Few years back I was going to build small wooden stair step to neighbors porch and was checking out the pre - cut stair risers at the stores. They were all of odd size and it would be too hard to use one and get even spaced steps so I just did it my own way without the conventional ' riser ' and besides being cheaper it was easier to get totally equal steps.

@@michaelszczys8316 I never understood those pre-cut stringers, they must be custom cut for your specific rise and run.

Correct. Or the top stair run is shorter than the rest, I always make my top stair run bigger kinda like a landing, never had any complaints.

Grading is king and will kill a deck if the patio or interlock at grade can't be adjusted. The other challenge is landings people forget the finished height of the landing at the lowest step on the landing, but will get the top ones right.

Yeah, but the issue in this video is fixable.

One of the terms used for this type of stair is "easy riser." For some people, elderly in particular, they make the difference between being able to continue living in their home and not.

You're welcome and it's never to late to learn:)

You made me laugh. Thanks for you honest comment!

wtf? they make brass nuts that screw onto your framing square and make the rise and run exactly right. Go tear those stairs down lol.

Well, at least you “knocked them out.”😆

I've always just done the math.

Glad it was helpful and thanks for a little more information!

Nosings are also a health and dafety item for visually impaired persons when going up a stair. One would run their foot up the face of the riser and would know they have reached the top of the step when their foot strikes the nosing.

There is never a "nosing" on concrete steps !!.........hmmm .

@@helbitkelbit1790 Never?

@@michaelachambers7870 (Holy Mackerel).......Never .

@@michaelachambers7870 If they are 100% concrete, you never put a "nosing" on any of the steps. Concrete is extremely strong in compression but very brittle in stress. A nose will quickly start to break away. Even a sharp 90 degree edge will quickly erode and start breaking off which is why concrete edges are always suppose to be rounded. I have seen concrete steps that were designed using a non-concrete material on the landing that stuck out to form the nose. Never found out what it was and was not around long enough to see how well it worked.

In my short time doing decks, the little box steps we would sometimes have to make down to the ground ALWAYS gave us the most trouble for finding that sweet spot. Whether it was unlevel ground sloping parallel to the deck or just an inconvenient height those little stair sets are usually the most dangerous.

Talk about jacking up your muscle memory

@@Industrialitis Easiest solution I've found is to provide a small 3'x3' or 4'x'4' concrete or compacted gravel landing at the base to make the steps consistent. No one usually has a problem with whatever step is created between the landing and the grade of the yard.

A lot of diyers use those precut stringers which only work out if you start out with them before you build your deck . If you don’t consider the rise height of those stringers before you build then they won’t work properly .

I have done a lot of interior and exterior stairs, and came to the conclusion that around 7-1/2' plus or minus and 1/8, is the most comfortable to me. But everybody is different.

Much appreciated!

Right on

brass nuts on your framing square.

You've been doing this since the 80s, but say "bruh" like you're 14...

You're very welcome!

Agree the lower the rise the easier the climb , I built my steps with a 4" rise with a the tread being 12 1/4 from nosing to nosing wise a 2x6 and a 2x8 ( 4" is the min, in My area ) You literally just walk

@@adamtippett1826 This would be good for old folk, if you have the length.

You're welcome.

I have found that most interior stairs are using a seven inch rise with accompanying handrails.

Good tip!

And it makes it much more sturdy to fasten up ...hate seeinh those plywood hangers or plumbing straps..🤓

I hate seeing that. Messes up railing

If you have room for the extra total run length of the stairs. Using the top platform as the top tread shortens the total stair run.

Actually less than that. Something like a light eighth of an inch difference between step rise can trip you up.

All of this says to me, "The human body is a marvel." A regular person like me, not trained in the trades, wouldn't think such a small difference would matter. It's fascinating to discover that it does.

@@davidguenther8170 I have always read 1/4 inch.

@@chrismalchoff7552 Over the last 40 years, I've built countless numbers of stairs. A 1/4" inch difference is the maximum amount allowed by code, at least where I was working. On a set of stairs, if all treads are level, but one, that one slightly unlevel tread can trip you up, even if it's only out of level by a half degree. I don't know how to explain it other than as you start up the stairs, your body gets in a rhythm and any deviance can throw it off

Exactly. In Canada, the code is no step can be anymore than 5mm (3/16) different from the next step (up or down). That's the same rule for both the rise AND the run.

I thought I covered what not to do, is there something I missed.

Wow, your stair is in dire straits.

Yeah, I was thinking about the risk of hooking my size 13 boot on that overhang...

@@ianhelyar9553 ... if you have been wearing a size 13 for many years then you are likely well-adjusted to this sort of thing.

I built an exterior deck stair for an elderly couple who wanted 13" wide threads with no nosing and 5" rise. It was very uncomfortable for me to use it, but watching them use it made some sense. They would step up 1 step at a time, each step acting as a mini landing.

If the deck builder knows about nosing's, (the reason I made the video) then you will have a nosing if the stairs do, if not then no nosing and you're welcome.

I see. Yes! Good day! @@stairbuilding

Framers, stair builders use same calcs... as a drafter I have to use the area I'm given, usually in a remodel and working with the architect. But I love the designs I've seen. Some are elegant. Others are utilitarian. While others are clean architectural based. Then there's the hide away stairs or fold aways in smaller homes. Wow!!

3/8 " is the riser difference allowed

I've always wondered if there is really a need to look how human beings have gotten larger, including the feet as it pertains to stairs, that certain sizings throughout the built environment should be reviewed periodically from a human engineering standpoint. A 6 foot ceiling height certainly would not be allowed today, but four hundred years ago it was common, just as an example. So many stair cases just seem small to my size 12 feet. I find myself walking down undersized depth treads with my feet set sideways just to get a steady footing. Size twelve is not really a big foot anymore.

@@mikegrant8490 , agreed, my inspector is 6'4" , I think their thought process is the ball of the foot would be on the tread only as you push up to step on the next step , (not really stopping to stand on the tread , if You have the distance, I perfer to use lower rise and a 15" - 20" tread, which in turns change it to more tread and code is 3 treads or 4 riser (same) requires a handrail , I have made serval for elderly in their garage that are attach, just make sure You have the distance , if you look at a 2 tread 3rise 10 tread that only 20" off the wall but if Your using a wider tread like 15" it would 30" for 2 treads and 40" if it 20" tread , then go to a 4" rise of and it become 45" off the wall or 60" (5ft) on a 20" tread , it may be easier to build a 3ft landing and turn the stairs sideways. Guess I got a little of track LOL , must people on use 1/2 the tread when going up or down stairs

Correct in the total straight run , 3/8 if 2 steps or 15 steps

Yes, absolutely

when "to stair is human" first begins, then comes "to err is human"....

As a taller guy as well, i prefer 12/6 steps. More for descending steps. I find that only about half my foot lands on the tread when going down steps, unless i skew my feet at an angle. Not particularly comfortable or safe. But it’s impossible to make one staircase that’s good for a 5’8”, 80 year old and a 6’3”, 40 year old.

Think of children and smaller people, too. You design stairs for all.

Yes and you may be old one day I say may...

Safety first

A bit of useless trivia from a guy in construction design in the UK here: Many medieval castles used to have one bastard step on a staircase. The idea was those that were resident at the castle would gain muscle memory of the odd step and could run up and down without issue. An invading force charging up the steps would be unaware and be likely to fall, giving the advantage to the residents in an emergency. This would probably create quite the pileup of armour-clad soldiers at the bottom of a narrow spiral staircase.

@@IanDarley That's not useless trivia! That's the psychology of battle and siege. When you realize that they engineered it like this, it's genius! Thanks for your perspective.

@@IanDarley ( Thinking Monty Python sketch comedy! Armour-clad pile ups! 🤣)

Apartment I live in they rebuilt our porch and steps ( concrete ) and the top step is just a tiny bit taller. I hit it often and it makes me trip going up. It doesn't take much.

@@michaelszczys8316 I redid my neighbor's front porch a couple of years ago and took down the very top brick step to the landing to the height of the other steps and leveled it to the landing allowing for drainage. The best part of it is the satisfaction of knowing that they no longer have a trip hazard and they no longer have a water ponding issue, especially in the freezing weather. For years, I tripped up on their porch and noticed that landing was over an inch deeper, a more potential trip hazard going down, wrong both ways ... until I told them I felt compelled to fix it. Today, they're happy. The overall height of all the treads is within 1/8 of an inch and all it took was taking a diamond blade and shaping the top to create a 1/8 inch drain slope over the width of the top bricks back to the existing landing's level. I also tuck pointed all the bricks, made other repairs and repainted the metal railings after re-anchoring them. Your apartment steps could be done in a similar manner by an experienced mason based on what you've stated. It's a safety issue, especially since the new concrete steps offer a dangerous departure from what was previously there. Demand that the landlord fix it properly. Contact your local building authorities and force a resolution, noting that it maybe appears to be a code violation issue.

I have videos for calculating riser heights at our website.

Sounds incredible. So people have to much money. I want that problem 😆. I have a friend that has amazing custome tree sized carvings from Thailand area. Gorgeous wood.

@@corysturgis6660 Talk about big money! - I talked to her personal carpenter, whom she would fly to her properties in Paris and NYC and who knows where, he told me she paid $100k per year for private parking at her apartment facing Central Park. At the Key West property the previous owners, the Johnsons (of Johnson & Johnson) had bought the back yards of everyone on the block. From the street the house looked like a typical Keys bungalow, but in reality the property was huge, with big swimming pool, big 'pool house' - all Teak, guest house and servant's quarters!

Here's a link to the stair remodeling section of our website for more videos about your project. Let me know if you can't find what you need. www.homebuildingandrepairs.com/remodeling/stairs/index.html kzfaq.info/get/bejne/aphhqMh3yrHDe3U.html

Remove imo

You never seen a deck with PT balusters attached to fascia board for railing or composite decks with fascia covering cut sides of deck boards? Over half the decks I see dont have overhang even on new decks. I always picture box my decks though

@@guyod1 yeah I guess I have seen that… I don’t tend to build that way though. Never really looks awesome.

Mike. Where. Do. U. Live. !!!!! Sir.

@@armandoruiz8795 I live in a small town called wippinigguhsass. It's in ILLINOIZ

@@mikeries8549 lmao

...and never let a framer build your stringers!

I am a mason....built a huge concrete staircase.....covered with tile that looks like wood.... so........suck it nailbiter..

If the height of each step was the same, then they wouldn't be steps. (height above ground that is) ha ha.

Thanks for sharing.

Alabama ,ya got 2 heads n 3 feet

Sorry, I have to ask as I am new. What do u mean by crowning?

@@celticmulato2609 … crowning for treads means you look at the end of the board and if the growth rings appear to be shaped like a bowl that will mean it’s going to continue to cup like a bowl … hard to walk on …flip it over so the wood grain ( growth rings are like an upside-down bowl or “crown “ … crowning a joist or rafter , you have to eye it down the length and place that piece with the bow or “crown “ on the up side …hope that clears “crowning “ up !

Glad you like them and thanks for letting me know.!

I like it to.

I would think so.

1/2” anchor bolts.

Can this what...there is no picture or description. So who knows what the hell you're talking about. Ah.... just messing with you. :) Personally I anchored an anchor.

Thank you! 👍

Most of the time it won't work, but it is possible.

Glad it was helpful!

Interesting and thanks for sharing.

I like the overhang, but you can use an under cut or leave it alone if client or designer and codes allow.

It would probably need to match the other treads or steps.

I've built plenty of stairs with out nosing, so go for it.

a little nosing is natural in all stairs. see if you can build out your riser slightly or make spacing between your treads a little bit more.

I added a nosing! Couldn't leave it without one. Check my videos to see my solution.

24 “ ish 😎

That's a lot of run, considering the rise. The basic rule is that the rise plus the run should add to about 18". So 7" rise and 11" run is considered standard for a typical stairway. Conversely, a ladder might have a 3" tread but a 15" rise. But in your case, the run is very large, and it might be appropriate to consider one full stride on each tread and then a standard step. In other words, one foot is always doing the step up. Following the 18" rule is uncomfortable and cumbersome for very short risers.

Mike let go of it

A 1980's piece worker sounds old, but I was one also and you do learn fast.

kzfaq.info/get/bejne/bZZ4iJaJrpy3iIU.html see if this helps.

look up deadly falls traversing stairs in European countries, the numbers are very high as many buildings have very steep stairs with large rises and THAT is a big fall hazzard going down. Just like building fire sprinkler systems being rare in Europe it's another strange code issue.

Agree!! Totally!! Thank you!!! I'm a drafter and am asked alot to create basic layouts to send to stair companies. They come out and do all their own calculations anyway but the architect has the final say on design

40 plus yrs custom stair builder and the #1 Problem i see if framer builds carcus is they never consider finish tread or flooring material thickness. Not into fixing budget buys mistakes, rise must be consistent floor to floor. Now they do allow a variance on first and last riser as homeowners sometimes change floor material

Yes. You have no idea of the rise until you know the total rise, the customer, the materials, the situation....saying you always make them x is nonsense.

Yyeess yes

I know what you're talking about, but nosing's usually provide a wider step for larger feet.

@@stairbuilding Only if you're going up. The stair width is effectively the same with nosing, as your video points out. It seems to me that nosing is primarily an aesthetic choice.

@@drwagner14 I think it also helps protect the vertical parts of the stairs (the vertical aligned plank right under that horizontally aligned "nosing" plank) better against accelerated wear through rainfall, if only a little bit? Personally I'd make all steps 15 inches and only 5 inches tall. Yah it takes more space but DANG it feels a lot *nicer* and more "luxurious". Especially when the owner reaches older age and climbing stairs actually becomes more akin to a "sport" than just "merely moving around". For inside a small house? Probably not, space is too much at a premium. But for something outdoors? Wider stairs, (both along path of travel, and width from left too right), and less high stairs, DEFINITELY enhance the courtyard ***a lot***. Instead of two COMPLETELY separate areas (the higher deck, and the lower rest of the yard), you get a smoother, wider progression which kind of joins them up a little. IF you make them really extra wide (like, using 6 feet long planks instead of 3 or 4 feet wide) and with largish plants and flower boxes along both sides, plus some "tiny waterfalls over stones" irrigation, it simply looks and feels marvelous. Bonus for putting the stairs in an angled part of the deck, with about a 30 widening angle in the railings, so that, as you are going down the stairs, it all feels like the stairs kind of open up to the entire yard instead of being a mere access path. Anyway if you have only a tiny courtyard then it doesn't even make sense to build a deck in the first place as that REALLY "closes up" the yard. Better to just have a smallish top rectangular landing then straight stairs towards the larger side of the yard (and not towards the middle of the yard). Sometimes just a LITTLE bit of intelligent planning will give you TONS of long term value to your yard and house. Just make sure you can cut your planks at 30 and 45 degrees angles and make a plan and not be total crap at maths, and you're set. As for the cost, a deck with a couple angles in it won't really need "more" wood, total surface area is the most determinant cost factor here. Also, a lot more fun to make a NICE LOOKING original deck, than yet another stupid rectangular box exactly like everybody else in the neighbourhood did. A nosing looks nicer, but it does not have to be big. On extra-deep stairs, 1 inch is more than enough. On those small 9 inches deep stairs, half a inch *tops*. I have big feet (size 11) and really hate constantly hitting my toes on "stairs nosings" when climbing those thin steep stairs. The less wide the stairs, the smaller the nosing *needs* to be. Build Code is often 11 inches deep though, so "steep" stairs have to be checked for code first. Better to check all possible details and code on websites like yours, not wait until at city hall renovation permits office, and then open one's big stupid mouth to reveal way too much stuff about what you intend to renovate and how lol. Because that's how you could get into trouble with "infinite (and sometimes even quite contradictory) town regulations", and maybe even be blocked for YEARS before being "allowed" to do your work. With fees too. Blergh. And also, even with super deep stairs, 1 inch nosing is more than enough. Otherwise they become a "feet tripping" risk.

@@stairbuilding 2 2x6s is 11 inches whether there is overhang or not

A nosing allows for a shorter going without compromising on the tread depth.

I don't have a ratio between the width and height.

Always take it step by step:)

Amazing and I can only imagine.