I know this question has been asked about 5,000 times or more here, and I did search, but did not find...
What is the footprint (w x d) of a "steep" straight-run cottage staircase?
Just how steep are they?
I'm probably past the age of ladders and may be past the age of staircases too (although, I think ladders ("pueblo style") are kind of romantic and cute).
I've thought about/investigated spiral staircases too - are they any more/less steep? I even found dirt-cheap plans source on the net and posted that on the old forum, back when I discovered John's site (and couldn't find that in search either!)
I had access turned off to the old forum when I was working on the last forum problem.
It is back on now and you can do a search on "steep stairs" for more info.
Here is diagram that might help:
http://www.countryplans.com/bbs/messages/6367.html
What is that, about 4-5'?
That's about right, the more room you have the bigger the tread can be.
Search also on the Jefferson stair if you haven't considered that option.
I first learned about the Jefferson staircase here on the old forum! Remarkable idea considering how old it is (18th century!)
I passed it by based on some comments about safety and the fact that, 54 years later, I still can't even get out of bed on the same foot reliably! One slipup on a Jefferson could be my last step of any kind! :o
Just noticed that Ross Chapin seems to like Jefferson stairs - there are 3-4 designs on his site that show them as "standard" stairs. At least 1-2 photos of finished interior stairs.
(http://www.rosschapin.com/Plans/Cottages/Hilltop/images/Hilltop-08.jpg)
http://www.rosschapin.com/Plans/plans.html