PE Problem #77

9/20/2019

A stair is 59 inches wide, with a handrail on one side with a centerline of 1.5 inches from the edge of the stair. The other side of the stair is a wall. For the purposes of calculating a specific flow, what is the effective width of the stair?
a. 47 in.
b. 48 in.
c. 53 in.
d. 59 in.

Solution | Posted 09/23/19

8 Comments

9/20/2019 09:32:01 am

B, 48 inches

Kyle Lynch

9/20/2019 11:10:02 am

How did you arrive at 48in? I reviewed the NFPA Handbook, and the description of effective stair width indicates a different value.

MDS

9/20/2019 11:23:00 am

a. 47

SFPE Handbook Table 59.1

Side one has no handrail - 6 in. layer
Side two has a 1.5 in. handrail - 3.5 in. layer plus 1.5 in. = 5 in.

however per note "a" below the table, Since 5 in. is less than the 6 inch layer for the wall alone, 6 inches for the wall should be used since it results in a lesser effective width.

59 - 6 - 6 = 47

9/30/2019 09:54:40 am

"however per note "a" below the table, Since 5 in. is less than the 6 inch layer for the wall alone, 6 inches for the wall should be used since it results in a lesser effective width"

Hi MDS,

Appreciate if you please, Why are comparing 5" with 6" only, i believe 5" should be compared with 3.5", in this case its is higher, so use 5" instead. I don't think there is enough explanation there in FPH or SFPE. Any additional information would really help.

Amr

9/20/2019 02:50:16 pm

a. 47 in

Brenton

9/20/2019 03:06:59 pm

a. 47 in.

9/22/2019 02:56:45 pm

a.47"
SFPE Table 59.1

9/30/2019 09:49:35 am

b. I would still go 48 = (59-6-1.5-3.5). Can someone explain me how it is resulting lesser width, so use 6"...Can someone demonstrate to me please ?

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