A ladder is a useful attribute in any home, especially a country house. It is indispensable during repairs, during construction work, when harvesting in the garden or processing trees. It can be bought at any hardware store. But each owner should understand that a wooden step ladder can be made with your own hands, and it is not at all difficult if you have this step-by-step instruction at hand.
Pros and cons of a wooden staircase
The wood structure has a number of indisputable advantages over purchased metal options:
- environmentally friendly material is used for its manufacture;
- the product is easy to assemble yourself;
- lends itself to easy processing, without requiring a large amount of additional funds, you can do only with varnish or paint.
- Due to the natural beauty of the tree, the staircase can be used as a decor element to create a stylish interior.
Despite the high popularity among summer residents and owners of private houses, the product has some disadvantages. The main disadvantages are:
- low carrying capacity - such structures withstand, as a rule, no more than 120-150 kg;
- instability - wooden ladders in this sense are more preferable;
- susceptibility to external climatic factors: sudden changes in temperature, moisture and sunlight do their job - over time, the stairs begin to rot, dry out, creak underfoot.
To extend the life of the product, it must not be stored outdoors in the open, but in a room with moderately humid air and a constant temperature. In addition, you should take care of its protection using various means: impregnation, antiseptics, varnishes or paints.
Important design features
Unlike sliding or folding, the ladder has a very simple device. It is an integral structure consisting of two long wooden blocks and steps.
Side beams or bowstrings act as supports of the structure, which are connected by crossbars. Such a product involves the absence of any mechanisms, so anyone can make a ladder without the presence of certain skills and knowledge.
Tools and materials
To make a portable ladder, the first thing to do is choose a building material. Given the conditions of its operation, it should have a high degree of wear resistance.
For these purposes, mainly coniferous wood is used, combining strength and low cost. However, professionals are advised to fork out once, but buy quality oak or maple timber. Their life is much longer than conifers.
For work, you will also need a small set of tools and materials:
- saw;
- self-tapping screws;
- screwdriver;
- roulette;
- antiseptic;
- wood glue;
- rubber shoes for stop.
Manufacturing instruction
To make the design as useful as possible in the economy, some rules should be taken into account during its manufacture:
- The maximum length is 5 m, the recommended step of the crossbars is 35 cm.
- The steps are fixed in the grooves of the bowstring.
- To strengthen the structure, the supports are fastened at the bottom, top and in the middle every 2 m with metal ties.
- For supports, it is necessary to use nozzles or "shoes" that ensure the stability of the product.
Size calculation
Despite the fact that straight staircases are simple to execute, you still can not do without a diagram or drawing. For their preparation, it is necessary to make a simple calculation of the dimensions of the product.
The recommended distance between the support beams (1) should be 0.6 m below and 0.4 m above. The interval between the steps (2) is approximately 35 cm. To join the beams and steps in the bowstring, grooves are selected, and a spike from 4 to 5 cm long is made at the end of the step. When assembling the structure, screeds (3) are needed for 1 piece per two meters.
The staircase for outdoor work is made of bars that must meet the following criteria:
- they should be equally even, like twin brothers;
- cracks, knots, chips are unacceptable on the support beams - the presence of even a very small defect can lead to a sudden fracture of the structure;
- with a ladder height of less than 3 m, the cross-section of the beam of the supporting beams should be at least 4 × 6 cm, with a height of more than 3 m - at least 4 × 8 cm;
- the cross-section of the steps-cross members and screed - 3 × 6 cm.
Assembly assembly
To assemble a simple wooden staircase with your own hands, you must clearly follow the step-by-step instructions:
- To strengthen the structure and give the horizontal position of the upper face of the step when tilting, you need to make nicks:
- Along the entire length of the beam, mark where the steps will be installed.
- Measure the width of the crossbars from the marks (5cm), put the second mark, drawing the edges of the notch under the square.
- Put marks on the side faces on both sides and at the bottom notch depth (1.5-2 cm).
- Cut to the marked depth.
- Draw a slanting line by connecting the labels.
- Remove the layer of wood by placing the ax with a blade on the top mark and tapping on it with a hammer.
- Align the notch with an ax.
- Similarly, make notches on the two support beams.
- Grind the edges of the bowstring with a grinder.
- Grind the bevel of the notch.
- Put paint on the nicks, let it dry.
- Getting to the steps. Carefully chamfer each board.
- Make one of the ends basic. To do this, put the marking with a square, saw off the uneven edges, grind the ends.
- Grind the bars in the same way as bowstrings.
- We proceed to the manufacture of the upper and lower rungs. The first is shorter than the second. Choose the width yourself. In our example, it is 65 cm at the bottom and 45 at the top. Use a tape measure to measure the required length.
- Draw a cut line and cut off the excess.
- Sand the ends.
- 2 cm from the edge of each bar, draw a line and mark the middle on it.
- Make a through hole at the line intersection.
- Drill a countersink with a drill.
- Place the crossbars in the notches and align the structure so that the ends of the steps are flush with the side faces of the support beams.
- Find a drill that is 0.3 mm smaller than the diameter of the thread shaft.
- Through the through holes in the steps, mark the notches. Then, removing the crossbars, drill a hole at 2/3 of the depth.
- On the back of the steps, in places where they are adjacent to the supports, apply paint.
- Put the crossbars in place and screw them with screws.
- We fasten the remaining steps. Put the bars in the notches and align the ends flush with the side faces of the bowstring.
- Mark the desired length on the other side and saw off the extra length of the intermediate rungs.
- The remaining steps are prepared and installed in the same way as the first two.
- In addition, to resist slipping, install rubber caps on the lower ends of the support beams - you can buy them at a building materials store or make them yourself.
Using this assembly scheme of the staircase structure, you can easily and quickly achieve the expected result.
Painting and protective treatment
The assembled ladder requires additional processing. This will improve its operational characteristics and protect against the negative effects of environmental factors.
As protective agents, paints, varnishes are suitable. It is strictly forbidden to use oil paints for painting stairs. They make the construction slippery. Instead, an ordinary drying oil is suitable. It is applied in several layers and varnished on top. Protective agents are applied to the structure using a roller or brush.
How to build an old staircase
To sometimes climb into the attic or repair the facade of the building, the available height of the stairs is not enough. To build up the old staircase, boards are lapped to the support beams. However, it should be checked how durable the old structure is, whether it can withstand the additional load. It is also important to remember that the height of the ladder should not be more than 5 meters.