what height should i put up chair rail in a up stairs hall , any tips would be appreciated
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How high are the backs of the chairs that you'll be placing in that hall?
;)
There is no defined height because of that stated purpose but it sounds like you are doing this as a design item rather than for utility. Therefore it belongs at the height that it looks best according to the height of the ceiling in proportion to the size of the room and whether you will be doing anything else like beaded board under and wall paper over it and what the pattern of the wallpapaer is. Lines can change the feel and shape of a wall or room.
Supposing that it is all white on white and eight foot ceilings, 34" is good most of the time.
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit.
The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
--Marcus Aurelius
the ceiling is 8 foot ,no chairs just the wife's decorator wants. my other dilemma is one side of the hall has a set of stairs going down. should I run the rail DOWN THE STAIRS OR KEEP IT ALL HORIZONTAL ON THE SECOND FLOOR?
You are going to want to run a handrail down the stairs so the two need to compliment each other. I would _probably_ return the chair rail to the wall and keep it slightly higher by two or three inches than the handrail but not follow it down the stairs..
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit.
The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
--Marcus Aurelius
Wiley,
Piffin is correct in the situation he described, However in view of your ceiling height, I would put the top of the rail 38 to 40 inches above the floor. As Piff said it comes down to asthetics so let your eye be the final judge.
Mark
Wiley,
I'm not saying you were disagreeing with Piff. I was just offering my thoughts on your situation after you had given more details. 6'4" huh? I can see where you might like things a bit higher.
mark
Traditionally chair rail were trimmed out to be a total of 36" to 42" high. Is it going to be raised panel or flat panel or bead board or other? Usually wainscoting is cut to 32" and then you work around that..
Edited 12/28/2002 12:21:19 AM ET by Larry
Generic rule-of-thumb is about one-third the height of the room. That never quite woorks for me. I always end up about 4"-8" higher than that.
Factor in practicality...will the rail actually be protecting the wall from something...and how high is that something?
Aesthetics? What height looks good, based on the scale of the room, the style of the wainscottiing, and the style of the trim in other rooms as well as the style of the house itself.
Redundant post.
I guess if wiley is 6'4" tall, I'd better agree with him
;) Actually, the 42" is better proportionally for him than a lower placement. For instance, we buld doors with a larger bottom rail because when looking down from a standing position, the perspective would make it look smaller than it is, if built the same size as the upper.
Mongo - not much difference here but applying golden rule proportions you devote 5/8 of the wall to the upper.
that's 62% vs. 67% still same neighborhood.
I know of a kitchen where the rail is at 46" under a nine foot ceiling that looks really good. It caps beaded wainscot and runs out over the countertops with the beaded forming the backsplash too. The same room has a partial wall display case unit dividing it from the breakfast nook at the same height so the chair rail runs into the top of it, becoming as one with it.
Therre is no hard and fast rule is what I was saying so nobody can be agreeing or disagreeing with me here..
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit.
The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
--Marcus Aurelius
Edited 12/28/2002 10:46:35 AM ET by piffin