Step opening open staircase / child protection > 12 cm?

Hello everyone,

first of all - I haven’t found a clearly fitting subforum, please excuse me and feel free to move this if necessary.

We moved into our house a few weeks ago, built by the general contractor. There are still a few issues open, including regarding the staircase - I would like to ask for your advice on this.

We have an open staircase, according to the execution plan a two-stringer staircase according to DIN 18065. Because the final steps were not yet available, the construction steps were removed and other transitional steps were installed. In this process, the distance between the steps, or the opening between the steps, seemed quite large to me (we have an 11-month-old daughter), this will usually be about 15.5 cm with the final steps (in some cases there are support strips, then the distance is smaller). From a first look into DIN 18065, I understood that the distance is only allowed to be 12 cm.

Our site manager from the general contractor initially confirmed this and wanted to present various solution options, but it has already been three weeks and we haven’t heard anything further.

However, the staircase builder contacted us directly and said that the 12 cm does not apply because it is only a “recommendation” (not mandatory) and he has always built it this way, only long ago it was apparently once the case in Baden-Württemberg - we built in Saxony.

After a closer reading of DIN 18065, I am confused by the categorization of “buildings in general” and “residential buildings with up to two apartments and within apartments,” so where our single-family house fits in. I think it depends on this whether the 12 cm must be observed.

Can you please help us?

[*]Is our staircase to be constructed according to DIN regulations or similar so that the opening between the steps may only be 12 cm?
[*]How would you behave with children in this case or how do you see the 12 cm/ Maybe I am just being too cautious right now? The staircase builder told us the staircase should in any case be protected from children and later any safety measures would anyway have to be removed again.

Thank you very much,

Best regards

DIN standards always seem to be only guidelines. Maybe you shouldn't have chosen an open staircase with a child at all - whether the caution is justified or unjustified. If you now see a problem with it (some use safety gates, others still avoid a railing), then have risers installed.

According to DIN, there are no requirements for residential buildings.

The DIN does not help you, make it safe for your child. From 8 months on, they will climb up and down there if the way is clear.

If you already get the helicopter parent meltdown at this point, you will later drive the poor kindergarten teachers crazy. I see a risk of accident in the described experimental setup only theoretically, even for cats. The toddler will throw their building blocks there, but cannot jump after them. A spacing of 11 cm between the bars of the railing is required (width distance between vertical bars), which is sensible but not comparable. How do you even get hold of this DIN? Legal copies cost a fortune anyway (I can't afford them and therefore can't tell you where you probably misread them).

Thanks to you all already, so far it mostly leans towards being overly cautious, which I think is good!

Maybe you shouldn't have taken an open staircase with a child at all – whether the caution is justified or unjustified. If you now see a problem with it (some people use safety gates, others still go without a railing), then have risers mounted.

The house planning actually took place before the child. We didn’t think that far – by now we probably would have gone for a concrete staircase directly. I also think the architect mentioned the spacing. It’s also strange that the construction manager said at two appointments that the spacing between the steps may only be 12 cm. But we have already installed safety gates at the top and bottom.

How do you even get hold of this DIN, legal copies cost a fortune? (I can’t afford it and therefore can’t tell you where you probably misread it).

When searching Google for "DIN 18065" actually the second result is the Technical University of East Westphalia-Lippe. Searching there for 12 cm is the fastest.

The toddler will throw its building blocks there, but can’t jump after them. The bars of the railing must have a spacing of 11 cm (width spacing between the vertical bars), that’s sensible but not comparable.

The spacing between the vertical bars fits for the railing, measured precisely. But why don’t you see that as comparable?