Whether short or long, building a staircase is not easy. It requires precise measurements and careful calculations. Today we will show you how you can build your own wooden garden stairs. From a technical point of view, there is nothing difficult. Anyone with mechanical skills can make the necessary cuts and screw the individual parts together. However, building wooden garden stairs is a challenging task for hobby craftsmen.
Stairs are subject to strict building regulations that regulate safety and comfort. Gaps between steps can cause tripping hazards, high steps are harder to climb, steps that are not deep enough are uncomfortable and dangerous. Because there is so little room for error, stairs require careful planning. Read on to find out more.
Typical stairs consist of three main elements: stair stringers, treads and risers. The stair stringers are the slanted boards that support the steps and support the weight of people going up and down the stairs. The inclination angle should be 30 to 40 centimeters. When determining the width of the stairs, remember that wider is better. “Wide stairs are more comfortable and safer.
The treads form the surface of each tread and the risers are screwed directly under the front edge of each tread. Some stairs do not have risers, but this is incorrect according to many builders. The risers protect the stair stringers from the weather. Without risers, stair stringers will crack or split sooner.
The first step in building the stairs is calculating the height and number of steps.In this articlewe explained the procedure. The following dimensions are used for the example here:
– Total rise – 145 centimeters,
– Depth of stairs – 200 centimeters
– 145 centimeters divided by 18 results in 8 steps
– Depth of steps – 25 centimeters. There is enough space for two 15 centimeter wide boards
– Height of the steps – 18 centimeters
Now you have to cut two stair stringers out of the wooden floorboards. Using a carpenter's square and pencil, draw the riser height and step width to the required length.
Cut the notches with a jigsaw. Make sure you cut exactly along the marked line. Finish the cuts with a hand saw. Use the first finished stair stringer as a template for the other four. Then cut two boards the width of the steps minus the thickness of the stair stringers. These will connect the stair stringers at the top and bottom of the stairs. Screw the bottom and top boards to the support beams of your patio using countersunk screws. Use a spirit level to check whether all steps are parallel.
Now the steps and risers are screwed together. Make sure the treads overhang a little to cover the risers.
