How to Build Stairs: Step by Step

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Considered closely, the stairs in your home can change from a taken-for-granted utility to an impressive display of planning and execution.
Considered closely, the stairs in your home can change from a taken-for-granted utility to an impressive display of planning and execution.
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During the planning stages, a chart such as this is invaluable for understanding how stair angle affects tread width and riser height as well as the placement of handrails.
During the planning stages, a chart such as this is invaluable for understanding how stair angle affects tread width and riser height as well as the placement of handrails.
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Available headroom and the horizontal run of the stair depend on its angle. Removing just one riser and tread combination, shown here, yields nearly one foot of additional overhead room and more than two treads' worth of floor space.
Available headroom and the horizontal run of the stair depend on its angle. Removing just one riser and tread combination, shown here, yields nearly one foot of additional overhead room and more than two treads' worth of floor space.
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Laying out a notched stringer requires the use of a square with screw-on stair gauges. It's critical that all measurements be accurate before striking cut lines. 
Laying out a notched stringer requires the use of a square with screw-on stair gauges. It's critical that all measurements be accurate before striking cut lines. 
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The simplest open-tread stairs are usually used in basements and utility rooms or on outdoor decks.
The simplest open-tread stairs are usually used in basements and utility rooms or on outdoor decks.
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There are a number of ways to attach stringers at the top and bottom. In some cases, the ceiling header can be used as the stair's top riser. 
There are a number of ways to attach stringers at the top and bottom. In some cases, the ceiling header can be used as the stair's top riser. 
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An open stair can be given a more finished appearance by adding skirtboard trim to the sides. The risers are mitered to the trim's edges, and molding is nailed beneath each tread. 
An open stair can be given a more finished appearance by adding skirtboard trim to the sides. The risers are mitered to the trim's edges, and molding is nailed beneath each tread. 

Make a point sometime to study the stairs in your home. In the light of scrutiny, that one piece of construction can change from a taken-for-granted utility to a display of planning and execution that’s as close to perfect as you’re likely to see under a family roof.

Think of all the elements that could’ve gone askew: An angle too steep or too shallow, a beam placed just where your pate passes daily, steps that are short, narrow or pitched one way or the other–any of these would make a quick run upstairs seem like a dash through an obstacle course.

Fortunately, others have gone before us and charted the way. And for those interested in learning how to build stairs at home, the good news is that in the great majority of houses, stairs don’t require the skills of a master builder but rather an appreciation of planning. Once that’s established, a circular saw and a few hand tools can work wonders for the careful soul seeking a simple stair to another story.

Basic Stairway Varieties

An open stairway is just what it implies: It’s exposed on one or both sides and uses a balustrade if there are more than two or three steps. Closed stairways are flanked by full or knee walls and use handrails rather than the post-and-banister railing of the open style. Stairs with no backboards, or risers, are called open tread stairways and may or may not be exposed.

  • Published on Jul 1, 1989
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