Deck Stairs

There are a number of different materials an individual will require in order to begin building deck stairs. When it comes to deck building, remodeling techniques, experts recommend gathering all of the materials beforehand. When all of the required materials are gathered prior to the remodeling endeavor, the builder will have everything that he or she needs readily accessible.

When building deck stairs a builder requires wooden dowels, galvanized nails, beams, deck screws, posts, deck planks, chalk line making material, a circular saw for cutting wood, and concrete mix to stabilize the deck stair posts. In addition to the latter list of necessary materials, a builder who is about to build deck stairs will also require a drill with accompanying drill bits, a square for framing, a jigsaw, an appropriate level, a tape for measuring, a miter saw, screwdrivers, a shovel, a reciprocating saw, and goggles for eye safety. In addition, the builder may want a pad of paper and a pen or pencil nearby to easily calculate and write down necessary measurements. Finally, a calculator may also prove handy when determining deck stair size and can save the builder a few minutes of time.

The above-mentioned wooden dowels will need to be one and a half inches in length. The galvanized nails should be of the 16 penny variety. Beams purchased for deck building remodeling should be two feet by 12 feet, and the necessary posts must be 4 feet by 4 feet in size. Meanwhile, the deck planks needed for deck building remodeling should be 5/4 inch planks. The builder seeking to build deck stairs should make an appropriate list of all of the necessary materials, check off the materials and equipment one already has, and then head to the nearest local hardware store to pick up the remaining necessary materials before commencing on the deck stairs building project.

In order to commence on the deck rebuilding remodeling project and to appropriately add deck stairs, a builder needs to ensure that he or she calculates the size of the deck stairs being built correctly. That being said, the builder will need to determine what is referred to as the “rise and run” of the deck stairs being built. The first step for the builder is to take the measuring tape and determine in inches the distance between the earth and the deck.

Once the measurement is taken it should be immediately documented; this way the builder will not face recalculating measurements if he or she forgets. Now that the height, or run, of the stairs has been determined, the builder now needs to determine how many stairs are needed. The latter measurement should be divided by 7.5 which is the right stair height determined by building codes. Thus, dividing the measurement by 7.5 will give the builder the number of stairs required based on building code specification. If during the division process the builder winds up with an uneven figure of a whole number with a remainder, the builder should round the number up to determine the number of stairs required.

Next, when it comes to building deck stairs, the builder will need to figure out the rise of the deck stairs. For instance, if the builder’s initial calculation of the measurement from the deck to the ground is 120 inches, it would first be divided by the building code specified stair height of 7.5 inches. The latter figure goes into 120 inches evenly and equates to 16; therefore the builder will be building 16 stairs in all. To figure out the rise, the builder would then take the figure of 120 inches and divide it by the total number of stairs he or she will be building, which equates to 7.5 inches.

When a builder has finished calculating the basic size of the deck stairs being built, it is necessary to prepare the area where the stairs will be placed. The area will need to be clean and ready to be worked. Further, when it comes to home improvements, it is always a good idea to prepare the area and the material beforehand; it makes the building process easier and things run smoothly when a builder is fully prepared for the task at hand.

In addition to figuring out the rise and run of deck stairs, the deck remodeling/building project requires that the builder know the appropriate stair depth. Again, it is recommended that the builder write down all calculations to avoid confusion. Further, it is also recommended that when building deck stairs, the builder recalculate stair sizes before cutting anything. There is nothing worse than cutting all of the pieces to build deck stairs only to figure out that the initial calculations were incorrect. To figure out the appropriate depth of each stair for deck stairs, the builder will need to decide how wide the entire staircase will be. The standard width that deck stairs is based on is the depth of each stair and that figure is typically ten inches, but the builder may decide that he or she wants bigger stairs than that.

The builder will need to take the figure for the total number of deck stairs being built and will need to then multiply that figure times the depth of the step chosen. For instance, if the builder decides that he or she wants a stair depth of 12 inches, if we use the above mentioned calculations, the builder would multiply the number 16 by 12, thereby winding up with a figure of 192. The latter figure will then need to be further converted into inches; 192 divided by 12 is 16 inches. While it may seem like a roundabout way to figure out precise deck stair step sizes, in truth, when a builder is not working with numbers that divide into other numbers evenly, different calculations and rounding are needed for precision.

The area where the deck stairs will be placed must be completely level. If the area is not level the builder runs the risk of building deck stairs that do not align properly to the deck. In addition, if the builder places the stairs on uneven ground, the stairs may sink later, and move away from their appropriate position: completely in line with the deck. Unlevel ground can also force the stairs to fail to be positioned correctly: the stairs may fall short of where they touch the ground as well. It is easy to determine if the earth is level; using one of the levels collected prior to beginning the project, the builder can use a board and a level to determine whether or not the entire area is level. If the area needs leveling, that will be the first step the builder will need to take.

Once the ground is leveled by the builder, the builder will then need to map out the area. In other words, the builder will need to place a mark where the posts are going to be placed in the ground. When the posts have been mapped out, the builder will then need to take up a shovel and dig holes in the ground where the posts will be placed. Posts are held into position through the use of concrete; the use of concrete ensures that the posts will remain in the initial position that they are placed in and that they will not sink deeper into the ground in the future. Post holes must be dug that are more than a foot in depth in order to prevent the posts from uplifting during times of frost; the right measurement is typically 16 inches deep. The number of posts required for deck stairs will ultimately depend on how wide the deck stairs are and how many steps are being placed.

After a builder has dug all of the necessary 16 inch holes (and the holes should be measured to ensure that they are all of equal depth), the builder will then need to add concrete to fill the bottom portion of the holes. Concrete mix is mixed with water and the appropriate activator; the builder will need to carefully read the instructions for mixing the concrete to ensure that he or she gets the concrete at the right consistency. Concrete can be mixed with ease in a bucket, but some builders prefer to use a wheel barrel. The builder will need to also read about the appropriate ways of cleaning equipment after using concrete mix, to ensure that equipment is not destroyed by dried concrete.

The concrete is poured into the 16 inch holes and should cover a depth of about 8 inches in all. Some builders choose to add gravel to the 16 inch holes to increase the ease of drainage, but that choice is ultimately up to the builder. Once the concrete has been placed in the hole, the builder will need to ensure that the concrete is somewhat level by smoothing out the surface. The latter measure can be completed with a trowel or a piece of scrap wood if the builder does not have the appropriate trowel. The end result that the builder will see is that they have created post holes with a stable surface. Later, when concrete is dry posts will be inserted with post tiers.

When a builder is adding deck stairs for home improvement, in the instance that the deck stairs are being placed along the side the home, the builder will need to put a ledger board in place on the house’s side. Ledger boards are an added measure that later ensures the security of the deck stairs that the builder is installing. In addition, if the builder really wants to make the decks stairs home improvement efforts ultra secure, he or she can opt to position the upper portion of the stairs in such a way that it sits solidly on the landing.

Joists need to be connected to the ledger board that the builder installs as well as to the landing. A board can be used to hold the joists into place until the builder gets to the rest of the deck stairs install. Later, the board can be swiftly removed. Joists must be squared and the squaring tool can be used for the endeavor. After the latter technique has been implemented, the builder can then turn his or her attention to the posts. Posts are place upon concrete piers; once the posts are properly placed on top of the concrete piers, which involves the act of ensuring that the posts fit tightly within the piers in question, the builder can then move onto the next deck stairs building step.

When posts are fitting nicely into the proper concrete piers, the builder will need to add the deck planks listed earlier in the list of materials needed. After that any temporary boards can be removed, and the next step that the builder of deck stairs must take is to prepare the stair stringers. Deck stair stringers are basically the long boards that cut in a somewhat zigzag fashion so that the stair surface can rest on them. The deck stair stringers are fashioned from the 2 foot by 12 foot boards listed in the list of required desk stairs building material. The builder will then use the calculations determined earlier to determine the way the stringers are to be cut; the boards will be marked out with the rise and depth of the stairs in question.

The square tool is used to map out precisely where the builder will cut. The use of the square tool ensures that a straight line is created and that the stairs will all be the same length and dimension when the stairs are finally put together. The square will first be placed at the edge of the 2 foot by 12 foot board to be cut and the builder will take the appropriate measurement of the stair rise; in the above mentioned example, it is 7.5 inches as specified by appropriate building codes. Since no riser is necessary for the top of the deck stairs, the builder will then return to the edge of the board being cut, and start mapping out the rest of the stair cuts. Likewise, when all of the stairs are properly mapped out, the builder can then create a return line to note the end of the stair case. Once a builder has mapped out the deck stairs to the correct proportions they can go about the business of cutting along the lines drawn to complete the stringers.

When stringers are completely cut they are ready to be put in place. Galvanized screws are used to secure the stringers accordingly. The builder is then ready to set about the business of cutting the stair treads; which should be one inch longer than the stringers. Once treads are cut they are connected to the stringers using galvanized screws and the drill with the appropriate drill bit. Following the latter step, posts are then placed and cut at an angle that matches the stringer angle. Railings are then cut and added to the side of the staircase, and the builder must bear in mind that the railing must meet all building codes. Thus, the rails in the railing must be set at a specific distance from one another: usually it is right around six inches apart. The wooden dowels listed in the necessary materials are used to create the wooden rails.

The final touch to deck stairs is to add a top beam to the railing: one where anyone using the stairs can place his or her hands on for support. In addition, the builder will need to install special braces so that the railing remains secure. The stairs can then be painted the color of the builder’s choice.