Q: Do wall-mounted handrails need returns?
A: Victor Staley, a building official in Brewster, Mass., responds: The short answer is yes, but let’s first take a look at what the code requires for basic wall-mounted interior handrails. The Handrails section, R311.7.8, of the 2018 IRC requires a handrail on at least one side of any stairway with four or more risers. The handrail must be between 34 and 38 inches measured vertically from the nosing of the stairs—that is, the sloped plane of the stairs—and must be a minimum of 1 1/2 inches from the wall. There are also specific regulations for the graspability of the handrail.
Reading on in the code, we come to Section R311.7.8.4, Continuity, which relates more specifically to your question: “Handrail ends shall be returned or shall terminate in newel posts or safety terminals.” The term “safety terminal” is a catch-all phrase and does not indicate a specific handrail design or component.
My interpretation of this section is that both the top and bottom ends of a handrail must be constructed so that clothing, handbags, and the like are less likely to snag on the ends of the railing when a person walks up or down the stairs. A handrail return is the easiest and most common way of creating a so-called “safety terminal.” Most returns I see are made by turning the railing 90 degrees and making it square to the wall. On rare occasions, I’ve also seen designers or builders make handrail returns greater than 90 degrees as a decorative element (see photos, left).
