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ELDERLY & VETERANS HOME SAFETY

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HOME INSPECTION SAFETY HAZARDS

LIGHTING, EXTERIOR GUIDE
LIGHTING, INTERIOR GUIDE

MOBILE HOME INSPECTIONS

NOISE / SOUND DIAGNOSIS & CURE
NOISE CONTROL for FLOORS

ROT RESISTANT LUMBER

SAFETY HAZARDS & INSPECTIONS
SAFETY: Elderly & Veterans Home Safety
SAFETY for ELECTRICAL INSPECTORS
SOUND CONTROL in buildings
Splits in Structural Wood Beams
STAIRS, RAILINGS, LANDINGS, RAMPS

WOOD FLOOR DAMAGE

More Information

Inspection Checklist for Stair, Railing, Landing Construction Errors & Safety Hazards       Stair, railing, guardrail, landing, tread, and step inspection checklist to check against stair, step, landing & railing specifications & codes Stair & railing inspection form Stair & railing safety hazards list in checklist form Questions & Answers about how to inspect steps, stairs, railings, banisters, landings, and balconies for safety and proper construction References

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Here we provide an actual data collection checklist for stair and railing inspection. While no checklist is ever technically exhaustive, the list serves as an aid in learning how to inspect stairs, steps, landings, railings, balconies for safety and proper construction. Additional links to stair construction & defect articles at Related Topics are important in learning to inspect inspect indoor or outdoor stairs, railings, landings, treads, and related conditions for safety and proper construction.

Green links show where you are. © Copyright 2013 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Author Daniel Friedman.

Stair Inspection Checklist & Form

Our page top photo shows unsafe exterior stairs at a New York City home entrance. Below we provide a stair inspection checklist that outlines information to collect during a field investigation of the condition of an interior or exterior stairway for safety defects. Having investigated cases of severe injury related to falls and railing collapses we developed this field data collection checklist. We also include references to key documents on building codes and stair and railing safety.

For a complete list of articles on stairs, railings, and ramps, their inspection, trip hazards, and good design, see STAIRS, RAILINGS, LANDINGS, RAMPS - INSPECTIONS, CODES. Also see Building Safety Hazards Guide. Here we include references to key documents on building codes and stair and railing safety.

Stair Inspection Notes and Observations
Client:	.
RE Case:	.
Location:	.
Inspection Date & Conditions:	.
Inspector:	.
Item	Measurement	Comments
Total Stairway Rise	.	.
Total Stairway Run	.	.
Landing top dimensions	.	.
ht. vs. int. floor	.	.
Entry door swing in/out	.	.
Landing intermediate dims.	.	.
Landing bottom dimensions	.	.
Tread width = stair width	.	.
Tread depth (horizontal)	.	.
Individual Tread Conditions
1 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
2 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
3 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
4 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
5 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
6 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
7 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
8 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
9 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
10 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
11 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
12 Tread, riser ht./condition	.	.
Tread nose (indic. variation)	.	.
Tread level F-R (indic var)	.	.
Tread level L-R (indic var)	.	.
.	.	.
Railing Conditions
Railing height @	.	.
Railing height @	.	.
Railing height @	.	.
Railing security	.	.
Railing cross section/Shape	.
Baluster Conditions
Baluster spacing	.	.
2nd Railing height @	.	.
2nd Railing height @	.	.
2nd Railing height @	.	.
Lighting Conditions
Lighting/Switch at/watts/condition	.	.
Other Observations:
.
.
.
© Copyright 2010 Daniel Friedman

Notes to Table of Stair & Railing Defects/Checklist

1st Tread = bottom Structural conditions to observe include connections, proper number and type of fastener, spans, condition of materials. Subtle details such as a wooden exterior stair tread installed upside down as we explain at Wood Floor Damage, (bark side up - it should be placed "down") can lead to cupping which can cause algae or ice and a subsequent slip and trip hazard. Circular stairs pose special problems concerning tread shape, potential walking area, railing design. Handrails pose special considerations beyond height and security, such as graspability, shape, condition. Report other construction details, structural connections, modifications, loose connections, support, posts, weather exposure/covering, weathering, rot, tread damage, tread nose wear/damage, moss, algae, cupping, splitting, tread connection and support (below), rail obstructions, rail grip, stairway obstructions, permits & "CO" obtained/missing)

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Questions & answers or comments about how to inspect steps, stairs, railings, banisters, landings, and balconies for safety and proper construction.

Technical Reviewers & References

Related Topics, found near the top of this page suggest articles closely related to this one.

• Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd., 120 Carlton Street Suite 407, Toronto ON M5A 4K2. (416) 964-9415 1-800-268-7070 info@carsondunlop.com. The firm provides professional home inspection services & home inspection education & publications. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors. Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, for permission for InspectAPedia to use text excerpts from The Home Reference Book & illustrations from The Illustrated Home. Carson Dunlop Associates' provides:
  • Commercial Building Inspection Courses - protocol ASTM Standard E 2018-08 for Property Condition Assessments
  • Home Inspection Education Courses including home study & live classes at eleven colleges & universities.
  • Home Inspection Education Home Study Courses - ASHI@Home Training 10-course program.
    Special Offer: Carson Dunlop Associates offers InspectAPedia readers in the U.S.A. a 5% discount on these courses: Enter INSPECTAHITP in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.
  • The Home Reference Book, a reference & inspection report product for building owners & inspectors.
    Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.
  • The Home Reference eBook, an electronic version for PCs, the iPad, iPhone, & Android smart phones.
    Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference eBook purchased as a single order. Enter inspectaehrb in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
  • The Illustrated Home illustrates construction details and building components, a reference for owners & inspectors.
    Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Illustrated Home purchased as a single order Enter INSPECTAILL in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
  • The Horizon Software System manages business operations,scheduling, & inspection report writing using Carson Dunlop's knowledge base & color images. The Horizon system runs on always-available cloud-based software for office computers, laptops, tablets, iPad, Android, & other smartphones.
• Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss. John Wiley & Sons, 2006. ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, Hardcover: 320 pages, available from Amazon.com and also Wiley.com. See our book review of this publication.
• Eric Galow, Galow Homes, Lagrangeville, NY. Mr. Galow can be reached by email: ericgalow@gmail.com or by telephone: 914-474-6613. Mr. Galow specializes in residential construction including both new homes and repairs, renovations, and additions.
• [3] "The Elimination of Unsafe Guardrails, a Progress Report," Elliott O. Stephenson, Building Standards, March-April 1993
• [4] "Are Functional Handrails Within Our Grasp" Jake Pauls, Building Standards, January-February 1991
• [5] Access Ramp building codes:
  • UBC 1003.3.4.3
  • BOCA 1016.3
  • ADA 4.8.2
  • IBC 1010.2
• [6] Access Ramp Standards:
  • ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), Public Law 101-336. 7/26/90 is very often cited by other sources for good design of stairs and ramps etc. even where disabled individuals are not the design target.
  • ANSI A117.4 Accessible and Usable buildings and Facilities (earlier version was incorporated into the ADA)
  • ASTM F 1637, Standard Practice for Safe Walking Surfaces, (Similar to the above standard
• [7] The Circular Staircase, Mary Roberts Rinehart
• [8] Construction Drawings and Details, Rosemary Kilmer
• [9] Falls and Related Injuries: Slips, Trips, Missteps, and Their Consequences, Lawyers & Judges Publishing, (June 2002), ISBN-10: 0913875430 ISBN-13: 978-0913875438
  "Falls in the home and public places are the second leading cause of unintentional injury deaths in the United States, but are overlooked in most literature. This book is unique in that it is entirely devoted to falls. Of use to primary care physicians, nurses, insurance adjusters, architects, writers of building codes, attorneys, or anyone who cares for the elderly, this book will tell you how, why, and when people will likely fall, what most likely will be injured, and how such injuries come about. "
• [10] Mobile Home Inspections common defects unique to factory built housing, inspection methods
• [11] The National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST (nee National Bureau of Standards NBS) is a US government agency - see www.nist.gov
  • "A Parametric Study of Wall Moisture Contents Using a Revised Variable Indoor Relative Humidity Version of the "Moist" Transient Heat and Moisture Transfer Model [copy on file as/interiors/MOIST_Model_NIST_b95074.pdf ] - ", George Tsongas, Doug Burch, Carolyn Roos, Malcom Cunningham; this paper describes software and the prediction of wall moisture contents. - PDF Document from NIS
• [12] Slips, Trips, Missteps and Their Consequences, Second Edition, Gary M. Bakken, H. Harvey Cohen,A. S. Hyde, Jon R. Abele, ISBN-13: 978-1-933264-01-1 or ISBN 10: 1-933264-01-2, available from the publisher, Lawyers ^ Judges Publishing Company,Inc., www.lawyersandjudges.com sales@lawyersandjudges.com and also from the InspectAPedia Bookstore (Amazon.com)
• [13] Slips, Trips, Missteps and Their Consequences, Gary M. Bakken, H. Harvey Cohen, Jon R. Abele, Alvin S. Hyde, Cindy A. LaRue, Lawyers and Judges Publishing; ISBN-10: 1933264012 ISBN-13: 978-1933264011
• [14] The Stairway Manufacturers' Association, (877) 500-5759, provides a pictorial guide to the stair and railing portion of the International Residential Code. [copy on file as http://www.stairways.org/pdf/2006%20Stair%20IRC%20SCREEN.pdf ] -
• [15] How to Clean Moldy Wood Framing & Sheathing How to clean/seal mold from/on exposed lumber or plywood subfloor or roof sheathing indoors - some suggestions based on our field and laboratory research
• [16] Mold-Resistant Building Practices, advice from an expert on how to prevent mold after a building flood and how to prevent mold growth in buildings by selection of building materials and by anti-mold construction details.
• [17] Steps and Stairways, Cleo Baldon & Ib Melchior, Rizzoli, 1989.
• [18] The Staircase, Ann Rinaldi
• [19] Common Sense Stairbuilding and Handrailing, Fred T. Hodgson
• [20] The Art of Staircases, Pilar Chueca
• [21] Building Stairs, by pros for pros, Andy Engel
• [22] A Simplified Guide to Custom Stairbuilding, George R. Christina
• [23] Basic Stairbuilding, Scott Schuttner
• [24] The Staircase (two volumes), John Templar, Cambridge: the MIT Press, 1992
• [25] The Staircase: History and Theories, John Templar, MIT Press 1995
• [26] Steps and Stairways, Cleo Baldon & Ib Melchior, Rizzoli, 1989.
• [27] "The Dimensions of Stairs", J. M. Fitch et al., Scientific American, October 1974.
• [28] Stair & Walkway Standards for Slipperiness or Coefficient of Friction (COF) or Static Coefficient of Friction (SCOF)
  • ANSI A1264.2
  • ANSI B101
  • ASTM D-21, and ASTM D2047 
  • UL-410 (similar to ASTM D-21)
  • NSFI 101-B  (National Floor Safety Institute)
  • NSFI Walkway Auditing Guideline (WAG) Ref. 101-A& 101-B (may appear as ANSI B101.0) sets rules for measuring walkway slip resist
  • OSHA - (Dept of Labor CFR 1910.22 does not specify COF and pertains to workplaces) but recognizes the need for a "qualified person" to evaluate walkway slipperiness
  • ADA (relies on the ANSI and ASTM standards) 
• [29] A. Sacher, International Symposium on Slip Resistance: The Interface of Man, Footwear, and Walking Surfaces, Journal of Testing and Evaluation (JTE), ISSN: 1945-7553, January 1997  [more focused on slipperiness of polished surfaces
• [30] Algae is widely recognized as a slippery surface - a Google web search for "how slippery is algae on steps" produced more than 15,000 results on 8/29/12)
• [31] Slipperiness of algae on walking surfaces, warning, Royal Horticultural Society, retrieved 8/29/2012, original source: http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?pid=418
• [32] Slipperiness of algae: "Watch your step, wet rocks and algae are slippery" Oregon State University warning  1977  retrieved 8/29/2012, original source: http://www.worldcat.org/title/watch-your-step-wet-rocks-and-algae-are-slippery/oclc/663683915 
• [33] Coefficient of friction of algae on surfaces [like stair treads]: Delphine Gourdon, Qi Lin, Emin Oroudjev, Helen Hansma, Yuval Golan, Shoshana Arad, and Jacob Israelachvili, "Adhesion and Stable Low Friction Provided by a Subnanometer-Thick Monolayer of a Natural Polysaccharide", Langmuir, 2008 pp 1534-1540, American Chemical Society, retrieved 8/29/2012,
  Abstract: Using a surface forces apparatus, we have investigated the adhesive and lubrication forces of mica surfaces separated by a molecularly thin, subnanometer film of a high-molecular-weight (2.3 MDa) anionic polysaccharide from the algae Porphyridium sp. adsorbed from aqueous solution. The adhesion and friction forces of the confined biopolymer were monitored as a function of time, shearing distance, and driving velocity under a large range of compressive loads (pressures). Although the thickness of the dilute polysaccharide was <1 nm, the friction was low (coefficient of friction = 0.015), and no wear was ever observed even at a pressure of 110 atm over 3 decades of velocity, so long as the shearing distances were less than twice the contact diameter. Atomic force microscopy in solution shows that the biopolymer is able to adsorb to the mica surface but remains mobile and easily dragged upon shearing. The adhesion (adsorption) of this polysaccharide even to negatively charged surfaces, its stable low friction, its robustness (high-load carrying capacity and good wear protection), and the weak (logarithmic) dependence of the friction force on the sliding velocity make this class of polyelectrolytes excellent candidates for use in water-based lubricant fluids and as potential additives to synovial fluid in joints and other biolubricating fluids. The physical reasons for the remarkable tribological properties of the ultrathin polysaccharide monolayer are discussed and appear to be quite different from those of other polyelectrolytes and proteins that act as thick “polymer brush” layers.
• [34] Jinjin Li, Yuhong Liu, Jianbin Luo, Pengxiao Liu, and Chenhui Zhang, "Excellent Lubricating Behavior of Brasenia schreberi Mucilage" Langmuir 2012 28 (20), 7797-7802
• [35] Jason R. Stokes, Lubica Macakova, Agnieszka Chojnicka-Paszun, Cornelis G. de Kruif, and Harmen H. J. de Jongh, "Lubrication, Adsorption, and Rheology of Aqueous Polysaccharide Solutions, Langmuir 2011 27 (7), 3474-3484
• [36] "Coefficients of Friction for Ice", The Physics Factbook™, Glenn Elert, Ed., retrieved 8/29/12, original source: http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2004/GennaAbleman.shtml
• [37] "Coefficients of Friction for Ice", The University of the State of New York Reference Tables for Physical Setting/Physics. New York: The State Education Department, 2002. Op. Cit.
• [38] Serway Physics for Scientists and Engineers 4th edition (p. 126.)
• [39] "How Slippery Is It", retrieved 8/29/12, original source http://www.icebike.org/Articles/howslippery.htm
• [40] John E. Hunter, "Friction Values", The Source, Society of Accident Reconstructionists, Winter 1998. Study of frictional values of car tires involved in collisions on snow or ice covered roadways.
• [41] Frictional Coefficients of some Common Materials and Materials Combinations, The Engineering Toolbox, retrieved 8/29/2012, original source: http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/friction-coefficients-d_778.html [copy on file as Friction and Coefficients of Friction.pdf ]
• [42] Stairways and Ladders, A Guide to OSHA Rules, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 3124-12R 2003 - Web Search 05/28/2010 original source: http://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3124.pdf. OSHA regulations govern standards in the construction industry and in the workforce Quoting from OSHA whose focus is on workplace safety and so excludes discussion of falls and stair-falls in private homes:

  OSHA estimates that there are 24,882 injuries and as many as 36 fatalities per year due to falls from stairways and ladders used in construction. Nearly half of these injuries are serious enough to require time off the job--11,570 lost workday injuries and 13,312 non-lost workday injuries occur annually due to falls from stairways and ladders used in construction. These data demonstrate that work on and around ladders and stairways is hazardous. More importantly, they show that compliance with OSHA's requirements for the safe use of ladders and stairways could have prevented many of these injuries. -osha.gov/doc/outreachtraining/htmlfiles/stairlad.html

• [43] International Building Code, Stairway Provisions, Section 1009: Stairways and Handrails, retrieved 8/29/12, original source: http://www.amezz.com/ibc-stairs-code.htm [copy on file as IBC Stairs Code.pdf]
• [44] Model Building Code, Chapter 10, Means of Egress, retrieved 8/29/12, original source: http://www2.iccsafe.org/states/newjersey/NJ_Building/PDFs/NJ_Bldg_Chapter10.pdf, [copy on file as NJ_Bldg_Chapter10.pdf] adopted, for example by New Jersey. International Code Council, 500 New Jersey Avenue, NW, 6th Floor, Washington, DC 20001, Tel: 800-786-4452

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

• Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.

The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 25th Ed., 2012, is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume. Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Or choose the The Home Reference eBook for PCs, Macs, Kindle, iPad, iPhone, or Android Smart Phones. Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference eBook purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAEHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.

• Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss. John Wiley & Sons, 2006. ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, Hardcover: 320 pages, available from Amazon.com and also Wiley.com. See our book review of this publication.
• Decks and Porches, the JLC Guide to, Best Practices for Outdoor Spaces, Steve Bliss (Editor), The Journal of Light Construction, Williston VT, 2010 ISBN 10: 1-928580-42-4, ISBN 13: 978-1-928580-42-3, available from Amazon.com
• ...