Given the rustic feel, I would put a thick rope ( rail) like you might find in a state park.

I like the industrial idea but I am not certain how that would work here. I don't know, I'd be concerned with something or someone falling into the fireplace.. A solid barrier along the risers and rustic rails maybe?

I'm with dytecture all the way. Either cable railing or a glass rail would be sweet in this space.

Wood frame with re-bar rods painted black. We have this on our wrap around porch and it doesn't distract from the scenery or looking toward the house. The rods are vertical.

At least your thread title is appropriate. :) Please update with photos of your progress, and stay awake! :)

I love the idea of glass & metal so that the staircase just sort of disappears. A nice minimal approach to the design of it so that it doesn't feel overwhelming to the rest of the room.

From a practical installation point of view..how wide are the steps? Can the verticals needed (if a glass or cable rail system is installed) be mounted on the treads and still leave 3' of clearance to the wall? It looks too narrow to do that, side mounting into the stone(?) is going to be tough with the code side impact requirements... I love a challenging installation...let's keep the discussion going. How is the webbed screen mounted at the top of the stairs? Can this mounting system be used as you head down and simply use a different infill material?

The top railing is a frame with a leather wrap. The landing is part of a wooden loft at that level. They are only 25 inches across, with a 3 inches extra at the mantle height.

I have a depth perception problem and therefore a fear of heights! No way would I go down those stairs! I'd have to sleep on the couch! I say redo them and make them REAL stairs, with a REAL railing.

Those are some mighty narrow stairs!!!

How did you pass inspection?

I am wondering if you can retrofit a slim metal tread that cantilevers over the existing tread and widens the stair and has an intergrated railing. Just throwing that out there.

Right, just lost my post! The stairs are what is, let's forget about what should be and move on from here. I need to know some nuts and bolts stuff about the construction. Are the treads solid stone blocks or tile over wood? I'm liking lizbeth's idea of extending the tread wider, at least 3" more. Can be done from steel and made a part of the new handrail system. If the stone is solid, epoxy set all thread and a lock washer with an acorn nut can give a nice finish to the cantilevered tread and welded verticals...'cause for strength we're going steel. Any idea where you want to be after that David (I'm David too, BTW)? Glass is probably more expensive and the leather is going to be hard on the diagonal, so i think cable rail will be a good look and least $$. Keep it coming!

There are areas in the US and otherwise that have not adopted building codes, maybe this in in one such place? If I were you I would definitely consult with an architect. Depending on where the stairs lead (livable space vs storage) there are a number of code violations happening here. And even if there is no prevailing code, I would suggest it be applied. Yes, it may be a PITA, but the codes do indeed serve a purpose and keep us safe.

Ironwood is correct that the stone will make installation of any railing difficult; you want someone who can detail this properly, not someone who will show up and make it work. In fact, I'd also ask that the details be reviewed by a structural engineer.

I do like the look of the stairs though. The whole room is cozy and inviting.

Anchoring to stone can be tricky. Most true stone anchors are thin and are designed for light loads, as in an anchor drilled into a stone veneer and tied to a structure. Other anchors are typically designed for concrete and have requirements for edge distance that will not be possible with your treads. With the lever action of a railing, the code applied load can translate to more than a 2000# tensile force on the railing anchorages.

Yes I would imagine a top rail of angle iron or wood set into solid posts at top and bottom would be necessary and then some lighter weight steel or iron spindles coming of the treads so that the bearing of top rail would come from stronger attachments.

glass. clear not frosted

That or get extra insurance!!!!!

I have some ideas for you to work with your stairs. If you have children then these stairs are dangerous. But if not then you can enhance its beauty by using some kind interesting stuff.
Please check it out these images which i hope may work for you.

Actually hme75, the ICC and IRC in some form have been adopted by all 50 states, all territories and all protectorates including Washington DC (when I say some form, I mean that FLA and CA are MORE stringent). Some areas do not enforce code as others do...but the unified code is pretty much the law of the land. I do agree that the rail needs to be calculated and design loads applied by a structural engineer, although getting to total code compliance is probably not going to happen. I think the run is too short as well. Current code requires 11 1/4" minimum tread depth with a 1 1/4" overhang allowed. No overhang, no allowance. Treads need to be 11 1/4"...looks more like 10". Rise is to be no more than 7 3/4" with a 1/8" variance allowed..pretty much a nope there too I think. So back to trying to at least get a handrail on this puppy...still waiting fro input from our thread poster. We don't even know if the house is in the US!

Well, I just checked David H's profile...sez he's in the US!

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Playing around learning Sketchup...but couldn't figure out how to do angles for cables and top rail so posting it anyway just for brainstorming value (and fun).

My idea was to try to make as visually invisible a support as possible that would still be strong. I'm seeing the posts as square brushed stainless with custom welded gusset as shown, or if welding stainless is too problematic make it in regular steel and have it plated. (Gussets painted to match cement??) Top rail would have metal support covered by dadoed wood wrap so it would appear as all-wood rail. Two or three cables below.

I'm loving the ideas! We are in the US, but there is a second set of stairs. a couple of other things that I have thought about; 1) remove the metal and leather railing and extend the new design all the up. 2) start the railing at the mantle height, might still break an arm, but not a neck. 3) I like the idea of making it not standout.

They are solid stone, not cement.
Thanks for the sketchup!

LOL about your 'only' breaking an arm and not a neck.

can they be decorative only and not used? Can you seal off the top and decorate like book shelves? Maybe take out that bottom return of a few stairs also.

Yes! Abandoning these "stairs" is BRILLIANT! They truly are the stairs of death and brainstorming and fun aside, I do not foresee ever getting them totally to code....even backing up to the 1997 code in CA they don't comply. We can continue to experiment...the angled two sided gusset wrapping the tread has potential for cantilever of some additional tread. Not much we can do about the top of the stairs besides removing the steel posts and leather panels to gain more passageway. David, do you have a budget in mind? Organizing design, engineering, fabrication and installation is maybe a bit spendy for this situation.

There must be another stairway right?

I am extremely puzzled by all the suggestions for modernist stairs with glass or cable. The house looks very rustic, warm Southwestern to me which would suggest that wrought iron or rustic wood would be more consistent with the architecture. For me, I'd definitely go with wrought iron because it would be much less visible and distracting than wood.

Ironwood, you are right. I was under the impression that the state of Texas had left it to local jurisdictions to determine whether they wanted to adopt the IBC/IRC, but Texas has indeed adopted the International Codes and leaves it to local jurisdictions to determine whether to enforce it (with seemingly no repercussions if they choose not to enforce said codes). I noticed the short tread as well and agree that there is no way to truly bring this stair up to code without rebuilding. Given that there is a second stair, I agree that abandoning this stair is the way to go. It looks best as is anyways!

I was going to suggest adding a spiral stair case at another spot, but if you already have a working staircase to access the loft, then it may be better to use the stone staircase as decor only and block access. It does add the style of the room, but I bet retrofitting it will be quite expensive and will probably take away from the cool look of the fireplace.

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Progress on the Sketchup learning curve...

View from top of stairs is definitely less alarming with railing!

If it were my house, I'd enjoy using these quirky stairs. I'd keep guests & grandkids off of them, even with the railing — they can use the other stairway. But to block them off, in my opinion, would rob them of their character.

(Yes I realize there's no way they are to code, and are considered dangerous by society's standards...but I'd use them anyway at my own risk.)

It's hard to imagine a railing that wouldn't distract from the fireplace. My vote is to keep the stairs purely decorative. If you do decide to make it a functional stairway, remove the metal and leather railing at the top, add stone facade to the outside of the landing so it looks like an extension of the top stair then add a railing that extends out and down like Fine Art Tileworks suggests. Perhaps with iron and rope to keep with the rustic look?

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I know the best solution for this (stair)case, without any visual distraction, but I'll keep it for myself. Sorry, great details solutions must be kept confidential, because they make the difference on the market and people pay them greatly ;-)

Could you put railing on the wall? Perhaps that would not take away from the look you want.

how about Mountain Laurel Handrails? http://awoodrailing.com

Given the rustic nature of the rest of the interior space how about a steel railing, something custom from a Blacksmith. You can customize the ornamentation to fit your style and interests. Or something rally simple like the Brass and Steel rail that would be mounted on the outside edge of the stair to maximize the width.

[houzz=] With the stone there I would look for something more natural, although some spanish flair may be nice too with the fireplace as it is.

Mario di Soli....why bother saying anything at all if you are not going to offer solutions?

Hi,
how are the stairs of death doing? No victims yet I hope?
Just saw this discussion on Houzz and it made me think of your stairs. Could be a good architectural solution?
https://www.houzz.com/discussions/suggestions-for-colour-to-paint-or-stain-batten-wall-dsvw-vd~436532

O my u weren't kidding...yikes!
Can't believe the builder got inspection w/o railing. I had the wrought iron railing installed Friday that replaced the old white painted ballisters there are many styles to choose from and they came out pretty quickly for the install. Good luck.!

We propose you to choose the ensemble of wood and ironwork as you have yet the elements in wood in your interior. Two opposit materials like wood and iron can create a magnificiant harmony of rustic style. These textures become more and more popular in the current interior design. See more collections here: grande-forge.com

Like in the picture above, I had an idea with fittings (scaffolding or thick heating pipe), drilled into the sides of the blocks (solid stone can be used as anchors), one or two extending towards the roof for solidity, one long connecting one as rail. Because it starts sideways, it can be placed a little outwards, so the width of the stairs is still comfortable.

You have a lot of great advice, I find the stairs unusual and definitely not something I would want -alarm bells would be ringing for me regarding safety issues, for example, like the fire place being under the stairs, and a lot of wood work around. It has started off an interesting discussion though! I honestly would do away with both the fireplace and stairs and try to work out a safer option.

You also have the mantel/fireplace codes to deal with for combustibles. I would go Steel balusters and wood Hand Rail. But yeah stair for sure wont pass as it lays now... Cute/cool looking.

I think that would be some great ideas is to put the stairs there

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Now, if you could just get the same inspector who signed off on this job...

Wow! Very cool!

vry nice wooooooooow