Q. I have to build a simple set of steps but I'm totally lost. I don't understand how to calculate what the distance should be for the risers and the treads. Everything about building steps seems ...

Simple stairs have just two components. The flat board that your foot steps on is called a tread. The treads connect to side stringers and sometimes to one that is in the middle of the stairs. The ...

DEAR TIM: I have to build a simple set of steps but I’m totally lost. I don’t understand how to calculate what the distance should be for the risers and the treads. Everything about building steps ...

DEAR TIM: I read your recent column about building stairs for a deck. I can handle that, but I’m worried about how to make all the complex cuts required for the deck stair railing. Can you give me a ...

Lloyd Alter is Design Editor for Treehugger and teaches Sustainable Design at Ryerson University in Toronto. Alternating tread stairs are terrific for saving space; you only put one foot on a tread at ...