Ok,
so you’ve decided to build a set of stairs but you keep tripping over
all these terms that you don’t recognise. So here are some simple
explanations for the most common Staircase terms.
Balustrade
The balustrade is the complete system of railings and pickets that prevents people from falling over the edge.
These are the parts that make up the Balustrade;
Banister
Technically
this is just the rail that you hold with your hand, although sometimes
when people say banister they group the balusters also.
Baluster
These are the vertical pickets that hold the handrail. Sometimes simply called guards or spindles.
Newel
The big post that anchors the handrail. Since it is a
structural element, it extends below the floor and sub-floor to the
bottom of the floor joists and is bolted right to the floor joist.
That
covers the strangest sounding terms you will come across in your
journey on how to build stairs, if you want more info you can look at a
wikipedia article here but be careful not to be overwhelmed by all the info.
If there are any other terms you want explained in simple english, let me know.
Paul
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