We are moving into a house that has a set of cement stairs leading from the backyard downstairs to the basement. I would love to find something I can put at the top of the stairs to prevent my kids from falling. I think ulitmately I'll put up a fence around the stairs with a gate, but I need something temporary until we can do that. Even though it's temporary, I want something study. Even with a temporary structure, I'll be sitting right next to the stairs, but it's always nice to still have a barrier between my kids and the stairs. Any ideas of what I can do to block the stairs?
V.:
I don't know how old your children are - but I would TEACH THEM to walk down the stairs.
If you are determined to do a gate - do it right the first time instead of spending money twice. Go to the Lowes on Route 50 there in Chantilly - and ask them for help on gates for outside stairs....Do it right the first time, then you are only spending money once and won't stress over it.
We were faced with the same situation when we bought our house. FWIW, you need to enclose the stairwell to meet code so it may ease your resale or if you are renting it maybe a stick you can use to get the landlord to fence it.
We actually bought fencing from Home Depot for fairly cheap in the style of wrought iron but its actually painted aluminium. http://www.homedepot.com/p/45-in-x-30-in-Empire-Fence-Gat...
You can find it in the gardening section. I was actually more worried about my daughter plunging over the side of the wall which is about a 12 foot fall onto concrete. This fencing took care of that.
It's very easy to install, very sturdy, attractive and in lengths that worked for the length and width of our stairwell. We've had it for 4 years now and just had to paint one spire so its held up very well.
Can you put a piece of plywood or old door over them to block the opening?
I'm picturing stairs that are open on 3 sides since they're outdoor stairs. Is this right? If that's the case you'd have to block all 3 sides. A gate wouldn't help much. I can't think of any way of blocking this without building a fence.
A gate at the top of the stairs is a recipe for disaster. If they climb and fall it will just make their injuries worse!
Teach your kids how to use the stairs.
I started doing this with mine from the time they were crawling.
All parents get distracted. It only takes a second or two of looking the other way for something bad to happen.
