Stairs · 6 min · Updated August 2026
Hardwood stairs and Ontario Building Code
Rise, run, nosing, graspable handrails, and guards — the code details that get beautiful GTA stairs failed at inspection.
Pretty is not the test
Ontario Building Code Part 9 governs most houses. Rise and run must be uniform. Nosing projection is limited. Guards have a height. Handrails must be graspable. A 2x6 cap with no fingers-around profile will fail. A rail mounted on the wrong side of a winders flight will fail. We draw the stair to pass, then we make it beautiful.
The conversions that go wrong
Carpet to oak on an open-side stair needs returned treads, not a leftover plank glued to drywall. Mixing a 3/4" floor with a 5/8" tread without a proper nosing creates a trip. We see both weekly in new builds from Milton to Markham.
Railings are structural
A newel that is only trimmed on is a future service call. Green Hardwood through-bolts newels into structure. If we cannot, we rebuild the landing until we can. That is the difference between a railing and furniture.
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