| Steel Stairs And
Wood Balcony's
It's not uncommon to have an architect or building designer request a
set of steel stairs for a building that's going to be framed out of
wood. However, we can create a big problem, if the area where the
stairway attaches to the building, wasn't built correctly.
If you're a home builder or planning on installing a metal stairway, to
any part of your home, deck or balcony, make sure that you have some
type of heavy-duty framing supports, for the steel stairs to attach to.
These stairways are heavy and if they aren't supported properly, could
actually fall down.
Stairway Maintenance
I've worked on plenty of apartment properties that have steel stairs,
with heavy concrete treads, attached to wood framed buildings and
believe it or not, these parts can actually fall apart. Remember, wood
rot's, concrete breaks and metal rusts. If you're not maintaining the
stairway or the parts of the stairway that are attached to the building
or flooring, you're going to have problems, eventually.
I wouldn't mention this, except for the fact that I'm the person they
call, when they need to have one of these stairways repaired or
replaced. I've seen plenty of damage done to steel stairs and the
balconies that they attach to.
If I was to guess, 90% of this damage could've been avoided, with a
little tender loving care and maintenance. Sometimes all these stairways
needed was a little paint. If you could imagine a contractor telling the
property owner that they could have spent a few dollars for paint,
instead of a few thousand dollars for a new stairway, what their
reaction would normally be, you would probably be correct.
If you're guessing that it's extremely frustrating for someone to shell
out a few thousand dollars, instead of a few dollars, you're right. You
want to know the kicker though, most of these people end up paying to
replace their stairways, again, because they really weren't ever
concerned with the maintenance, in the first place.
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