If you're looking for a heavy-duty stairway that could
last for a long time, steel stairs with concrete treads could be your
answer. If they're built correctly and maintained properly, they could
last for decades.
Disadvantages
1. Some of the stairways could cost a lot more money to build, than
building the same stairway, out of wood. Some of these stairways could
cost two to three times more than a stairway built out of wood. However,
if you average the overall maintenance or replacement costs, over
decades, it could be worth it, in the long run.
2. Steel stairs need to be perfect, when built off-site, because it
would be difficult to make any type of adjustments, in the field.
However, if you're building a wood stairway, you can usually make a few
cuts and adjustments, within a matter of minutes. This won't be the
case, most of the time, if the steel stairs need to be modified, on the
job site.
3. Even though concrete treads are tough, they can break and if they
break, in the wrong spot, they will need to be replaced. This usually
creates a problem for building owners, who don't know who to contact to
make these types of repairs or if they can't find the exact stair tread.
Advantages
1. Steel stairs with concrete treads, definitely fall into the
heavy-duty category. These stairs will rarely flex or move, at all, when
someone is walking up or down them or even moving large pieces of
furniture.
2. They're usually easy to maintain, but still need to be maintained.
Once the metal starts to rust, it will need to be treated and then
painted. Whatever you do, don't paint over the rust, without treating
it.
|
