Stairs Leading to kitchen

Suze4212

Hi I am redesigning my kitchen which requires the hall door to be moved to the other side of my stairs, which run perpendicular to the hall, with the sitting room at the front of house and kitchen/diner at the rear. The purpose for doing this is to include a section of my downstairs w/c to be incorporated into the kitchen giving a bigger footprint for the kitchen.

My concern is that the stairs will be exiting into the edge of my kitchen and will this breach building regulations for stairs and kitchen?

DOCARCH

Is the house two storey or three storey?

For a two storey house, as far as I am aware, as long as the bottom of the stairs is within 4.5 metres of an external door (i.e. escape to safety) you can have the kitchen open to the stairs.

Suze4212

Thanks Docarch,

It is a two storey house.

The front door is 4.7 meters from the bottom of the stairs. All the bedrooms have large window openings.

sydthebeat

1.3.2.1 An open-plan arrangement, where the
stairway rises directly from the ground storey
accommodation is less preferable than the
arrangement at (b) above and is only
acceptable where:
(a) the stairway discharges to within
4.5 m of a door (final exit) at the
ground storey leading directly to the
open air;
(b) the stairway does not discharge into a
kitchen (see Diagram 1(a)) and either;
(i) any ground storey kitchen, where
the cooking facilities are within 3 m
of the stairway is enclosed in
storey height construction which
need not be fire resisting (see
Diagram 1(b)) or ;
(ii) where the stairway passes within
3 m of the cooking facilities, the
stairway should be shielded to the
foot of the stairs with ceiling –
height construction which need not
be fire-resisting;(see Diagram 1 (c))
(c) a fire detection and alarm system is
provided, in accordance with 1.3.6
(d) all habitable rooms at the upper storey
are provided with windows for escape or
rescue in accordance with 1.3.7; and
(e) the design meets the general provisions
for dwelling houses, outlined in 1.3.9.

from here
http://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/technical_guidance_document_b_fire_safety_volume_2_dwelling_houses.pdf

Calahonda52

This is also running here
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057763751

which is a pita, time to blend them