🖼️
The project:
Our property slopes downwards and the land had never been improved by the previous owners of some 60 years. After numerous slips and falls, I decided to finally make steps. Two spots in need were down the side of the house (some 16 metres) and to open up the backyard (a further 13 metres). Both steps of stairs were tailored to their specific location. As an accountant, I had a significant learning curve. I learned a range of skills. There were a number of engineering challenges and I wanted both jobs to be done well and right the first time.
- Materials:
H4 pine sleepers (75mm x 20mm x Var lengths)
Brackets
Blue plugs
Screws
Long landscaping screws
Concrete
Wire mesh
Agi pipe
Black builders plastic
River sand
Pavers
Blue metal
- Tools:
Drill
Impact driver
Mitre saw
Digital level
Jack hammer
Tamper
- Step 1:
Side steps (planning)
BEFORE photos:
Planning was critical as while there was an obvious natural slope to the land, I didn’t want to get in the situation where I either had to excavate or bring in a significant amount of soil if I didn’t get the gradient right.
There was an air conditioner condenser and an entrance to a separate room under the house that both required landings. Once they were taken account of, the steps up and down could be mapped out accordingly.
I did a few iterations of a chalk outline on the Besser block side fence (to plan the steps) until I was happy with it.
- Step 2:
Side steps (material / tools)
In other projects I had used 50mm pine sleepers which already were starting to show signs of failing. I determined to use 75mm pine sleepers (H4 grade for wet soil) for the steps.
I ran the sleepers between the Besser block fence and the brick work of the house (approximately 1.70 metres in length).
I used a mitre saw to cut the pine sleepers to length. I had bought it to cut 50mm sleepers, so it wasn’t quite up to the task of cutting 75mm sleepers. For every cut I needed to cut the front and the back to get through the wood.
I used a rechargeable drill with a hammer function to drill into the Besser blocks and the brick work.
Using blue wall plugs, I attached the sleepers with heavy duty brackets and MultiONE screws (an amazing innovation in screws). .
They sleepers proved to be extremely solid and you could walk up and down them without them moving. Not being connected to each other, they were essentially individual retaining walls.
- Step 3:
Side steps (fill and paving)
Once the sleepers were in place, there was still the need to fill each step with rocks and dirt (principally from other parts of the steps).
My wife then levelled out each step and compacted it with a “tamper” (a heavy tool used to compact soil). She then added black builders plastic (to stop weeds coming through) and added a base of river sand. She then positioned the pavers (300mm x 300mm). On the house side, she added some blue metal as a decorative finish.
All up there were 20 steps / landings and 225 pavers used.
- Step 4:
“Grand staircase” (planning)
Long ago, I had made makeshift stairs down the backyard out of two long sleepers arranged in a “V” shape with some cross pieces (for grip). This was a temporary arrangement that had outstayed its welcome.
My young son (Alex) didn’t like the slippery slope down the back. So, after completing the steps running down the side of the house, my son asked me to make a “grand staircase” down the backyard.
The skills I acquired making the side steps gave me confidence to plan out a set of stairs into the back.
However, these steps would have to be able to self-supporting – I didn’t have Besser block fence nor the brick work of the house to anchor the sleepers to.
My solution was to make sets of “stringers” out of the sleepers.
It was virtually impossible to plan out the entire stair case. However, I figured if started with four steps / landings and kept the stairs reasonably close to the existing ground level, I would work out the rest.
I decided that a set of stairs five pavers wide would be sufficient and that would mirror the stairs down the side of the house.
- Step 5:
"Grand staircase" (material / tools)
I carried on with the 75mm H4 grade pine sleepers.
However I did decide to upgrade my tools for this bigger project.
I have become a big fan of Ozito PXC (battery) power tools. They are very reasonably priced for what they do for a DIY’er.
I upgraded my mitre saw to an Ozito PXC sliding mitre saw. It could easily cut through the 75mm sleepers. The blade it came with didn’t need to be upgraded.
I upgraded by cordless drill to an Ozito PXC drill and then quickly bought an Ozito PXC impact driver.
I also invested in a digital spirit level which proved to be indispensable in quickly checking that everything was level.
- Step 6:
"Grand staircase" (the construction)
The first part of the construction was tricky and I took my time with it as it would set the tone for the entire construction.
Putting the first two stringers in were good but it wasn’t until the cross pieces went in that they began to look like the start of stairs.
I put in strategic posts (in concrete) as I progressed. I would invariably hit rock doing this, so had to use a jackhammer to get the adequate depth. All my posts (except one) were kept internal or otherwise buried, so they wouldn’t be visible in the end.
My wife had indicated that it would be nice to have steps coming out to the side of the staircase into two spots in another area (to be developed later), so I had to make allowance for this. The same stringer idea still worked.
I over-engineered the construction, including liberal use of brackets (also all internal and so hidden).
Some of my screws were very long (300mm landscaping screws) – necessary to connect two 200mm sleepers together. The impact driver drove them in without problem.
- Step 7:
"Grand staircase" (the construction continued)
As the construction continued, I hit more and more rock which slowed progress.
I came across some very large rocks that, instead of jackhammering out, I decided to excavate. They were very big and heavy but I wanted to take them out in full as a feature for the garden.
About three-quarters down I put in a wide landing (eight pavers wide by three pavers deep) which was necessary to move the continuation of the steps across. It ended up making the staircase more interesting than straight stairs all the way down.
- Step 8:
"Grand staircase" (wire mesh and agi pipe)
In some areas, the bottom of the sleepers invariably sat above the ground. It was necessary to put in some wire mesh to contain the rocks and dirt. The wire mesh was again put in internally, so it wouldn’t show in the final product.
I added agi pipe down the length of the stairs, to prevent the build up of water pressure.
- Step 9:
"Grand staircase" (fill and paving)
I had been accumulating small rocks and dirt for a number of months, as I knew I would need the fill for the stairs.
My wife again levelled out each step and compacted it with the tamper. As with the side steps, black plastic was put down, then the river sand and finally the pavers. She used the exact pavers, so there was continuity with both sets of stairs.
I was happy that my calculations of the spacing as all the pavers were able to fit and there was no need to cut any down.
All up there were 19 steps / landings and 187 pavers used.
- Step 10:
Other sets of steps (same design)
I used the same construction materials (75mm pine sleepers and pavers) and method (stringers) to construct further steps down the property, including:
Steps off the "Grand staircase" (below)
Single steps (at either end) into a “secret garden” (below)
