Handrail Safety

What do the 3 photos above have in common?

Stairs? Handrails? Bad handrails? No Handrails?

A little of each… there’s no handrail on this long run of stairs to a basement.

There are the front steps with the ladder-type of handrail with a 2×4 on top. And then there’s another short run with an old, worn 2×4 up top.

Safety is the main concern with all of them. There’s no doubt that all of these stairs need handrails and they have to be graspable handrails! The 2×4 doesn’t qualify as a “graspable” handrail.

Railing grip size and shape: (must be able to be grasped)
Round rails: between 1.25″ and 2″ in diameter
Metal ogee shaped: <= 2.25″ across widest dimension
Wood oblate shaped: <= 2.25″ across widest dimension
Rectangular shaped: perimeter must be between 4″ and 6.25″ and have a recessed finger area

Please don’t mess around it comes to handrail safety, because someone could get hurt! You should want to provide guests who travel throughout your home a safe means to do so, especially when it comes to elderly or small children. It’s important that they have something to grab onto when going up and down those stairs, whether that’s up to the front door or out the back deck for a barbeque!

Avoid Injuries

Take the proper precautions because if someone gets injured on your pr0perty that could be a liability. We all know how sue-happy society has gotten these days, so take a few extra minutes to survey your property and if a safety device, such as a handrail, is missing or inadequate, either put something in place yourself or hire someone to do it for you! If you’re unsure about something, a google search could help or why not call a professional and ask the question? To reach a professional home inspector, call 757-797-4240 or send me a message: clay@premierinspects.com or on Facebook.