Hi folks. I'm working on a basement reno and have got the drywall stripped out of the basement stairwell. I'd like to remove the two vertical 2x4s shown in the pics below, but want to make sure I'm not compromising the structure here.
I'm 99% sure these are merely decorative (in the sense that they were installed to support the original drywall and not the staircase above) as the verticals terminate directly under a star tread and not the stair stringer. My assumption is that if these were carrying a load in my 30-yr-old house, the stair treads would have buckled long ago, not being designed as structural elements themselves. This being the case, I should be able to remove the 2x4s and open up the stairwell considerably.
Can anyone confirm this for me? BTW, there are no supporting members on the other star stringer that I can find, which leads me to conclude that the staircase is self-supporting, being tied into the structure at top and bottom only..... Sorry for the HUGE pics, btw. Not sure how to scale the darned things!
I'm 99% sure these are merely decorative (in the sense that they were installed to support the original drywall and not the staircase above) as the verticals terminate directly under a star tread and not the stair stringer. My assumption is that if these were carrying a load in my 30-yr-old house, the stair treads would have buckled long ago, not being designed as structural elements themselves. This being the case, I should be able to remove the 2x4s and open up the stairwell considerably.


Can anyone confirm this for me? BTW, there are no supporting members on the other star stringer that I can find, which leads me to conclude that the staircase is self-supporting, being tied into the structure at top and bottom only..... Sorry for the HUGE pics, btw. Not sure how to scale the darned things!