Where to Put the Stairs in a House? Locating and designing stairs in a large or medium-sized house is not the same as doing it in a smaller house or area. When we have generous space to design the interior of the house, locating the stairs is not complicated, since there will always be the necessary space.
Now, in small houses, where every centimeter must be used well , the distribution of each room will mean success or failure, and the location of the stairs plays a really important role in this regard.
When we realize this, doubts arise… Where should the ladder go? How to locate a ladder on a plane?
Where to Locate the Stairs in a House?
The truth is that each house design is unique and each family has its particular tastes and needs, not only to locate the stairs, but also to distribute the rest of the rooms, and this influences the location of the stairs.
Therefore, there are no pre-established stair locations . These can go to different points in the house and their most appropriate location for each project or house plan must be analyzed in detail in each case.
An important step in interior design is knowing how to correctly locate the stairs, depending on the layout of the spaces that the client wants, and the designer must know this well, especially in small houses, where locating the stairs can be one of the main challenges to face.
The staircase in a home is a vertical circulation element that occupies area and space, which aims to connect rooms on different floors or levels and is used to go up and down, and access said rooms with a difference in height.
So where to Put my Stairs?
To correctly design a staircase, it is necessary to have analyzed in detail, the space that we have available, to locate the stairs in a house, whether we are going to build it on site or that it is pre-assembled .
We will have to analyze the functional and circulation relationships of all the linked spaces, both those on the ground floor (from where the stairs start), and the analysis of the spaces on the upper floor(s).
This first analysis is essential and fundamental, to correctly locate the stairs of a house, and then, we could start to design, with the right foot, the shape, the style and the materials, of this architectural and structural element, (with the possibility of be sculptural, if it were design stairs), and that will connect the different floors of the house.
Locate the Stairs to the Center of the House
A good location for the stairs in a house is generally located towards the center of the house , at least at the beginning of the stairs, or at least at the landing of the stairs.
Locating the stairs in a place near the middle of the house, will allow faster access to the stairs and therefore reduce corridors and circulation areas, and routes, both when you want to go to the upper floor, and when you need to. go down to the ground floor.
Let’s see two correct examples of where to locate the stairs in a home.
In this house plan design, the staircase has been placed towards the middle of the duplex home. In this way, it is not necessary to travel a long distance from the rooms on the ground floor or from the upper floor.
In addition, it contributes to a better use of the useful area of the house, by reducing circulation corridors. This is notable above all, on the upper floor, where the landing of the stairs is very close to each entrance door, the bedrooms and the bathroom.
In this second example, the location of the staircase has also been towards the most central place. On the ground floor, it has remained very close to the social and service areas, such as the living room, the dining room and the kitchen.
On the top floor, the landing is right in the middle of the floor, and thus, the routes to the 3 bedrooms are minimal, despite being a 14-meter-long house.
Where to Put the Stairs without Interrupting the Functionality of the House
Another quality that a well-located staircase must have is that it supports the distribution of the different rooms or spaces, that is, the staircase must not interrupt the proper functioning of the spaces around it , and must facilitate a correct distribution of the furniture.
Let’s look at two other examples of stair placement.
The first example shown below is a staircase that is located at the entrance of a 4×9 meter duplex house. The staircase leads to the center of the second level.
Its location is not correct, because when going up and approaching the upper floor, it begins to be an obstacle, for circulation to the dining room on the ground floor, and vice versa. This type of obstacle can be, not only physical, but also psychological.
In the plan above, it can be seen that the staircase has been redesigned, locating it in such a way that there is more free space in relation to the bathroom, and therefore, that circulation feels better psychologically.
For this, the bathroom had to be moved, 500mm to the right, and therefore, the kitchen had to be redesigned, as well as the location of the dining room table and the exit door to a possible patio.
This shows that the location of the staircase influences and is influenced by the spaces around it.
In the plan below, another possible variant of where to locate the staircase of the house is shown, keeping the bathroom and the kitchen as in the first example plan.
Stairs Location
The staircase can be located in several rooms in the house, such as at the entrance, in a hall or hall, attached to a wall, or as a separator of important spaces that could be, separating the living room from the dining room and the kitchen. They could also be located above the bathroom, housing it in its lower part.
20 Ideas of Where to Locate the Stairs of a Home
Next we make an analysis of where to locate the stairs of a house, and images are shown that explain it.
Stairs at the Entrance of the House
Advantages of a Stairs Located at the Entrance of the House
Locating the stairs of a house at the entrance of the house, has the following advantages:
- Entering the house, if you want to go directly to the upper floor, it is not necessary to go halfway up the house, which may be convenient for some families. However, it could be uncomfortable if you are already inside the house, at the bottom of it.
- The other advantage it has is that when going up, a staircase located at the entrance of the house, generally it will end at a point close to the center of the house, on the upper level, which is very convenient, to reduce the areas of corridors and circulation times.
- A third advantage of locating the stairs at the entrance of the house is that well-designed stairs can be very important elements in decorating the interior of the house . Undoubtedly, it can be the focal point of the space where it is located, be it the living room or an entrance hall.
- Also, it can be said that the staircase located at the entrance of the house, allows us to look, while we go up, towards the exterior or the front of the house, this being very pleasant for many people. An example, you can see it in the image above.
- Finally, it should be said that it can be a very well-lit staircase naturally, since a lot of light would enter through the windows on the main façade and this aspect helps to save energy and is also functional and pleasant. Below you can see an example.
Ideas of Stairs Located at the Entrance of the House
Ideas of Stairs Located in the Hall
Ideas of Stairs Located in the Living Room
Where to Locate Straight Stairs
Another option that is widely used is to locate the staircase attached to the wall, mainly straight stairs with a single section. This straight stair location has the feature of saving space and area.
On the one hand, by being attached to the wall, they leave all the rest of the space where they are located free, which also tends to be perceived as larger. Even the space under the stairs can be used to place furniture, planters or a half bathroom.
Straight Ladder Attached to the Wall
On the other hand, since they are single-section stairs, they do not require a rest, saving usable area and meters of construction.
INTERIOR STAIRS DESIGN for Small Homes
