basement access via floor door
Have a small (12'x16') home office which currently has an unfinished basement area below it. Unfinished meaning full foundation walls but a dirt floor. I'm wanting to access this area via a floor door and a set of loft stairs in a miner the floor door is hidden or as non-obvious as possible. Want this style stair to allow for a smaller floor opening. This opening for the floor door would be along the shorter wall and the current room's door would open to the right and swing over it. Any particular thoughts on the best course to go about making a useable route to this lower area? Thank you Not sure if I'm understanding the stairs. You want a spiral stairs, ladder stairs or other? A picture might help. http://www.doityourself.com/forum/el...-pictures.html You will need to make sure you frame the opening accordingly. As for the hatch itself, I would create a frame out of 2x material for the subfloor and finished floor to be secured to. You will need appropriately sized hinges, of course. I would have the flooring overhang the dorr itself so it can rest on top of the frame of the opening. I would also have the bottom of the door framing rest on additional framing in the opening. This will make for a secure floor. I would also search out gas springs to help you open this heavy door. Thanx! Kinda what I was picturing but that helped put an mage in my head. A representation of what I'm thinking for stairs is this: Not 100% set on that but seems best course to keep the floor opening as small as possible. Steeper than norm but still very do-able and it won't see steady traffic anyways. Still have to discuss the plan with the one that'll build it for me, a hobby carpenter but a darn good one. Keep in mind the length of your door opening will need to be as long as it is from the landing of the last step to the step at about 6' in order to keep from having to wear a helmet everytime you go up the stairs. Im really surprised by the use of MDF as a tread in that picture. I certainly wouldn't do that. Maybe for a riser, but a tread needs to be far tougher. Yeah, the height/clearance is a biggie as I'm not wanting to have a helmet rack necessary. Got to thinking , went out and visualized it a bit more and may be able to locate the opening/access along anther wall allowing a bit more length to the opening, thus allowing a more gradual stair. The flooring above is now my thought - wanting inconspicuous so thinking hardwood and aligning the seams to correspond with the opening . One step at a time and then hopefully it'll start materializing. You might want to Google images of ship's ladders. Here is one idea. You wouldn't need the railing at top but it gives you an idea build one using 2X10s for the sides and steps. I'd use 1x2s screwed to the sides parallel tho the floor to support the steps. Photo source: Kathy Tafel - KTainer - Ladder Actually, droo, I believe those treads are not MDF, but Maple. The ones I priced for a client, once, was solid maple treads. Not cheap. But, you may be right, which makes them too weak for treads. Those treads are definitely the same as the risers and they are both brown in color. Maple is not brown. If they were maple, they would have a color closer to the stringers and railing. What exactly do you intend to use that basement for? What exactly do you intend to use that basement for? Just as a secure and semi-hidden area. Living space? Storage space? Doomsday prepper space? more storage than anything but it will be finished. I guess kinda a home office in a way.
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