How to Determine Stair Treads

Stairs consist of two parts: treads and risers. The treads are the flat part that you step on while the risers support the treads. When you plan out a staircase that you want to build, you need to know how many treads you need. However, the number of treads is determined by the number of risers, which in turn depends on the height of the staircase and the maximum height of each step.

Measuring tape

Instructions

- 1
  Measure the total rise for your stairway. The rise equals the distance between the two surfaces you are trying to connect. For example, if you want to make a stairway from the ground to your porch, the total rise is the distance from the ground level to the porch level.
- 2
  Divide the total rise by the maximum height you want for each stair. For example, if you want your stairs to be no larger than 6 inches and the total rise equals 50 inches, divide 50 by 6 to get 8.33.
- 3
  Round to the next whole number to find the number of risers you need for your stairs. In this example, round 8.33 up to nine to find you need nine risers.
- 4
  Subtract one from the number of risers to determine the number of stair treads you need to complete your stairs. In this example, subtract one from nine to find you need eight treads.

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