DIY metal spiral staircase - difficult, but possible

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Set of socks, Omsa socks

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Impregnations for wood

Spiral staircases made of metal have long been used not only to perform their functions, but also to decorate rooms. And for small areas, installing such a structure for the purpose of moving between floors will save space. In addition to its original appearance, the metal frame is durable and reliable.

Features of a spiral staircase

Having decided to install, you need to remember that this type of structure for moving between floors, although distinguished by the elegance of its lines, is not very practical in use. The shape will not allow you to lift bulky, bulky furniture (a sofa or a wide chest of drawers) on it, and due to its small width, two people are unlikely to separate when descending and ascending at the same time.

This staircase has a number of nuances

Depending on what elements the entire structure rests on, they are divided into three types:

• staircase on stringers - the load-bearing element is a beam (or several) on which the steps are attached, while their ends remain open;
• staircase on bowstrings - the edges of the steps are closed by two load-bearing beams located on the sides;
• staircase on rails - there is no supporting beam in this design, and the steps are attached either to the wall or to the central support, and are connected to each other by special elements - rails.

The construction of a spiral staircase for the street is different in that the finished structure does not require additional finishing and decoration. In this case, the main thing is its functionality and safety. The steps can be equipped with an anti-slip coating or made of wood to make climbing them easier in wet or frosty weather.

Be sure to provide the metal lifting structure with guardrails and handrails. And to protect it from precipitation, you can build a canopy, thanks to which the service life of the metal will increase several times.

In this video you will learn how to make a spiral staircase:

Errors in calculation and manufacturing

• The most common mistake is an illiterately planned room into which a curved staircase does not fit in any way.
• If the staircase opening is too small, the product may be dangerous and inconvenient to use. But it is not recommended to make an opening that is too large, as it will disrupt the temperature regime of the house. Warm air will rise to the top unhindered.
• When installing metal stairs into a wall, it is necessary to take into account the strength of the masonry. You can fix the steps in a reinforced concrete or brick wall, but the partition will not withstand the load. When making calculations, do not forget that the spiral staircase to the second floor must withstand not only the weight of people, but also its own weight.
• Too much of an angle on a ladder can cause serious injury. It should be remembered that you can only descend on a product with an inclination of more than 45° backwards. You should also not neglect the rules for the relationship between the height of the riser and the depth of the tread.
• A radial staircase without railings and railings is dangerous, especially if there are children and elderly people in the house.
• Another major mistake is lining metal stairs with slippery materials. In this regard, it is best to use wooden pads or anti-slip coverings for steps.

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Design and calculation of the main dimensions of a spiral staircase

Although the design of a spiral staircase seems more complicated, you can build it yourself without the help of specialists. To do this, first of all, you need to make the correct calculations; without this, it is impossible to build a single reliable structure. It is worth paying close attention to the design of a metal spiral staircase and determining its main parameters in advance:

• height;
• diameter;
• number of steps;
• tread width;
• riser height.

Important! The distance between two turns should be at least 2 m, so that when standing on the lower tier, your head does not touch the steps located directly above you.

Stair height

The height is always limited by the height of the ceilings, that is, the distance from floor to ceiling. This parameter is easy to measure and apply for subsequent calculations.

Stair diameter

The diameter of the staircase is equal to the length of its steps multiplied by two, plus the width of the support column (if the structure is being built on rails). For non-residential premises, such as an attic or attic, you can build this structure with a small diameter, where the length of the steps will be within 50-60 cm. To move between residential floors of a building, you should choose a flight of stairs with a width of 80 cm or more. Such a rise will be more convenient for daily use. use.

Number of steps and height of offense

To correctly calculate the number of steps, you need to select the height of the tread (or riser). In accordance with GOST, for comfortable lifting this value should be in the range from 15 to 19 cm.

To start the calculations, you need to select the riser height that suits you. Then divide the height of the stairs by this number. Since the resulting value will not be an integer, you need to round it and now divide the height by the rounded number of steps. The new number will be equal to the height of the offense.

Since the functions of the upper step are performed by the platform of the upper floor, the number of them that will need to be installed between the floors will be one less than calculated.

Sometimes the height of the offense is equal to a number with hundredths, which are not very convenient to measure. In this case, the value is rounded to tenths, but the height of the lower step is changed. For example, to build a spiral staircase with a height of 260 cm, you need to build 15 steps with a height of 17.33 cm. Rounding this value to 17.3, we get 14 steps with this height (14 x 17.3 = 242.2 cm), and the bottom one with the height 17.8 cm (260 - 242.2 = 17.8).

This is interesting: what is the optimal height of the steps.

Step width

To calculate the width of the gap along the inner and outer edges, you will have to use some mathematical formulas. Since the steps for a spiral staircase will be wedge-shaped and will expand from the center to the edges, it will not be possible to accurately set the width values ​​without calculations.

Don't forget to calculate the width of the steps

The depth of the tread at the inner edge can be chosen arbitrarily, but not less than 10 cm, and the width of the step along the line of movement should not be less than 20 cm. In order to find out the width from the outer part, you need to calculate the circumference along this outer line using the formula: L = 2πR, where: L – circumference, R – radius of the circle along the outer edge, π = 3.14).

If the angle of rotation of the staircase is 360 degrees, and it does not represent a complete circle, then the resulting value of the circumference is multiplied by the ratio of the angle of rotation of the designed structure to 360 degrees (for example, for 270 degrees it will be 270 / 360 = 0.75). Having obtained the circumference along the outer edge of the staircase, divide the resulting number by the number of steps.

The resulting value is the width of the tread along the outer edge, but to make sure whether a given staircase will be convenient for moving along it, you need to calculate their width along the rise line, which is located at 2/3 R.

Important! The width along the line of movement should be between 20-40 cm. If the resulting number is smaller, the number of degrees should be reduced. In this case, other parameters will also have to be recalculated.

Having calculated all the values, you need to make a drawing of the future metal spiral staircase so that you can bring the project to life with your own hands.

Calculation of the landing

In addition to calculating the staircase itself, it is necessary to calculate the dimensions of the upper opening and landing. And if everything is simple with the width of the opening - it should be 10 centimeters larger than the radius of the stairs, then calculating its length is done using a slightly more complex method.

According to GOST, the height from the edge of the opening to the step closest to it must be at least 2.05 meters. We divide this value by the height of our steps and round the resulting result up.

205 / 18.92 = 10.83. After rounding - 11.

We subtract the result obtained from the total number of steps.

13 – 11 = 2

Therefore, the edge of the upper opening should be at the same level as the 2nd step from the bottom.

The spiral staircase with a round opening looks quite interesting. Its dimensions should be 20 centimeters larger than the diameter of the stairs.

The edge of the top opening should be flush with the 2nd step from the bottom.

Materials and tools used

You can build a reliable, beautiful staircase from cast iron or steel. Cast iron construction can decorate any room and give a majestic look. But its creation will require significantly more material and labor resources. Typically, less expensive steel is chosen for spiral staircases, and the components are made of aluminum.

Since you have to work with metal, you need to choose how this material will be processed:

• welding;
• forging;
• casting

The simplest of these is welding. Even if you don’t have the appropriate skills, you can easily find a specialist in this field or figure out for yourself how to weld several metal elements together.

Distinctive features of spiral staircase structures

Like all elements present in the interior of a room, radial staircase systems can also have advantages,

and disadvantages, each of which you need to know about when choosing exactly this option for installation in a particular room.

The main feature of spiral staircases is their unusual shape, design and installation methods.

Externally, this structure looks like a petal with rounded edges,

which, after installation, can occupy an area of ​​only 1 m2 and still provide a comfortable transition between floors,

living quarters and attic. This is where all the advantages of using spiral staircases come from:

• Compactness is a determining factor that influences the choice of stairs for small spaces. They do not clutter up the space, and if the room also has low ceilings, then the screw model will help make it visually slightly higher;
• saving space. Most often, a spiral staircase to the second floor is placed in a vertical position around a special support frame, suspended in the air; it does not have inclined straight steps, therefore it takes up little space and does not limit the space in the room;
• ease of installation. Their compact size does not require the creation of a large ceiling opening, which saves floor space on the second floor, attic or attic. In addition, it is possible to install a spiral staircase with your own hands without the use of complex tools;
• availability. The cost of spiral staircase structures is slightly lower than the price of constructing traditional staircases. This is due to the fact that their creation requires fewer consumables;
• versatility. If the spiral staircase is made of durable materials that are resistant to adverse environmental factors, then it can be used on the outside of the building as an additional one. In addition, such a model can be installed either in the center of the room, or against a wall or in a corner of the room;
• originality. A circular staircase is stylish, modern and exclusive, which allows you to add some “zest” to any interior. Which for many owners of private houses is a predetermining factor.

In addition, you can build a spiral staircase with your own hands and not overpay.

It can be made from any material without resorting to the services of professionals,

and the installation of such structures with appropriate preparation lasts no more than one day.

But for this you need to carefully study the drawings of spiral staircases,

get acquainted with the simple principle of their manufacture and understand the nuances of their design and installation.

Despite such an impressive list of advantages of spiral staircases,

they also have a number of disadvantages that must be taken into account when choosing and purchasing for a specific room. For example:

1. a spiral staircase can be installed to the attic, attic, or basement in private houses, cottages or apartments, that is, in places with low human traffic;
2. not convenient for small children and elderly people;
3. The steps of the spiral staircase are not wide enough for the feet of an adult and during a steep climb can become a source of increased injury risk. Therefore, it is impossible to quickly go up and down such stairs, and you will have to be extremely careful all the time. This disadvantage can be compensated for by installing reliable handrails and wider steps;
4. each spiral staircase has a trapezoidal shape of steps, which are different in size for the right and left legs, which interferes with normal movement and can also cause injury;
5. Regardless of the type of fencing, be it metal or wooden railings, it will not allow large objects to be climbed up the spiral staircase;
6. Frequently going up and down a spiral wooden, metal or concrete staircase several times a day can cause slight malaise, dizziness, and nausea. Therefore, on the second floor, attic or attic, to which such a flight will lead, it is better to equip a bedroom or an infrequently used room.

To reduce the risk of injury when using a spiral staircase,

When manufacturing it, it is necessary to strictly adhere to the developed project, comply with all the requirements of GOST and the rules for its installation.

This is the only way you will get a convenient, practical and safe product.

Preparation of parts

If you decide to build a metal spiral staircase with your own hands, all preliminary calculations have been carried out and a design has been chosen, you should begin preparing the necessary parts. To build a spiral staircase on the central pillar and on the rails you will need:

• two or three pipes of different diameters;
• ready-made metal steps or a corner for cladding.

According to pre-prepared drawings, you need to mark and cut out parts for the outline of the steps from the metal corners, which are then welded together. To ensure that all the contours end up being the same, you can use a special structure made from wooden pieces of chipboard, called a jig.

The sleeves are made from the thickest pipe. To do this, the pipe is cut into cylinders of the same size, equal to the height of the tread. Be sure to cut the pipe fragments at right angles so that the welded steps on the assembled stairs are strictly parallel to the floor. A pipe with a smaller or smallest diameter (if three types of pipes are used) is cut into cylinders of the same height as the liners. The result will be bolts that will act as a supporting and connecting element between two adjacent steps.

Making steps

You take the blanks, give them the desired shape, and process them completely.

1. To connect the steps to the stand, you need to install special bushings on them.
2. Cover the steps with varnish or paint;
3. Mount bushings and treads on the rack, fan them out, give the structure the correct position
4. Install the brackets between the wide tread elements;
5. After installing the last bushing, decorate it with a beautiful decorative head;
6. Install all steps using fasteners;
7. Fasten the balusters, they can be straight or curly;
8. Install handrails pre-made from plastic or wood.
9. The final work is finishing the spiral staircase. It is best to paint a wooden staircase. If you used wood with a pronounced structure, then it is best to coat the structure with varnish, through which the natural beauty of the wood will be clearly visible.

Varnished

Before finishing, thoroughly clean all wooden elements, then cover them with stain and several layers of clear varnish.

For wooden parts that do not have a good structure, simply paint them with oil paint or use nitro enamel. After completing all the above work, you will have an excellent spiral staircase in your home.

Installation of the structure

All parts of the pipe are cut into sleeves, now we weld all the parts of the steps together, placing them in the jig. Then the resulting parts are welded to the sleeves.

A pipe with an average diameter is used as a support post, the length of which must correspond to the height of the stairs. To assemble the entire structure, you need to put sleeves with step frames welded to them onto the support post, align and weld all the elements together.

The sleeves must fit tightly around the support; for this you can use O-rings from the inside, which are welded into the gap between the two pipes.

Metal frame production

A variant of a straight flight of stairs is offered, the price of which is within the budget range.

What can the frame be assembled from?

The most popular products for making frames with your own hands are channels, angles and profile pipes.

Metal frame from a corner for stairs

The staircase can be welded or assembled from elements, for which bolts are used. In the latter case, the structure is more mobile; if necessary, it can be disassembled and moved to another location.

A welded frame for stairs is a monolithic structure that is more reliable. However, to produce such a system, you must have skills in working with a welding machine.

In our case, a profile pipe 80 x 40 mm is used. Metal thickness - 3 mm. The frame is zigzag. The pipe sections are cut at an angle of 45 degrees, and then welded into a stepped stringer.

You can also weld at right angles by placing a horizontal part on top of a vertical one. But in this case, the hollow pipes will remain open, which is not very aesthetically pleasing.

Pipe for making a frame

Calculation of staircase parameters

Calculation of the metal frame of the staircase is the most important stage that determines the convenience, reliability and aesthetics of the structure.

To determine the length of the frame you need to measure:

• the height of the march, for which the distance between the floor of the first and second levels is measured;
• span length.

The height of our stairs is 3 m, length is 4 m.

For comfortable movement on stairs, the tread depth should be in the range of 25...30 cm, and the step height varies from 15 to 20 cm. In our case, these values ​​will be 25 and 20, respectively. Thus, the staircase will consist of 16 steps.

Final finishing

After completing the welding work, all seams are thoroughly cleaned and polished, especially if further finishing with other materials is not provided, but it is planned to paint or prime the metal elements. The frame of the internal staircase can be further covered with panels, wooden steps, original handrails and handrails made of solid wood, aluminum or PVC can be installed.

Part of the structure can be sheathed

Advantages and disadvantages of metal stairs

Before making a staircase to the basement with your own hands from rolled metal, it is worth assessing all the pros and cons of this solution. This approach is also valid for stairs leading to other floors. The advantages of metal structures include:

1. A fairly simple manufacturing and installation process.
2. Possibility to use almost any type of rolled metal.
3. Long service life without loss of initial technical characteristics.
4. Design component. During the manufacturing process, you can make various shaped railings and balusters. The use of forged elements further expands the field for experimentation.
5. Combining metal with other materials. Partially relates to the previous point. A good combination with stone, glass, wood and many other materials has long been noticed by staircase designers and adopted by them.

Beautiful wooden lining of the steps of the spiral staircaseSource kitchenremont.ru
As for the disadvantages, they include the laboriousness of painting. This process requires preparatory work involving thorough cleaning of surfaces. However, we should not forget that a professional designer or builder is able to turn almost any negative into a positive.

How to build a spiral staircase with your own hands

You can build a spiral staircase yourself or purchase a ready-made prefabricated structure. Prefabricated metal stairs with a central pillar are very common. The tread depth in them has already been calculated, and the steps, sleeves, and bolts are made at the factory from high-quality materials. This interior element will become a real decoration of any room. The simplicity of assembling the structure will prevent you from spending too much time on the work, especially if you use ready-made drawings when making it.

Assembling a spiral staircase on a central pillar with your own hands, as described earlier, will also not cause much trouble if you make calculations in advance and take care of the availability of all the necessary materials. Of course, welding will definitely be needed.

Installation of a modular structure on a stringer will also not take much time. To obtain a strong load-bearing element, you need to assemble a single structure from separate sections, which are secured to each other and form one stringer. To strengthen it, a support in the form of a rack is placed under every fourth step. After assembling all the elements, the wooden steps are fixed. They are mounted using self-tapping screws and connected to each other by metal pipes with flanges.

Spiral staircases on two stringers can be made with your own hands by making a frame with steps. To assemble such a structure, it is necessary to prepare a metal profile with a rectangular cross-section, from which to cut out parts equal to the height of the risers and the width of the steps. The resulting parts are connected to each other by welding in such a way as to ultimately obtain a frame in the form of two spiral ladders.

To get a spiral staircase ready for use, you need to install wooden steps on the frame, which are secured with self-tapping screws, and a fence. Metal railings can be welded to a metal frame or fixed along the wall. The height of the fence is usually made at least 90 cm, and the distance between the posts is 60 cm. This space is covered with panels or metal partitions welded together.

If the metal frame will not be hidden by decorative elements, but will become an element of the interior, you should first thoroughly work out all the seams so that they become invisible after priming and painting.

Construction stages

Assembly and installation

Note!
The best option for building a spiral staircase is a design in which the steps are mounted on a pole. A metal pipe with a diameter of 50 mm is suitable for this.

Facing the opening

Mount it vertically using a plumb line. It is attached to a wooden floor using bolts and fasteners. The rack is attached to the concrete base with guy wires concreted into it. Such fastening methods will ensure the reliability of the entire structure. After installing the stand, do the following:

The process of making stairs on stringers

First you need to choose the type of stringer. It can be made from a strip of iron 8 - 10 mm thick with teeth cut out on one side for attaching steps. But more often they are used by channels and I-beams with welded fillies (elements for fastening steps). If the staircase is made with one stringer installed in the middle, it is better to use a profile pipe. Its symmetrical shape looks prettier than a channel.

To work you need to prepare:

• welding machine, electrodes;
• grinder with cutting and grinding wheels;
• drill with drills;
• vice and adjustable clamp up to 80 cm;
• primer, solvent;
• metal brush;
• tape measure, ruler, square.

To weld a ladder with two stringers you will need to:

• cut workpieces;
• make fillies;
• install and secure stringers;
• weld the fillets and connect them with crossbars;
• install steps and railings;
• clean welds and surfaces;
• degrease, prime, paint the finished staircase.

After determining the procedure, they begin making fillies, two for each stage. They are made from a corner or rectangular profile. The blanks are cut at an angle of 45˚ and welded in the shape of the letter G.

The distance between the stringers is chosen slightly less than the width of the march. On a concrete floor, the lower part is installed into it, and the upper part of the stringers is welded to a beam attached with anchors to the interfloor ceiling. If the structure is mounted next to a wall, the stringer running along it is additionally attached to it to increase strength.

After marking, the fillets are welded on the stringer. In this case, the thickness of the finished floor should be taken into account; the first step is installed at a height of 18 cm from it. The relative position of the fillies horizontally is checked by a level. Then they are connected in pairs with corners, profiles or reinforcing bars on which the steps will rest. They are fastened by welding or bolts, if metal ones are chosen, and wooden ones - with self-tapping screws.

The railings are installed so that the width of the flight does not decrease. After painting, decorative overlays can be installed on the steps and handrails.

What materials may be needed?

The strength and durability of the staircase structure is primarily affected by the base material. Thus, more and more often, asbestos-cement or metal pipes are used in the manufacture of spiral staircases. A load-bearing element made of such material allows you to increase the service life of the product and prevent the negative consequences of mechanical impact.

Steps are attached to a metal pipe by welding, which in turn can be made of completely different materials (wood, stone or concrete). Hardwoods are excellent for railings; combined options look especially impressive (when noble wood is set off by decorative glass elements).

When choosing a material for the production of a spiral staircase, do not forget about the interior features of the room. For a country house in a classic style, wooden models are suitable, and for a living room in an Art Nouveau style - metal products, but with stone steps.

How to make a metal staircase: installation

After the calculation of the staircase structure has been completed and the main home-made steel elements have been created, the first stage of installation must begin. First you need to strengthen the metal frame. It includes metal stringers and support posts. It is for these elements that the maximum load is calculated.

To construct steps, fillets made of pipes, angles or channels can be used.

It is also possible to attach directly to the bowstring. Then it is necessary to calculate the intervals for the location of fasteners and develop schematic drawings for stepped stringers.

Carrying out a design project for the stairs to the 2nd floor yourself or welding the frame of external models is not so difficult if you adhere to:

• Individual needs;
• GOST rules;
• SNiP rules.

Approximate data has been developed for almost all product types. A sketch, sample and project can be ordered from a specialized company in Cherepovets or another city; such services are relevant today. The main thing is not to forget about the contract.

As for the steepness of the climb, if children or elderly people live in the house, the recommended slope angle is 30 degrees. Material consumption will increase when designing a flatter staircase.

Welding a simple ladder

To weld a staircase from a profile pipe, an inverter, an angle grinder, and a tape measure are sufficient. In order for one person to carry it, the length should not exceed 5 m. The optimal profile section is 40×15 mm. The length of the crossbars is chosen within the range of 45 - 80 cm, the height between them is 15 - 35 mm. The first step should be located at a height of no more than 40 cm. If the ladder is intended to be used for work in the garden, a crossbar is welded to the bottom. To prevent sliding on a hard surface, a rubber pad is screwed to it with self-tapping screws.

If there is no profile, you can choose round pipes to weld the stairs yourself. It will weigh more, and to securely attach the crossbars to the bowstrings, you will have to make semicircular cutouts at their ends. For racks, pipes with a diameter of 50 - 60 mm are selected, for steps - 25 - 30 cm. To protect against dirt and moisture getting inside, plugs are welded to the ends.