The staircase fence is an integral part of the structure, which must ensure the safety of movement along the flight.
However, how safe are handrails and balusters if there are small children in the house?
Baby safety at home
Protecting children from the stairs is a recurring topic in most of the conversations between parents who are concerned about the safety of their children.
Still, a ladder is a structure on which a person is exposed to a minimum, but risk, and in the case of a baby, this risk increases many times over.
Terminology issue
In order to understand exactly what we are talking about regarding handrails and fences, you should first clarify the terminology:
- Railings - a special fence along the outer contour of the structure. They are designed to fulfill an aesthetic role as well, but the main function is to protect against bending. From the point of view of regulatory enactments, any structure from three or more steps is equipped with a handrail.
Important!
Regulations are strictly enforced in multi-storey construction, however, in the private sector, basic requirements can be ignored, which can lead to disastrous consequences.
- Handrails... This is an element that is attached with your own hands on racks, balusters. This gives the entire structure additional rigidity.
These are standard options, but if we are talking about children, then additional children's barriers for stairs, protective nets and gates can be added to ordinary fences. (see also the article What are and why are stair rails for children needed)
GOST requirements
In addition to flights of stairs, which are installed in private houses and equipped at the discretion of the owner of the house, it is worth noting security measures that must be taken into account in the construction of fences in schools and kindergartens.
And here everything corresponds to the requirements of GOST and SNiP:
- Children's handrails must consist strictly of vertical posts. Horizontal elements can help the baby to pull up on them and be able to climb to the handrail.
- Vertical posts are installed in increments of no more than 100 mm. This will prevent children from getting through the fence.
- The main handrail is located at a height of up to 1.8 meters, for safe movement, an additional handrail is installed at a height of 50 cm.
- There should be no damage or burrs on the structural elements, the material of manufacture is recommended metal, stainless steel.
Barrier
Going directly to the fact that you need a protective barrier for the stairs from children, it can be noted that today there are no problems with this at all. Ready-made products can be purchased in a variety of sizes, or you can make your own.
Actually, what is a staircase barrier? These are gates, or doors, made of wood or light metal, which block the entrance to the structure for the baby. In the construction of such a product, all the rules are used that are described above for the construction of railings in children's institutions.
It means that:
- The racks are located at a distance of no more than 10 cm from each other.
- All struts are ground and free from burrs or damage.
- The doors are firmly fixed on the flight of stairs.
- The attachment, like the child's ladder barrier itself, is capable of withstanding loads so that the child can lean against and lean against the rail.
- The lock snaps securely, the child is not able to open it on his own.
In the development of this kind of protection, all the subtleties and nuances that may be in the design of a product are taken into account.Therefore, today you can buy gates of various heights, which are made taking into account the age of the children.
Important!
A wide range of products allows you to select barriers that will be combined with a flight of stairs from the point of view of the interior.
Technical specifications
According to technical parameters, it is impossible to determine a universal barrier for stairs from children, the main dimensions are set based on the existing staircase. (see also the article What are the staircases and staircases)
We can only clarify some points, such as:
- Gate guards should always simply open.
- The barriers should be able to be disassembled and assembled, transferred to another flight of stairs, for example.
- The coating must be hypoallergenic.
- The product itself is usually made from natural wood.
Important!
Some models have special options for increasing the width of the barrier, which allows them to be used for multiple staircases, as well as as a doorway barrier.
Supplements
In addition to the gates that prevent children from entering the steps, there are additional means for installing protection for children on the stairs in the form of a net.
This type of construction can be in the form of plastic filling, plates, which will be required in the absence of additional restrictions on the march, or in the case of a large distance between the railing posts.
Self-production
In principle, in order for the protection for the stairs from children to be made independently, you will need a simple set of tools and a few parts:
- Wooden racks.
- Wall mountings.
- Fastenings to the stair railings.
- Latch lock.
The height of the fence is determined at the place of work, the instructions here take into account the age and height of the child, but most often, the height of the barrier is obtained at the level of the stair rail.
All parts of the wooden structure are sanded and varnished. Fastenings are made by installing the racks in the grooves of the crate, with additional fastening with self-tapping screws.
Output
The relatively low price of the product, and this is in the order of one and a half to three thousand rubles, allows you to use it not only at the beginning of the stairs, at the bottom, or at its top point, but also to equip a staircase with a gate on both sides.
The main points on the assembly of the structure can be seen on our website, and in the video presented in this article you will find additional information on this topic.
