I am regularly asked about pole prices - everything from prices per size to freight costs and installation, etc. The object of this video and chart is to briefly explain the basic pole prices relative to length, the most commonly discussed characteristic of the pole.

Poles come in numerous sizes, species, grades, and treatment levels. Each of those factors affects price. The biggest factor affecting the delivered price of a pole (treated or untreated) is size - mostly length - and that can be broken into two main reasons.

1. Supply: Trees take a long time to grow and BIG trees are getting scarce.
2. Freight: Permits and special equipment are probably required for long lengths.

In fact, if you order an 80′ long pole today it is likely the tree you will receive is still in the forest today. Crazy, huh?

The chart does not appear clearly in the video. Here it is (below) so you can get a better look.

Don’t use this chart to bid your next project or anything. I simply wanted to make the point that around the 50′ length mark, the pole prices curve turns sharply north. Also notice that the incremental pole prices on the left get larger as well. Yes, it is certainly possible that you might pay $5,000 (delivered) for a 90′ pole. Don’t even ask about poles beyond 100′.

You should always design based on the needs of the structure (as opposed to what materials are cheapest) but “value engineering” is always important to keep budgets in check and projects affordable. With that, if you are building a structure that requires poles longer than about 50 feet, you might consider brainstorming ideas to design the structure so it can use shorter, less expensive, poles.

Basic Take Away about Pole Prices (in a rhyme): Under 20 feet, poles are cheap, beyond fifty, prices are ‘iffy.

According to a study from the Western Wood Preservers Institute the expected life of wood utility poles can be conservatively estimated at 75 years or more when they are properly inspected and maintained. Interestingly, most utility companies estimate the serviceable life span of a pole to be only 35+/- years.

Wood Utility Pole Treatments

Utility poles are usually treated with either pentachlorophenol, chromated copper arsenate, copper napthenate, or creosote. Whichever preservative treatment is used, the main goal of the treatment is to extend the life of the pole by rendering the wood useless as a food source for termites and other wood boring pests and to reduce the effects of decay caused by rot and decay. All of the treatments listed above provide excellent life spans for poles. They are usually chosen based on factors including climate where the poles will be installed, environmental impacts of the chemicals used, concerns around how the poles will be handled, and even individuals’ preferences.

The Biggest Problems for Wood Utility Poles

Most decay of wood utility poles happens at the ground line where the poles are often in contact with moisture which causes rot and decay. Wood utility poles do not have many other natural enemies other than the occasional fire, woodpecker, or car wreck. Wood utility poles are quite resilient and can withstand many natural conditions including high winds, acidic soils, and salty air - conditions steel and concrete poles may not withstand as well.

Increasing the Life of Wood Utility Poles

Properly treated wood utility poles are nearly guaranteed to last about 35 years without any inspections, maintenance, or preventative measures. However, the life span of utility poles can be drastically increased (easily doubled) through a regimen of periodic inspections and maintenance such as pole wrapping, which requires digging around the pole and literally wrapping the pole with a protective barrier. An excellent preventative measure is to coat the pole with the polymer wood coating from American Pole and Timber. The polymer coating must be applied before the pole is installed but provides a protective barrier that will prevent the need for labor intensive pole-wrapping in the future.

The study I mentioned at the beginning of this report actually suggests that utility poles can last more than 135 years (up to 260 years - yes, two, six, zero) but that over time other “degradation mechanisms” take their tolls. Typical maintenance programs are not geared towards correcting those issues which include pole top decay, pole splitting, decay at connections, and excessive weathering so the reasonable estimate of a wood utility pole should probably remain in the neighborhood of 75 years.

Applying Your New Knowledge of Wood Pole Life Spans

There is a great chance you are not in the utility business and just want to know how long your barn poles will last.  While there are no hard numbers on that - at least not that I have found YET - this study reveals that the life is probably longer than you might have even hoped.  Barn poles, fence posts, and small electric poles are treated with the same chemicals as utility poles and usually to the same retention levels using the same methods.  Though utility poles are held to higher standings of structural grading and specifications than your average barn pole you can probably expect the life spans to be similar. Again, the extended life span requires some periodic checks and maintenance.

If you are using treated poles or pilings around a marine environment, the rules are a little different since the surroundings are wetter and generally more dynamic and harsh (waves, changing tides, different organisms, constant contact with water).  Properly treated poles or pilings for freshwater applications can probably be made to last 30 years with proper preventative measures and maintenance.

Here’s some solid logic.  Think of all those old barns and fences that were built by your grandfather’s grandfather practically forever ago. While “they don’t make ‘em like they used to”, the treatments have improved.  You can expect your treated wood poles to last a lifetime.

I made a sketchcast about how to build a wood bulkhead and I wrote about how to build a wood retaining wall but I might have assumed too much about how much you know about the bulkhead materials I listed. They are slightly off the beaten path from “regular” building materials you’d find at your local hardware store so here is a breakdown of basic wood bulkhead materials.

Wood Bulkhead Materials List

Building a wood bulkhead is similar to building a privacy fence. You have posts (pilings), rails (wales), and pickets (sheets or sheeting). A bulkhead typically has great horizontal force applied against it, though, so it has more structural requirements than a fence. In order of front to back (water side to ground side) the parts of a wood bulkhead are:

• Pilings (can be round or square)
• Wales
• Center Match (sometimes call “sloppy tongue & groove”)
• Filter Cloth
• Tie Rods
• Deadmen
• Top Cap
• All the required Hardware (nails, screws, spikes, nuts, washers)

Attention: First, the materials required for YOUR wood bulkhead might be different from those I am showing below so please have your bulkhead designed and specified by a professional builder and/or designer. Also, be sure to use the proper materials for the best longevity. Using cheap materials to save money NOW is only wasting money in the long run. Use properly treated wood, galvanized or stainless hardware, and make sure the bulkhead is installed properly.

Treated Pilings

You can use round or square pilings. It is totally up to you. You might want to match your neighbors’ bulkheads or you might be concerned about costs (round pilings cost less). Either way, use properly treated wood - 2.5 pcf in saltwater and a minimum of .60 pcf in freshwater. For brackish (mixed fresh and salt) water, go with 2.5 pcf.

Wales

Wales are the horizontal boards (like the rails on a fence). Most wood bulkheads have two but some will have three or more. Wales are connected to the land-side of the pilings and will have the center match sheets nailed to them. A very common size used for wales is 3×8. You should use the longest lengths possible to minimize joints, which can become weak spots. You should be able to find 3×8-20’s from most marine construction suppliers. Many other sizes are commonly use depending upon the sizes of the bulkhead and the forces applied to it. I have seen wood bulkheads with 8×8 wales.

Center Match

Center match are sometimes called “sloppy tongue & groove” because the joint is a little loose to allow for swelling in the water so the edges will not break with regular expansion and contraction when the boards alternates between wet and dry.

Center match is usually nominal 2×10 with actual dimensions of 1.5″ x 8.9″. That is, because of the groove each board only spans 8.9 inches - very important to factor into your bulkhead materials list. I have heard of numerous people making an extra trip to the dealer (or paying for another delivery) because they were 5 pieces short of center match.

Filter Cloth

Filter cloth is kind of like a very thick felt. The purpose of filter cloth is to stop silt and dirt from seeping through the spaces between the center match while allowing water to drain and relieve hydrostatic pressure from the bulkhead after a rain - it helps maintain a cleaner appearance and keeps soil behind the bulkhead where it should be. While some people use plastic for this purpose, I truly believe a quality geotextile filter cloth is better because it allows the water to drain. Filter cloth is cheap - use it.

Tie Rods

Tie rods support the structure from behind to keep it from falling forward (into the water). Tie rods will be connected to the pilings on one end (via hold drilled from the front to back of each piling) and to deadmen on the other end. They are simply long rods with about 12″ of threads on each end for a nut.

Builders usually use tie rods that are about 3 times as long as the exposed height of the bulkhead being built. For example, a 4′ tall wall will commonly use 12′ long tie rods. The come in diameters including 1/2″, 5/8″, 3/4″, and larger. Some people use cables instead of tie rods but tie rods are stronger and they can easily be tightened if needed.

Deadmen

I have no idea why deadmen are called deadmen but I can make up some good stories about medieval times and using what you have to protect the castle if you want.

Dead men are treated posts - round or square and often cutoffs - used to “tie back” the bulkhead and support it from behind. Like the rest of the materials, the size of the deadmen used should be based upon the overall height of the wall and the load it bares.

Top Cap

Most top caps are made using a regular S4S 2×12. While they are not required, top caps will provide a little more structural integrity while giving the wall a more finished appearance from above.

Hardware

Use galvanized or stainless steel hardware when building on or near water. Screws are better than nails but more time-consuming. Generally, you will need the following hardware for your bulkhead:

• Tie Rods with 2 nuts and 2 washers for each
• Spikes (60 penny nails) to attach the wales to the pilings
• 16 penny nails (or larger) to attach the center match to the wales and the top cap to the wales
• Staples to attach the filter cloth to the center match

The materials list for a wood bulkhead is pretty simple and short. The bulkhead materials listed above will work for most wood bulkheads or retaining walls built around residential locations. If you need a reliable source for wood bulkhead materials, call the people at Building Products Plus in Houston, TX who let me take the pictures above in their yard. They ship nationwide so you can call them from anywhere.

Here’s a simple sketchcast from WoodScience (became Lumber Talk) on how to build a wood bulkhead.

Dominion Truss, a roof truss manufacturer in the northeast, has this great page of truss terms, giving a definition of the parts of almost any truss design.  They make pressed/manufactured roof and floor trusses for “large and complex” commercial and residential projects and have fairly sophisticated design capabilities as well.

Here is their list of roof truss terms.  You can also read them on their site.

Allowable Stress: The amount of force per unit of area permitted in structural member. Values for allowable stresses of wood can be found in “National Design Specification Supplement Design Values for Wood Construction.”

Allowable Stress Increase or Duration of Load Factor: A percentage increase in the stress permitted in a member, based on the length of time that the load causing the stress acts on the member. The shorter the duration of the load, the higher, the higher the percentage increases in the allowable stress.

Axial Force: A push (compression) or pull (tension) acting along the length of a member. Usually measured in pounds, kips (1000 lb.), tons (2000 lb.) or the metric equivalents.

Axial Stress: The axial force acting at a point along the length of a member, divided by the cross-sectional area of the member (usually measured in pounds per square inch).

Beam Pocket: A void or cutout built into truss to allow beam support.

Bearing: A structural support, usually a wall or beam, that occurs at the top or bottom chord of a roof or floor truss.

Bending Moment: A measure of the bending effect due tot he live load and dead load on a given truss chord member.

Bending Stress: The force per square inch of area acting at a point along the length of a member resulting from the bending moment applied at that point. Usually measured in pounds per square inch or metric equivalent.

Bottom Chord: A horizontal or inclined (e.g., scissors truss) member that establishes the lower edge of a truss, usually carrying combined tension and bending stresses.

Built-up Beam: A single member composed of two wood members stacked on top of each other and fastened together with connector plates, for the purpose of crating additional strength and stiffness.

Butt Cut or Nub Cut: Slight vertical cut at outside edge of truss bottom chord made to ensure uniform nominal span (usually ¼ inch).

Camber: An upward vertical displacement built into a truss bottom chord to compensate for deflection due to dead load.

Cantilever: The condition where both top and bottom chords extend beyond a support with no bearing at the extended end.

Chase Opening: An open panel in a floor truss for the purpose of running utilities through it, such as heating and air conditioning ducts.

Clear Span: Horizontal distance between interior edges or supports.

Combined Stress: The combination of axial and bending stresses acting on a member simultaneously, such as occurs in the top chord (compression + bending) or bottom chord (tension + bending) of a truss.

Compression: Force exerted on truss member that has a compressive or pushing effect on the member and its respective end joint.

Concentrated Load: Superimposed load centered at a given point (e.g., roof-mounted air conditioners).

Dead Load: Any permanent load such as the weight of the truss itself, purlins, sheathing, roofing, ceiling, etc…

Deflection: Movement of a truss (when in place) due to dead and live loads.

Design Loads: The dead and live loads, which a truss is designed to support.

Dual Pitch Truss: A truss that has two different pitches on its top chord.

Facia: Trim board applied to ends of overhang.

Force Diagram: Graphical solution of axial forces as they interact within the members of a truss.

Heel: Point on truss at which the top and bottom chords intersect.

Heel Cut: See Butt Cut.

Interior Bearing Truss: Truss with structural support in the interior truss span as well as at end points.

Lateral Brace: A member placed and connected at right angles to a chord or web of a truss for the purpose of providing lateral support.

Level Return: Lumber filler placed horizontally from the end of an overhang to the outside wall to for a soffit.

Live Load: Any loading which is not of a permanent nature, such as snow, wind, temporary construction loads, etc…

Nominal Span: The horizontal projection of the bottom chord of the truss.

Overhang: The extension of the top chord of a truss beyond the bearing support.

Panel Length: The center line distance between joints measured along the chords.

Panel: The chord segment defined by two succeeding joints.

Panel Point: The point of intersection where a web (or webs) meets a chord.

Peak: Point on truss where the sloped top chords meet. The highest point of the truss.

Plumb Cut: Top chord cut to provide for vertical (plumb) installation of facia.

Purlin: A horizontal framing member used to support sheathing or decking between two main load carrying structural members.

Reaction: Total load transmitted to its support by a given truss.

Saddle: An area where an additional roof slope and a ridge are created to facilitate drainage. Usually found behind vertical obstructions in the roof.

Stress Rated Lumber: Lumber that has been graded either visually or by machine by an approved grading agency and assigned allowable working stress values. All lumber used in engineered wood products such as trusses must be stress rated.

Scupper: An opening in a roof or parapet usually faced with metal flashing to drain water from the roof at a given point.

Sealed Drawings: Drawings prepared, checked, and/or approved by and having the seal of a registered professional architect or engineer.

Slope: (Pitch). The inches of vertical rise in 12 inches of horizontal run for inclined members (generally expressed as 3/12, 4/12, 5/12, etc…).

Splice Point: (Top & Bottom chord splice). The point at which two chord members are joined together to form a single member. It may occur at a panel point or between panel points.

Split Truss: Trusses used where fireplace intersects the truss span, parallel or perpendicular to the truss in the middle or inside of the house. A split truss can be defined also as a stub truss if it is longer than one-half the span or as a monopitch truss if less than one-half the span.

Square Cut: End of top chord cut perpendicular to the slope of member.

Tension: Forces being exerted on a truss member that creates a pulling apart of elongating effect.

Top Chord: An inclined or horizontal member that establishes the upper edge of a truss. Usually carrying compression and bending stresses.

Truss: An engineered pre-built structural component designed to carry superimposed dead and live loads. The truss members are coplanar and are usually assembled such that the members form triangles.

Uniform Load: A total load that is equally distributed over a given length, Usually expressed in pounds per lineal foot (plf).

Valley: A depression in a roof where two roof slopes meet.

Webs: Members that join the top and bottom chords to form the triangular patterns that give truss action, usually carrying tension or compression stresses (no bending).

You can learn more about the parts of structural timber truss on WoodScience (the old LumberTalk.com).

In 50 Ways Firefighters Die Retired Deputy Chief FDNY Vincent Dunn lists timber trusses as a major cause of death among firefighters because of their weight and the fact that when they collapse, they often allow walls to fall as well.

Truss construction is a dangerous roof or floor design when exposed by fire. The large surface-to-mass
ratio of the truss and many small, interconnecting members makes it vulnerable to early collapse.
Wood truss roof collapses have killed 28 firefighters over the past three decades. Truss roofs kill
firefighters working below the truss, on top of the truss, and outside the truss roof building. When a
timber truss roof collapses, it can cause the collapse of an outside bearing wall.

28 firefighter deaths in the last 30 years are attributable to truss collapses. It seems to me this problem can be approached from at least two sides. First, designers might be able to consider fire retardant materials that will decrease the chances of truss failures due to fire. Second, if firefighters are somehow made aware that they will be working in or around a structure that has timber trusses, they may be able to avoid them in case they do fail. I have absolutely no idea how to deal with the the second approach. Posting signs with the design qualities of the burning building does not seem feasible and there is not time to look up the structural design elements of a building before running into it. Looks like this is might be a design issue.

How to Build a Retaining Wall

When asked how to build a retaining wall, my response is almost always, “What kind?” This article covers the basics of how to build various kinds of retaining walls, including wood retaining walls, timber retaining walls, block retaining walls, and even vinyl sheet piling retaining walls. I will go over each wall in more details in following articles. If you want to know how to build another kind of retaining wall after you have read everything here along with the materials I have linked to, leave a comment and I will do my best to respond.

Basics of Retaining Wall Design
Remember that the forces on your retaining wall change with the weather. If the ground behind your retaining wall become saturated with water from rains or watering it will become heavier and put more force on your wall. The design and materials you choose for your retaining wall need to take into account what it will need to support during its darkest moments. If you have any doubts about your materials choice or retaining wall design, please call a civil engineer or professional contractor and spend a few dollars on a professional retaining wall design and/or installation.

Why a Retaining Wall Fails
Retaining walls typically fail in one of three ways:

1. Top Failure - the top collapses forward because the wall was too weak to retain the force behind it.
2. Breach - the wall bursts in the center. This is usually caused by weak or improperly installed materials.
3. Toe failure - the bottom of the wall comes up. This is usually caused because the retaining wall was not planted or supported deeply enough in front.

Each of these causes of failure can be avoided with the proper design, proper materials, and proper installation for your project. Please consult a professional before designing and building your retaining wall and please understand that this article should be used as a guideline only.

How to Build a Wood Retaining Wall

There are really two wood retaining wall designs. The main difference between the two designs is that in one of the designs the retaining boards are horizontal and in the other they are vertical. I personally think using the retaining boards vertically will give you a stronger wall because of the specifics of that particular design. Using the boards horizontally makes building the retaining wall a little easier, though, and still gives you a great wall that will last a long time.

Building a Wood Retaining Wall with Vertical Boards
This is retaining wall design commonly used to build wood bulkheads along shorelines. It is an effective design and the basic rules of it are pretty standard. The drawing is pretty self-explanatory but here are some more guidelines (PLEASE NOTE - the drawings leave out the tie back rods that I strongly advise you use. See the design for the vinyl retaining wall as they use the same tieback systems):

• The posts go about 50% into the ground (e.g., The posts of a 3′ tall wall will be 3′ IN and 3′ OUT)
• The retaining boards should go at least 1′ into the ground (part of the reason this wall is strong than using the boards horizontally)
• The filter cloth should be longer than the retaining boards and roll back away from the wall
• Use granular material (sand or small pebbles) to fill in behind the wall and allow water to drain
• Use at least two back boards but do not be afraid to use three
• For a stronger wall use “center match” or “sloppy tongue and groove” boards for the retainer boards
• You can use round posts or square posts
• Leave a comment if you have any other questions
• Use tieback rods and buried “deadmen” or other anchors for extra wall support to prevent top failure
• The tie rods should start at the front of the posts and extended through them and behind the wall where they bolt to the deadmen.

Building a Wood Retaining Wall with Horizontal Boards

This is probably the most common type of wood retaining wall built around gardens. Unless you are using really heavy materials or a professional retaining wall design, do not use this design to build a wall that is any more than 16″ or two feet tall. It is a simple design meant for small loads such as garden beds. For the moment, buildeazy has the best plans for building this kind of wood retaining wall so I will simply let you read their how to article and get on to explaining how to build other kinds of retaining walls.

How to Build a Timber Retaining Wall

Building a timber retaining wall is conceptually easy and physically back-breaking. If you use properly treated timbers and build the wall properly a timber retaining wall might last 30 years. Timber retaining walls are simple to understand, simple to design, and simple to layout. Using a backhoe or tractor to manipulate the timbers will make building one easy as well.

To build a timber retaining wall, begin by digging a trench along the line of where your wall will be. The trench should be approximately the depth and width of the timbers you will be using to build the wall. If you need space to work on the back side of the wall, dig that space out before you begin building the wall. Use a line level to level the ground where the timbers will lay. Place the first row of timbers flat in the trench. After your first row of timbers is laid along the ground begin stacking your second row of timbers and make sure to stagger the ends of the timbers to ensure a strong wall. Attach each layer of timbers to the layer below it with spikes (8 inch long 60D nails). Timber retaining walls are built straight up - not slanted like stone walls - so keep your timbers plumb as you stack them.

Timber Tie-Backs
If your wall will be higher than about 18 inches use tie-back timbers every eight or ten feet on various levels to hold your wall upright and make sure it will not fall forward due to the constant pressure exerted upon it from behind (top failure). To add a tie-back timber, simply lay one timber perpendicular to the other timbers but with its length extending into the area that will be back filled. When the area is back filled this timber will act as an anchor to hold the wall in place and ensurer your timber retaining wall can withstand time and rough conditions.

Timbers United into One Structure
One aspect of my retaining wall design which is a little different from others you may see is that I prefer to unite the entire timber retaining wall structure with re-bar driven vertically through all the timbers and into the ground via a hole that is drilled through all the retaining wall timbers after they are completely stacked. The re-bar should fit tightly into the drilled hole. This step might be an overkill but I like strong stuff that lasts a long time. An alternative but similar method is to drive re-bar through the bottom two or three layers when the wall is about half-built and then connect the bottom timbers to the top layers once the top layers are added (see pictures).

Use Properly Treated Quality Timbers
Some books and sites will recommend that you use “garden timbers” (those cheap ones with two round sides and two flat edges) to build a retaining wall but I strongly advise against that practice because “garden timbers” are typically made from the cheapest pieces of wood leftover from the production of other lumber or plywood and contain mostly heartwood which does not accept pressure treatments. They will probably be heavily rotted within a few years and will eventually fail. Building a timber retaining wall is hard work so use timbers that will last. You might even consider using timbers with a vinyl or polymer coating. American Pole and Timber is a reputable company that ships quality timbers nationwide and offers a few types of vinyl coatings that can make wood last virtually forever.

How to Build a Vinyl Retaining Wall

Building a vinyl retaining wall is basically exactly like building a vinyl bulkhead and since I have made a sketchast about that before, I am using it here (below). The main things to remember about building a vinyl retaining wall are:

1. You push vinyl sheet pilings into the ground. Don’t hammer them.
2. Lead with the male edge of the sheets because the female side gets clogged with mud and makes it almost impossible to add the next sheet.
3. Keep the sheets straight (vertically and inline) as you drive.
4. You may find it easier and faster to drive two sheets side by side instead of strictly driving one at a time.
5. Use properly treated wood for your wale and backboard and make sure they are solidly connected to the sheets and one another.
6. Use galvanized or stainless steel hardware.
7. Building a vinyl retaining wall is hard work and requires equipment. Expect it.

How to Build a Block Retaining Wall

Block retaining walls are built very much like the others and some people consider them the easiest type of wall to build. They also look very nice and allow you to easily build a wall with curves. The process of building a block retaining wall is fairly slow and painstaking because you are building with such small pieces but the end result is probably worth it. There are a million great tutorials already existing about how to build block retaining walls so for now I am going to point you to them and get on with other projects.

This video from Alan Block is far-and-away the best about how to plan a block retaining wall. I am not endorsing their products (at least not intentionally) but this is a really great video.

Other great tutorials for how to build block retaining walls can be found at PaverSearch, this student’s page, DoItYourSelf, and Lowe’s.

There are the basics of how to build retaining walls - five kinds of retaining walls, in fact. If you have any questions or want to know about another kind of retaining wall, leave a comment below. I will respond as quickly as I can. Thanks.

Construction Span Tables

I often get asked by engineers, architects, and designers (and farmers) about the span tables for dimensional lumber. So, I have compiled a list of many places with various span tables for your reading enjoyment and project fulfillment. The idea here is to create a one-stop shop for span tables so let me know if I am missing something.

Roof Truss Span Tables: This is a great find for roof truss span tables. It is easy to use and breaks down the span tables by truss type, pitch, and length. Here’s a list of roof truss manufacturers, too.

Maximum Span Tables for Joists & Rafters: The MSR Lumber Producers Council created and published these span tables floor joists, ceiling joists, and roof rafters. The pdf is 12 pages long and the span tables start on page 3.

Span Tables for Structural-Use Panels: Free pdf download from the APA Engineered Wood Association for Structural-Use Panel Span Tables.

Floor Joist Span Tables: Southernpine.com probably has the best publications - like this one showing floor joist span tables.

Residential Steel Beam & Column Span Tables: This is a pretty specific span table (warning: 29 page pdf) developed by the American Iron & Steel Institute. The span tables start appearing on page 12. If you are having trouble sleeping, start at the beginning. Otherwise, stick to the span tables.

Lumber Span Tables: This is a span table for U.S. Spans for Canadian Species from the Strober Organization, Inc. a supplier for contractors in the eastern U.S.

Header and Beam Span Tables: These span tables are a great find if you are trying to build with beams and/or engineered lumber. The pdf is free from The Southern Pine Council.

Deck Joist Span Tables: Their is a good span table tool in here for deck joists but I cannot link directly to it so go here and click on “Joist Calculator” about halfway down the page. You might have to sign up/in.

Span Table Pocket Card: This is like a cheat sheet from The Souther Pine Council. Every wood professional should have a copy of this around somewhere. The pdf is free or you can order the real thing (laminated) for $0.50 each.

Beam Span Tables: The American Institute of Timber Construction has a nice list of tools and span tables for timber construction.

Bridge Span Tables: This is just interesting and offers no actual value. It is a chart of the longest bridge spans around the world. By “span” they are referring to the distance between the two farthest-apart supports on the bridge (the longest spans). The lengths, which are in meters, are not referring to the total lengths of the bridges.

Tell me what I missed. I know there are a million other span tables out there and I would like to list them here. If you know of something, add it yourself as a comment and I will add it to the list.

Decks are easy to build. You level an area, throw down some joists and stringers for a deck foundation, screw deck boards to the top of all that, and trip finish by trimming it up. Sure, it’s easier said than done but - still - it’s not hard. For some reason, though, this question comes up repeatedly as a sticking point for weekend warriors: “How do you build deck stairs?”

How to Build Deck Stairs - It’s Easy

Deck stairs are built just like the rest of the deck. To add deck stairs onto your existing deck, you simply fasten deck boards (steps or treads) to the tops of decks stair stringers and attach the stairs to your deck. You can make the stair stringers yourself or you may be able to find pre-made stair stringers but even the pre-made stringers will need some customizing based on the height of your deck. Now, let’s build some deck stairs.

Calculating How Many Steps Your Deck Stairs Need

The easiest way to figure out how many steps your deck stairs stringers will need is to use the very simple rule of dividing the height of your deck by the riser height of your steps (and round to the nearest number). Risers are usually 6 to 8 inches high. The height of your deck is measured from the ground to the top of the deck boards (where you step onto the deck).

So, if you want 7 inch risers and the height of your deck is 48 inches then 48/7 = 6.86 steps. After rounding, you will build 7 steps into your deck stairs.

Materials Required to Build Deck Stairs

The two main components required to build deck stairs are stair treads and stair stringers.

The treads, or steps, are made from one of the following:

• side-by-side 2×6 or 5/4×6
• 2×10
• 2×12 (my personal preference)

The stair stringers are almost always made from 2×12’s, which are actually 1.5″x11.25″. You might want to use pre-cut stair stringers to ave yourself some time on measuring, layout, and cutting.

Other materials you may need to build deck stairs include:

• Coated Screws (Primeguard Plus are excellent screws)
• Metal Angle (for treads)
• Lag Screws (for treads and/or connecting stairs to deck)
• Hex or Carriage Bolts (for connecting stairs to deck)

Building and Attaching Deck Stairs - Build Deck Stairs from the Ground Up

It is easier to build deck stairs on the ground before attaching them to the deck but they get heavy once all of the stair treads are attached to the stair stringers, which makes them difficult to properly and safely maneuver into position at the deck. The best compromise is to attach your stringers together first and put only a few stairs treads on before attaching the stairs to the deck. Make to use strong hardware such as lag screws or hex bolts when attaching deck deck stairs as the consequences of failing stairs can be disastrous (hopefully this is obvious).

All I have done above is try to prepare you for a few of the sticking points that might make a deck stairs project less fun. Hopefully, by knowing those basics, you will be able to get through your building project a little faster. There are a million places online that will tell you how to build decks and how to build deck stairs. I listed the best of the best below for you.

Great Resources for How to Build Deck Stairs

Step by Step Plans for How to Build Deck Stairs: Installing Deck Stairs

How to Build Deck Stairs: Laying Stringers and Attaching Treads

How to Build Deck Stairs: Design, Layout, and Assembly of Deck Stairs (this is the best how to)

How to Build Deck Stairs Video: Video from This Old House About Building Deck Stairs