Thread: Adding a landing: code requirements?

Hello.

I have a 9 step stairway going into my basement. The left side, going down, is along a wall. The bottom tread nose is almost flush with a lolly column on the right side (where a newell post would be). The lolly column extends 1" past the tread nose. The stairs "dead end" into a wall, 40" away from the bottom tread. The treads are 48" wide, 40" usable, 11" deep.

I want to change the orientation of the last tread. Instead of stepping down onto the basement floor facing a wall, I want to make a landing which would turn you to the right, 90 degrees, around the lolly column, so you're facing the room when you step off the last tread.

Essentially, I want to turn the last tread into a landing, to make an "L".

The dimensions I gave, above, would mean that the landing would be 51" in the direction of travel down the stairs (11" bottom tread extended 40" into the wall). Turning right 90 degrees, the landing would be 39" wide (the distance from the lolly column to the wall.

This size landing seems to be more than adequate based on the building code. Am I wrong?

Here's the "issue": Stepping down from that new landing, which would be 39" wide, the wall is on the left, open space elsewhere. There is a cabinet built into the wall on the left. It is 26" away from the hypothetical tread nose. The cabinet comes out of the wall 18".

So, stepping off the 39" landing onto the floor, the left 18" of the landing has a cabinet 26" away. The right 21" of the landing are clear. Is this allowed?


Thanks,

Ken

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Originally Posted by Ken McManamy

Hello. I have a 9 step stairway going into my basement. The left side, going down, is along a wall. The bottom tread nose is almost flush with a lolly column on the right side (where a newell post would be). The lolly column extends 1" past the tread nose. The stairs "dead end" into a wall, 40" away from the bottom tread. The treads are 48" wide, 40" usable, 11" deep.
I want to change the orientation of the last tread. Instead of stepping down onto the basement floor facing a wall, I want to make a landing which would turn you to the right, 90 degrees, around the lolly column, so you're facing the room when you step off the last tread.
Essentially, I want to turn the last tread into a landing, to make an "L".
The dimensions I gave, above, would mean that the landing would be 51" in the direction of travel down the stairs (11" bottom tread extended 40" into the wall). Turning right 90 degrees, the landing would be 39" wide (the distance from the lolly column to the wall.
This size landing seems to be more than adequate based on the building code. Am I wrong?
Here's the "issue": Stepping down from that new landing, which would be 39" wide, the wall is on the left, open space elsewhere. There is a cabinet built into the wall on the left. It is 26" away from the hypothetical tread nose. The cabinet comes out of the wall 18".
So, stepping off the 39" landing onto the floor, the left 18" of the landing has a cabinet 26" away. The right 21" of the landing are clear. Is this allowed?
Thanks,
Ken

Ken,

Sounds like no. The floor would also be a required landing. If I remember correctly, minimum landing is 36" square or the width of the step, whichever is greater.

Hmmm. Sounds like I either need to leave the stairs as is, or lengthen the landing I'm thinking about so it's almost a "U", by running the bottom tread from the cabinet corner to the lolly column.

Ken