Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1897-03-06
STAIR BUILDING.
IN Larger Cities Now Separate Branch
of the builders Art.

IN Larger Cities Now Separate Branch
of the builders Art.
up to 30 Years ago carpenters
binding houses constructed the
stairs as well as every other part of
the woodwork. Stairs took up
considerable amount of room III a
shop, and about that time some car
penters and builders began giving
out the stair work to other carpen-
ters, to whom they furnished the
lumber. Very soon after that stair
builders started in business ON their
own account with their own capital
and material, and ever since then
stair building has been in New York
Il separate business. In some other
large cities stair building is now car
ried on as separate branch of
work. In many ether places the
stairs are still made by the house
; builder. Stair building has litora-
ture of its own-there are books
that treat upon this subject only.
Stains, of course, must be built
with absolute accuracy, and in IL
great city, where buildings are put
up in great variety and for various
purposes, where all the space is
utilized and where, so far as posi-
BILE, space is economical, the stair
building problems presented are
many. In designing Il building the
architect makes plans of the stairs,
drawn to scale; the stair builder
makes from them the working
drawings. Ordinary straight stairs
are, when possible, put together in
the stair builders shop and carried
bodily to the place where they are
to be set up.
Fine stairs and all stairs that are
bent OF curved OF reversed, with
landings--all stairs that are built
otherwise than straight-are set up
in the building in which they are to
be used. The stair builder looks aft
er the support of the stairs as well
as the building of the stairs them
selves.
While stairs are built from plans
and measurements, and, of course,
with the utmost care to insure accu-
racy, yet mistakes are sometimes
made, and Il mistake in stair build
ing is a serious matter. A defect in
stairs cannot be cured The remedy |
for it would need to be distributed |
through the entire structure When
a mistake has been made, there is
nothing to do but to throw the stairs
away and build anew. AS Il matter
of fact, however, mistakes are rare
ly made. Many varying sets Of
stairs are made and never put to-
gether until they are finally placed
in position in the building for which
they were designed, and almost i'll
va,;.h1y lncy are made with such
accuracy that they come out exact
ly right.
The height of the stair risers and
the width of the treads are deter
mined to a greater or less degree by
the situation in which the stairs are
to be placed. Some stairs are easy"
and some are not. 1t Is possible to
make stairs too easy. There are
standard measurements for height
of rises and width of tread, and
these measurements are used where
space permits, as it usually does.
People become thus in dwelling
places and elsewhere accustomed to
stepping certain distances in going
up and down stairs, and it might be
that making steps to be used under
such conditions with lower risers
would really make them more ia
tiguing rather than less so. Stairs
with low risers and broad treads are
made for use under certain other
conditions, as, for instance, when
the stairs are to be used chiefly by
old people, and the stairs with low
risers and broad treads are also
used in front of churches
and other buildings of a public char
acter, which people habitually ap-
proach with comparative delibe1a-
tion.-New York Sun.