A dog-leg is a configuration of

stairs Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps which enable passage ...

between two

floors A floor is the bottom surface of a room or vehicle. Floors vary from simple dirt in a cave to many layered surfaces made with modern technology. Floors may be stone, wood, bamboo, metal or any other material that can support the expected load ...

of a building, often a domestic building, in which a flight of stairs ascends to a quarter-landing before turning at a

right angle In geometry and trigonometry, a right angle is an angle of exactly 90 Degree (angle), degrees or radians corresponding to a quarter turn (geometry), turn. If a Line (mathematics)#Ray, ray is placed so that its endpoint is on a line and the ad ...

and continuing upwards. The flights do not have to be equal, and frequently are not. Structurally, the flights of a dog-leg stair are usually supported by the quarter-landing, which spans the adjoining flank

wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including: * Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the supe ...

s. From the design point of view, the main advantages of a dog-leg stair are: * To allow an arrangement that occupies a shorter, though wider, floor area than a straight flight, and so is more compact. Even though the landings consume total floor space, there is no large single dimension. * The upper floor is not directly visible from the bottom of the stairs, thereby providing more privacy.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{Cite book , last = Hartwell , first = Clare , last2 = Pevsner , first2 = Nikolaus , author2-link = Nikolaus Pevsner , title = Lancashire: North , publisher =

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Universi ...

, location = New Haven and London , year = 2009 , page = 741 , orig-year = 1969 , isbn = 0-300-12667-0 Stairs Stairways Architectural elements