At Home In The Woods

[Obed]

Make sure those steps have even riser heights to the finished floor level. The code on stairs is pretty picky and for good reason. If the heights are off more than 1/4" from one to the next, it can become a trip hazard. You wouldn't think that could possibly be true, but it is. Obviously the step off onto the ground will have some variation that is unavoidable, but make sure the rest of it is uniform.

All the risers will be 6 1/2 inches high. The framing sketch doesn't appear to be 6 1/2" but if you think it through it works out. The deck boards are 1" thick.

 

[clemsonfor]

Dave,
Yes we have house wrap behind the vinyl siding. Are you saying that water that gets behind the vinyl siding will drain back to the outside instead of just running down the wall behind the siding?

I guess I could just drive the shutter screws through the vinyl and not worry about it. That's probably how it is done on 99% of all the vinyl sided houses out there. The engineer in me still hates to do it that way ...
Obed

If it gets behind the vynal it will run down the wall then out, but will run down the house wrap, then out the bottom near foundation in the drain holes. This is the reason for the house wrap.

In a severe T-storm, im talking the 50mph wind kind that spawn tornados, and have driving rain, you will get some rain behind that vinal.

 

[MotorSeven]

One more thing, pour a footing for the steps. If you don't sooner or later they will sink on one side or the other and look like heck.

 

[Obed]

One more thing, pour a footing for the steps. If you don't sooner or later they will sink on one side or the other and look like heck.

M7,
I'm sure you are correct. However, at this point I'm just too lazy. After I build the steps, I intend on leveling the ground below them and will put some gravel over the dirt to keep the framing out of puddles. Then I plan to set the steps on the gravel. I'm sure the steps will settle some but I can always tweak the ground under the steps if that happens. I don't plan on bolting the steps to the porch; they will be free-standing. If settling becomes too much of a pain, I could set the steps on some pavers to slow down the setting.

Another consideration is - we may eventually replace the steps with a ramp. If we do that, a concrete footer under the existing steps might get in the way.

Obed

 

[dstig1]

I would still recommend bolting them to the deck. I haven't had any issue with frost heaves with a setup like that. I used paver bricks as the step off and partly as the foundation for the bottom step. Even some concrete pads/blocks would help with a foundation for it to some degree, and they would be much easier to remove later if you want to go the ramp route. Just a thought.

 

[clemsonfor]

M7,
I'm sure you are correct. However, at this point I'm just too lazy. After I build the steps, I intend on leveling the ground below them and will put some gravel over the dirt to keep the framing out of puddles. Then I plan to set the steps on the gravel. I'm sure the steps will settle some but I can always tweak the ground under the steps if that happens. I don't plan on bolting the steps to the porch; they will be free-standing. If settling becomes too much of a pain, I could set the steps on some pavers to slow down the setting.

Another consideration is - we may eventually replace the steps with a ramp. If we do that, a concrete footer under the existing steps might get in the way.

Obed

Unless you or your family is in a wheel chair you do NOT want a ramp. Or unless your going to park your mower or bikes up there. I have a ramp off my screen porch and its a huge Pain. There steps under it but i have not torn it out yet. It takes up a ton of space, looks stupid etc. I have left it because my fater in law will probly be in a wheel chair at some point and i saw that, so i have left it for that time if need be.

 

[RadarTech]

Unless you or your family is in a wheel chair you do NOT want a ramp. Or unless your going to park your mower or bikes up there. I have a ramp off my screen porch and its a huge Pain. There steps under it but i have not torn it out yet. It takes up a ton of space, looks stupid etc. I have left it because my fater in law will probly be in a wheel chair at some point and i saw that, so i have left it for that time if need be.

I have 7 steps on my carport entrance and 3 on the back porch....
On 2 occasions I wish I had a ramp... Knee injuries and moving firewood wood...

With a wheel barrow and a ramp or a small wagon and a ramp firewood is easily moved.....

I'd say think carefully about a ramp
When I add to the deck... I will likely put a ramp in....

 

[Obed]

My wife sprayed Roundup on the weeds in the yard and gave the weeds time to die. Then she put down more grass seed. She rented a machine called an over-seeder. This thing has tines that tear up the soil a bit and spreads seeds in the process. She and her dad seeded 3/4 of the yard on Friday and I helped Sat morning. However, the machine would not start Sat. morning so I scratched up the dirt with a rake while my wife followed behind me and seeded.

We came to find out that we had the gas valve shut instead of open and could have used the machine. After I left the house to go play, my wife's dad came over and helped her re-seed around the garden area using the machine.

 

[clemsonfor]

Seems like a lot of work for an area you had green grass in? But for me as long as its green i dont care what it is!! Pure grass stands take a lot of work and frequent mowing to keep up!! I do have some nice St augustine in my back yard that thankfully is so aggressive that a few mowings a summer can maintain it as it crawls and grows up to help compete. But cause i dont have irrigation it wont crawl out of the shade as it needs more moisture than is availible out of the shade.

 

[Obed]

Seems like a lot of work for an area you had green grass in?

True. The front yard wasn't in too bad of shape but had stuff in it we didn't intentionally plant. The back yard was in pretty bad condition. The grass was quite thin as a result of bad seed/straw and a very dry spring. So we try again.
Obed