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Historic staircases were rarely designed to take the abuse which
occurs during major renovation work. Even when trash chutes and
material hoists are located through windows, staircases are still
subjected to dirt and heavy wear during construction work, and the
risk remains of incurring costly or irreparable damage. Stairwall
materials such as marble, wood wainscoting and Lincrusta wall
covering, as well as balustrades and stair treads, are particularly
vulnerable to damage. Where there are tight turns and narrow
staircases, the risks of damage are even greater. Closing off the
stairs usually is not practical either because the stairs are needed
for daily use during construction or must be kept open for job
safety.
In most instances, the best preservation approach and
the one that often proves economical in the long run is to provide
sound and effective protection of the staircase in situ. The project
architect should be the one to design a protection system for the
staircase.In designing the protective system, care should be taken
to protect the walls, the balustrade, and the staircase itself. With
the Villard Houses, a simple, practical and effective system was
developed to protect the staircases during the renovation work. The
wide range of staircase designs, decoration, and finish work found
in the Villard Houses furnished ample opportunity to test the broad
applicability of this protective system. It is described in the
following sections, with some liberty taken in making minor
refinements for the benefit of others wishing to use it. |
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| Figure 1. The Villard Houses include
stair- ways ranging from very elegant (seen here) to quite
sample. All could have been damaged if not protected during
the extensive rehabilitation work. Photo: Steven Zane, HABS
Collection. |
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