The Staircase Hack from the Past That Every Modern Homeowner Needs to Know!
October 2, 2024
Source: Zillow
As for the pre-modern heating systems, people in older houses didn’t even try to heat them in the wintertime, but looking for ways how to save heat at least. Such a solution included a partial measure of cutting off the second floor for a period of time. In homes with a secondary staircase, like the one shown above, for example, they were able to install reversible stair shelves that allowed the stairs to serve as storage when cold weather set in.
In winter the families were spending much time at home, but they utilized only the small space to be heated to consume minimal fuel hence minimizing the costs. Less used second floor could also be shut completely to allow energies for heating to be conserved This has been depicted by representing the second floor as a dashed line showing that it was periodically closed completely. Removable shelves like the ones seen here served a dual purpose: they closed off the second storey to avoid letting in cold air, they used the staircase as a closet for storing items. This method was useful especially for homes with less complicated stairs or those homes without an extra storage space.
Where sometimes there was a door at the base of these stairs, homeowners were able to create a more efficient home by closing off the upper floor with both a door and shelves. Current, these removable stair shelves are only a view of how the previous generations transformed the interiors of their houses as a response to their functional requirements and, therefore, are appreciated as a type of historical provenance that enriches the non-concerned houses with the fragment of social memory.