handrail for stairs

hbr.white

We moved into our new house a few months before our DD was born. At that time, we opted to not put a handrail on the wall of the staircase. Now that our DD is 23 months, we realize we really need one for her safety. (Of course, we don't let her walk up and down the stairs by herself but she need something else to hold onto in addition to our hand). I would like to install a handrail at a lower than normal height. Our child has been in the 5-10% range for height at each check-up. Have any one installed a lower height handrail or a dual hand rail (one regular height and one lower)? If so, what height? Any advise is appreciated.

unaveragejane

DS hangs onto the balusters on our stair rail. I tried to teach him do go down on his belly or his bottom, but he was NOT having it. If you just want to go with a handrail, I'm pretty sure you could install it low (for her) and move it later. You'd just have screw holes to fill later. But I'm not sure how much a standard sized rail would help...they're pretty big around for a toddler to hold...