Stairs

  • My Stairs Are Squeaking - How Do I Fix Them? - If you live in an old house, squeaking stairs are usually part of the package. If you've lived in an old house long enough, the squeaking stairs are a clear sign that someone's walking up or down them. Nobody gets to sneak up and down the stairway in an old house.
  • Using Recycled Sidewalks to Build Concrete Stairs And Small Retaining Walls - As recycling becomes a bigger issue in today's society and dump fees continue to rise, anything we can do, to make a difference, we should. Using recycled sidewalks to build concrete stairs is an excellent way for recycling old sidewalks and driveways.
  • Do-It-Yourself Stair Safety Solutions - Common Sense - A majority of do-it-yourselfers seem to practice common sense and have become extremely skilled at figuring things out. The problem is, some of these things don't work well. I'm here to give the average do-it-yourselfer, some advice about stair safety.
  • Quit Building Unsafe Stairs - Building Safety Problems - One of the biggest problems with construction today is knowledge. There are hundreds if not thousands of construction workers out there building projects, who really don't have enough education, skill or years of experience behind them. Unsafe stairs create safety problems, along with liability issues.
  • Building Codes for Stair Handrails and Guardrails - These building codes might not apply in your specific city or county. Make sure that you check with your local building department to verify any of the information below, before actually constructing your stairway hand rail or guardrail.
  • Basic Stair Building Vocabulary - Here are a couple of useful terms that stair builders use in the construction industry. Keep something in mind here, carpenters who work on the East Coast of the United States, often referrer to certain types of stair building materials or operations with other words.
  • Dangers Using Wood Stair Cleats - I would imagine most people don't even know what it wood stair cleat is, in construction we have so many words that describe the same thing. A stair cleat is another word for a thread bracket.
  • Determining the Height of the Stair Landing - Anyone who's interested in stair construction should understand how to determine the height of the stair landing. This is often one of the most confusing and difficult things for most carpenters who work in the construction industry today.
  • How Many Stair Stringers Do I Use? - I get asked this question a lot, how many stair stringers do I use when building a set of stairs? These questions are actually easy to answer and with a little bit of common sense and the ability to read a tape measure effectively, I should be able to give you a clear explanation that will provide you with the answers that you are looking for.
  • Really Basic Stair Construction Advice - I have spent at least 10 years of my professional career doing nothing but building stairways, staircases and stairs in all shapes and forms. I have built stairways that curve and bend, long and small and even short and fat. I used to average building three sets of stairs a day and would consider myself to be a master stair framing and stair building professional.
  • Stairway Building Contractor Problems - The last two words that any homeowner or new home builder wants to hear is contractor and problems, in the same sentence. How do you avoid stairway building contractor problems and what can you do, once they happen.
  • Are Stairs Easy to Build? - To answer your question, yes to some people and no to others. I have met some people who can't even imagine building a set of stairs and would rather hire someone, simply because it is too difficult to do. That's not necessarily going to be the case all of the time.
  • Stair Building Man or Myth - It was about 15 years ago, when I met this man who was one of the best stair builders in my area. I learned a lot from this guy and he turned out to be one of the best stair builders or stair building contractors that I had ever worked with in my life.
  • Finding a Good Stair Building Contractor - I don't know how many times, I have been asked the same question, “How can I find a good stair building contractor.” These guys are few and far between in the construction business. There are a lot of framing contractors and construction home framers who are skilled at framing homes, but lacked the proper skills and experience to be someone, that I would consider to be a good stair builder.
  • Do-It-Yourself Stairway Replacement Ideas - So you're interested in building a nice set of stairs, possibly for your exterior deck or even the interior of your home. Maybe you're going to repair a broken or severely damaged set of stairs, located within your home or on your property.
  • Stair Building All over the World - It's hard to imagine, but as long as they've been building homes, that require additional levels, they've been building stairs. If I was to guess, I have probably installed at least 5000 sets of stairs in a variety of forms and designs. This doesn't compare to all of the stairs that have been built for centuries.
  • How to Repair Squeaking Stairs Covered with Carpeting - Your tired of walking up and down the stairs and listening to them squeak, you have no idea what's causing this horrible noise, but you're tired of it and it's time to fix your squeaking stairs.
  • Metal Stair Tread Brackets - Metal stair tread brackets are used instead of wood cleats and for plenty of good reasons. Wood stair cleats or tread brackets often become a safety hazard over time, as the wood starts to deteriorate. Metal stair tread brackets, will not disintegrate as fast as the wood it is normally attached to.
  • 2 X 12 or 3 X 12 Stair Treads - If you've built as many stairways as I have, this is a very simple question to answer. Should I use 2 x 12 or 3 x 12 for my stair treads? Without a doubt I would use the 3 x 12 for a couple of reasons.
  • Stair Handrailing or Guard Rail - Before the 1980s most stairways had a handrail and to this day, most stair handrails are not considered guard rails. Well things have changed and now most stairways require a guard rail and it gripable handrail.
  • Stair Lighting Problems - Walking up and down the stairs in the dark could become a safety issue. If the stairs in the house are not that old, there should be a light switch at the top and a light switch at the bottom of the stairway.