I have built a lot of different stairs on my property. I’ve built stone stairs and wooden stairs. I perfected the process when I decided to make a 100 riser stairway that runs up a steep hill the length of one side of my property.
If you have a slope on your property you know how hard it is to get around on it. That’s why the first thing I do is build stairs on my hillsides. This makes landscaping so much easier by using outdoor stairs to build steps to build more a pleasing landscape. Hopefully this will make your outside stair building easier.
in this video i’m going to demonstrate the easiest way to make stairs for hillside gardens and terraces
About four years ago i used this method to make a 100 step staircase that ran the entire length of one side of my property [Music] now i don’t have any stairs that i need to make on my property right now so i’m going to make a scale model to demonstrate how to do this now the best lumber to use in this particular application on a hillside stairway is two by six and two by six is best because anything over seven inches high on a on a riser is uh is too much for the the normal step of a person and so six inches kind of falls into a kind of a safe spot so what i do is the first thing that i do is i make a box i set the bottom and the top risers and i make sure that the top of these risers is level so you’re going to get a level you’re going to set it on each of these and you’re going to level them out
once you have the top and the bottom razors in the right location you’re going to pre-drill on either side two holes and at the top you’re gonna pre-drill two holes and then you’re gonna screw it all together
now i’m just doing this for demonstration purposes so you’re going to have two screws on each side of each riser now once you’ve completed the box what you need to do is you’re going to flip it over
and you’re going to staple weed barrier to the underside of the box [Music] obviously you will be using a lot more staples because you will be doing it in real life okay once you have the box and you have the weed barrier stapled to the underside of it i like to cross cut a piece of wood that would be roughly the same dimensions maybe even a little bit longer to make the
stakes and what you’re going to do is you’re going to cut a little slash in the underside there of the weed barrier you’re going to take a mallet and you’re going to pound this stake all the way down into the ground until it’s below the level of the top of the riser and you’re going to do that on both sides on the bottom you’re going to pound in the second one and then you’re going to screw them in from the outside probably you’re going to use three and a half or four inch screws probably four inch screws to do all of this construction okay once the bottom is anchored you’re going to set a step [Music] and you’re going to figure out the point that would be straight across the top of the step and the point that would line up
for the bottom of the next riser once you have that you’re going to pre-drill holes on either side of it you’re going to screw it in
and you’ll repeat this process until you make it all the way up your stair now you’re going to need to figure out based on your slope and your angle and your preference the spacing um a lot of times i just divide the space up evenly as long as it’s that the the bottom of the next riser is about the same level as the top of the previous one so there you have it the most basic overview of how to do a section of stairs on a hillside it’s important that you use ground contact pressure treated lumber otherwise it won’t last very long and it’s also important that you pound a two foot stake on either side into the ground all the way so that it’s below the level of the riser this is to ensure that it really stays put
the final step obviously is you’re going to fill each of these bays with gravel and it has to be gravel it can’t be sand it can’t be dirt because then they’ll just be raised beds full of weeds so it has to be gravel i’m sure i’m probably presenting more questions than answers but please if you have a question or a comment please leave it in the comment section below
31 Comments
Merci from Montreal, Canada.
Really like the video. What if you have a longer run (steep hill)?
How do you connect the boards?
Great video!
We built a ramp with a clear centre about 8 inches wide and 2 x1x 8 inch blocks of wood "steps" on either side. This way you can push a wheelbarrow up with your feet on the wee steps. No sliding.
While building our house, my husband made a small "balcony" outside one of the sliders that was about 6' off the ground. When the decks were built, that had to come down. He was going to tear it apart. I suggested we put it on the short bank up to the veg garden. It fit perfectly. The backs of the steps are at a sight angle because they're 90 degrees based on the sides. They're just pine 2x lumber but have held up for almost 25 yrs. No weed barrier & no gravel. I just weed them occasionally.
Very helpful video – thanks. I was quoted £870 to have a similar set of stairs built for a 4 foot slope ( only 4 steps) – crazy London prices. This has given me the confidence to have a go and save a lot of money. ( even after I buy a circular saw!) I look forward to learning more from you – thank you.
Help! I followed your example exactly – no improvisations. And apparently, I did something wrong. I used 2×6 pretreated wood; 12 ft long; 3 ft wide. I built a total of 5 bays/stairs. My gravel just arrived this morning so I've been outside filling the bays, and it looks great, yet when I step on the 1st stair, I am sliding downward, just like the slope pre-stairs. Maybe my risers aren't high enough, but they are perfectly level, each one. I spaced them 27.75" apart, again on a total of 12' of stairs (5 stairs/bays). I don't know what to do to make a correction.
Any estimation of how much gravel you used to fill those 100 steps?
Awesome- How much site prep, if any, would you say is necessary for this method? This seems perfect for getting up a rather steep, but fairly short, grass slope on our property.
Hi, new subscriber! You make great videos. I'm thinking about making stairs like this for an area in my yard next to my terraced raised garden beds. Do you bury any portion of the long side boards or any portion of the risers that rest on the ground or is it strictly the stakes and weight of the gravel holding the stairs in place? Thank you for your help!
Hi- Thanks for a great instructional video. What are your thoughts on using rebar where you used wooden stakes? Would that work and would it be as effective? Thank you😊
This is perfect thank you! Is there an optimal or max angle of the hill that this can be built on?
Thanks! One question – why not drive the spikes on the downhill side of the riser to better support the weight against gravity?
I'm looking to do the same at my place – I really appreciate this video. Question for you… How wide can you go with the step(2×6) before the weight of the gravel, rain, etc… causes a structural issue?
Thanks for the Video! This is just what I needed to comfortably get from my driveway up to the side yard. I'm building an approx.7.5' run, 6 stairs at 25 degrees. Do you think screws are adequate? I'm thinking of toe nailing with 10d 3" nails three each side. (Overkill?) and using deck screws for the stakes. Lastly, should I level the slope to the bottom of the lower riser? Sorry for all the questions, just don't have the energy to do this twice. Thanks again!
Great video, THANK YOU!!
Hi, everytime I try to pound stakes into the ground, they won't go in bc my ground is so rocky. It's a common problem in the part of Colorado I live in. Even trying to put a spiral stake into the ground is nearly impossible. It's so frustrating! Any advice? Anyone?
I owe you so much time and money sir. Wow!
Simple do it yourself stairs video …. With 16 videos lmao 🤣 😂
Bravo!! Thanks man!!!
I like this technique. However, I have a stack of railroad ties and so I plan to use them along with some other materials to make a set of steps back behind my house.
Ive just got my dad to order a load of wood for doing it this way. Can i just check you dont dig these into the bank at all, apart from the stakes… It just sits on top and creates bays that you fill with gravel? Surely I have to dig out of the hill on each step to make each step flat to fill? Im just a bit worried because watching this video again it seems like you have douubled up the 2×6 in a lot of places? Thanks
Looking to build stairs like this.
My only concern is getting stakes pounded in deep enough. It's rocky where I am. Thinking about having some rebar as a backup if wood stakes won't go in.
Thoughts anybody?
Do you dig the ground and push these into the dirt? How do you get them to stay on the hill?
Is there a grade /slope at which it is too steep to do this?
Thank you for your help we moved into a river front property with steep slope down to beach area. The second day I fell down the slope I am 57 years old lol the older you get the harder you fall. I'm ok I just don't want anyone else to do as I did. So now we have a rope to help us down by my 5 year old cousin comes and stays with us and we need some stairs to keep her safe. Even thought she does good with the rope with a little practice we need stairs. Thank you again.
excellent. Thank You
Newbie here 🙂 Why do risers go in sort of crooked? I'm literally just beginning to learn about this type of constructing!
Even with the ground block and gravel the weeds will still grow, unless you use weed killer granules every year. I did a shed base using this same method. Pulling weeds out of the gravel every year.
I love the simplicity of this step/stair build. My question is, do I build this on the hill, or do I build it in a shop / garage, then carry it out to my slope and place it ? Then do the staking?
What are these, stairs for ANTS? These stairs should be atleast….3 times bigger than this!