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LONG-TREAD LOW-RISER STEPS

PROPERLY DESIGNED RAMPS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS THE FIRST CHOICE FOR SAFE WHEELCHAIR MOVEMENT. WHEN A RAMP IS IMPRACTICAL, THE LONG TREAD LOW RISER STEPS PROVIDE A SAFER ALTERNATIVE THAN CARRYING AN OCCUPIED WHEELCHAIR ON REGULAR STEPS.

LONG TREAD, LOW-RISER STEPS ARE NOT APPROPRIATE FOR INDEPENDENT USE BY A PERSON USING A WHEELCHAIR AND ARE NO INTENDED TO REPLACE PROPERLY DESIGNED RAMPS. ELECTRIC WHEELCHAIRS AND BATTERY POWERED CARTS SHOULD NOT BE USED WITH THIS TYPE OF STEP.

Long-tread low-riser steps have been found to be helpful for people who may use a walker, crutches or canes for assistance in walking or who have difficulty with existing steps to their home. Several examples of this style of step can be seen in THE RAMP PROJECT TELECONFERENCE, which is the video companion to this manual. The long-tread, low-riser steps are most appropriately used by people who have some walking ability, but find regular steps difficult. For the steps to be safe and easy to use, it is very important to determine the correct height of the riser, (the vertical drop between the level treads) for the person who will be using the stairs. It is advisable to check with medical personnel, such as physical therapists, to determine the best riser height. A small variation can make the steps much more difficult to use. Construct the steps with the riser height that is most functional for the user. A range of 3 1/2 inches to 5 inches can be built with the design in this manual.

Be sure that the tread (the level part of the step that you stand on) is long enough to accommodate any assistive devices being used. This is most important for people using a walker, to insure that the walker can be placed with all 4 legs on each tread. The tread length described in this manual is 34" long. Before building the steps make sure that any device being used will fit on the tread and that the intended user will be able to use this type of step.

MINNESOTA BUILDING CODE REQUIRES THAT EITHER TREAD LENGTH OR RISER HEIGHT VARY NO MORE THAN 3/8 OF AN INCH. TREADS SHOULD BE EQUAL IN LENGTH AND RISERS SHOULD BE AS CLOSE TO EQUAL IN HEIGHT AS POSSIBLE.

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