Stairways

[velotrain]

I'm wondering why so many (all?) of the stairways on tall buildings are outside - is there some safety reason that I'm not grasping?

[kvp]

What is the cheapest way to provide a smoke free, easy to access staircase on a building? The answer is to make it open. This is the same reason US fire escape stairs were usually built on the outside of  buildings. There is a certain height, where you loose this advantage and really tall buildings usually have the escape stairs inside the building's main core with special fire proof doors, lighting and ventillation to provide a smoke free escape route.

[brill27mcb]

I'm wondering why so many (all?) of the stairways on tall buildings are outside - is there some safety reason that I'm not grasping?

 

Snow and ice? :)

 

Rich K.

[velotrain]

American "fire escapes" are not stairs at all, but are made of metal (cast iron and later steel), and are always on the outsides of buildings.  The bottom part must be released by someone on the fire escape, so people from the street cannot go up it.  This is either a ladder, or a hinged component.  There are some fine examples of very ornate cast iron ones in Boston.

 

We apply the term "fire escapes" only to this type, which were (almost) always attached to brick, stone, or concrete buildings.

 

Stairs - of any sort - are generally on the inside of buildings, with the most notable exception being the rear stairs of wooden "triple deckers" - from another era.

 

Attached are photos of plastic O-scale fire escapes from Tichy.

 

Gold Metal Models makes etched brass ones in N-scale:

 

https://www.nscalesu...mm-Details.html

 

I believe Walthers produces N-scale "triple deckers".

 

[katoftw]

then the stairs you are referring to are fire escapes.

[kvp]

Many japanese buildings don't have dedicated fire escapes, but instead use a fireproof open staircase both for normal access and as a fire escape. This is cheaper to build, cheaper to maintain and needs less space than alternative soltuions. The downside is that these buildings have open stairs and many times hanging corridors fully exposed to the elements. Since these structures can overhang the building, like balconies, they maximise the available floor space within the building. The ease of rescue from them (with ladders or crane trucks) is just an added bonus, that could come handy in a quake prone region.

[katoftw]

 

Many japanese buildings don't have dedicated fire escapes, but instead use a fireproof open staircase both for normal access and as a fire escape. This is cheaper to build, cheaper to maintain and needs less space than alternative soltuions. The downside is that these buildings have open stairs and many times hanging corridors fully exposed to the elements. Since these structures can overhang the building, like balconies, they maximise the available floor space within the building. The ease of rescue from them (with ladders or crane trucks) is just an added bonus, that could come handy in a quake prone region.

Spot on.