Your step will be measured ~
Stand tall with your arms slightly bent at the elbows in a relaxed position as if you were holding an imaginary handrail. Place a mark on the wall where your hand falls to give you an idea of the height you are going to place the handrail at. Go to the bottom of the stairs and to the same, so that you have two marks. Using a shoe or straight edge, draw a line on your wall from one mark to the other, and then extend mark 6 or 8 inches beyond both the top and bottom steps. (Make it a lead and you’ll be able to take the wall easily later).
Estimate Brackets ~
Measure the length of the line on your wall to get an idea of how many inches you need. If you know how far the studs are from the wall in your house, you can use that to help you with the math. (Usually the wall studs are about 18 inches on center, unless you know that your wall studs are different than 18 inches, install a bracket about every 18 inches.) Add one extra for the top, one extra for the bottom. and extra, if the pencil line is more than 8 feet long. (If the plumb line on the wall is more than 16 feet, add an additional one. And so on for every additional 8 feet if your ladder is the longest).
Go Shopping ~
It’s time to block out your local home improvement or hardware. You will need two things, hooks and a hand full of stock. A hand full stock is exactly what it sounds like, it is a log of wood that is made especially for handrails. It looks almost like a 2 2 2 piece of wood that has been rounded and sanded all around. One side is slightly flattened so that it rests easily against the bracket.
Hand rail stock comes in 8 foot sections. Let the person filling your order know how long your ladder is. If it doesn’t come out in exactly 8 foot increments, they will often cut it for you at the store so you can go home with the right pieces already cut and measured. While you’re there, pick up hooks (however many you’ve counted). Make sure you come with your own screws and hooks!
Sometimes the screws are in the package with the individual hooks, but sometimes they are in a container near the hooks, usually on the same shelf. Make sure you have enough screws to fill all the holes in your brackets. You will generally have three holes for the wall, and two mounting holes for the handrail. So you will need at least 5 per bracket and depending on the style of bracket you want, you may need more.
The first two brackets ~
The first two brackets you need to install are going from the very top of the wall to the bottom and the very bottom of your staircase. Move them about two to three inches from the end of the brush line that was made on the wall, screw them into the wall and then place your hand on the rail block so that both hooks touch. I will do this for you to get up the line evenly. Put those hooks in your hands to keep it steady. If you know where your studs are or the ability to find them (with a stud finder or by hitting the wall until you find it), they first try to put two brackets straight on the nail wall. If it takes you 4 or 5 inches instead of 2 or 3 to find the end of the stud, it’s better to hit the nail, even though you’re going a little further.
Install the Remaining Brackets ~
Once your two ends are fixed in place, install the rest of the brackets, filling in any gaps you have so you have something strong to brace the ladder against. It is very important that you install them on the right wall studs. If you install them directly on your board, it won’t be strong enough for a person to grab a falling handle. He can pull it off the wall as he grabs it and put weight on it.
If you are using more than one section of handrail stock, make sure that one of your brackets goes directly under it where the two parts meet and then placing one bracket to the nail next to either side of where the two parts meet. .
Once you have all of your brackets in place your handrail is finished. If you like, you can paint or stain it for decorative effect, but it is not necessary for function. Consider placing your hands on either side of the stairs. You don’t know how your people will fall and sometimes one of your family members may hang on the ladder you hold up.
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