Tight Staircase problem

[boerboel]

Hello I`m a new investor here, i`ve just bought a personal residence in Toronto, and i`ve decided to live in the basement suite for a couple years. the first problem i`ve encountered is getting furniture and appliances downstairs. the space from wall to wall is over 30" but chokes down to around 27 wide by 27 tall as you try to navigate down the stairs. i could barely get a full size matteress down, and thank god i measured before i bought appliances. even condo sized ones are going to be a problem. Any input appreciated!
Wes.

 

[Sherilynn]

It can`t be a legal suite with an issue like that. You may want to look at widening the stairway if you eventually put tenants into the suite.

In the meantime, how big are the windows? And if they are small, is there a chance you could cut a larger one? (Our up/downs are all raised bungalows so the lower suite windows are quite large. And in my own house, my couch wouldn`t fit through the door at the bottom of the stairs, but it fit just fine through the window.)

Regards,
Sherilynn

 

[bizaro86]

I second the comment of trying the windows, and it may be worth putting larger windows in now if you`re going to need them eventually anyway. Another option is to partially talke things apart before moving them downstairs. IE, most couch legs are removable, fridge doors, etc.

Michael

 

[boerboel]

The windows are pretty big, but they are wide, not tall.

 

[HeatherBrandt]

As noted above, you will want to consider the legal requirements for width, height, and hand railings for stairwells for suites. One of our properties didn`t have sufficient height at the base of the steps, so we had to take a bit of floor space in the corner of the nook in the upstairs suite.

In that suite and another, we had our contractor design and build a strong handrail/wall which was removeable with bolts or other releases. Basically one removes the railing when moving in and out. Both of these adjustments were approved by the fire inspector.You may need a contractor`s eyes to help decide what can be done.