Stairway Safety

Walkways, stairs, and the hall and landing areas surrounding stairs are prime areas for accidents and especially falls. If you're having safety concerns in this area, there are a number of things you can do:

Keep Clutter Free

Keep stairs and landings free of clutter so that you won't fall when you are trying to leave your house or apartment in case of fire or other emergency.

Carpeting

Worn runners on the stairs can cause accidents to occur, and should be either repaired or replaced.

Hand Rails

Railings should exist on every staircase in your home. They need to be secured to the studs in the wall so that you can lean on them if necessary and gain full support. If your railings are not secured to the wall studs, this should be done by a professional carpenter and is not something you should do yourself.

Stairway Lighting and Contrast

Type and amoung of lighting

If your stairway is not well-lit, consider adding a light fixture or increasing the bulb wattage. The newer type of domestic fluorescent lights, which produce a much "warmer" light than those you see in offices, could also be helpful in this situation. These are known as compact fluorescent bulbs and cover a wider area than regular incandescent bulbs; produce less heat, and use less energy. Warm fluorescents are not "hotter" but use more of the pink/red end of the light spectrum of color, whereas "cool" fluorescents produce light use the "cold' blue/violet end of the spectrum.

Make sure the lighting is consistent and bright enough (without any glare or shadows) from the top to the bottom of the staircase, and in the areas approaching the staircase.

If you have an outlet near or at the top or bottom of the staircase, plug in a directional night light aimed toward the stairs, for a useful visual 'clue' and extra visibility.

Rope lighting, similar to that used for Christmas lights, has successfully been used under stair railings to illuminate the rail and also the edge of the staircase.

Use Contrasting Colors

If there is a landing in the middle of your staircase you might consider:

• Covering the landing in a contrasting color, or with a different color or texture of carpet.
• Painting the handrail a contrasting color to the stair wall.
• Covering the landing floor at the top and the bottom of the stairs in a material that contrasts with the main treads of the stairs.
• Using a contrasting color or different textured material on the first and last steps.