Library Spiral Staircases

A spiral staircase is the most compact stair design.  Spiral stairs have a center support post, a landing deck at the top and usually have a diameter of 48" to 96".  The small size of a spiral allows it to fit into corners and service lofts, attics and other secluded areas where traffic will be light. 

Spiral stairs are not generally allowed as primary staircases, so there will need to be code compliant stairs elsewhere in the building.  For example, most current building codes do not allow the individual rise of a stair to exceed 7.75", whereas a spiral stair may have an individual rise of up to 9.5".

The floor space allowed for a spiral stair should always be at least one foot larger than the planned diameter of the stair. If you plan to have a 60" (5 ft.) diameter spiral, you will need to have a 72" x 72" (6 ft. x 6 ft.) floor space.

Due to the compact nature of a spiral staircase, they have become widely used in library environments where space is limited and access to upper book storage is necessary.  Many of the libraries that we have worked on utilize a spiral stair to the upper loft area and rolling library ladders to access the upper shelves on level surfaces.  A high quality, custom made spiral staircase will cost $13,000 – 20,000 depending on the height and amount of guardrail needed at your upper level.  A custom-made rolling library ladder can be budgeted in the range of $3,000 – 6,000.