How To Calculate Over All Stair Rise Height On Sloping Hill - Construction Tips 

Great video! The graphics are priceless as well as their manipulation to provide closeups and different angles to enhance the view. Thanks!

A very informative,thorough and professional explanation of what can be a challenge. Thanks so much.

God bless you sir. Youre the only one on youtube that shows how to find the rise. I am on a job with an issue similar to what you had shown, and I have been racking my brain trying to figure it out. You saved me. Thank you so much. You have no idea. How would you determine the run on something like that?

Great video, thank you for sharing!! Another simple way of calculating the total rise and run of the stairs is using the pythagorean theorem. You can simply find out the angle of the slope (using a digital angle gauge/level), measure the total distance from points A and B and you got it.

Don't worry don't feel bad. Your doing good, sharing ideas

Thank you for this! We are going to use the info this weekend!

Awesome video, simple and easy to follow. Even the graphics assisted greatly. Vinaka.

Brilliant. Thank you. Clear, concise and fluid.

Your video is greatly appreciated. Thankyou very much sir. It gave me a great start to my steps.

Great advice. The graphics help tremendously! :) We are working on a deck at the top of our hill and will be tackling the steps next.

Clear and concise in layman's terms! Top job and thank you. I'm doing a similar project but want 18inch or 36inch deep steps to accommodate certain paving slabs! When you've calculated the rise how do you determine the number of steps ?? Thanks

Great video and nifty work with the graphics! 👍 at 6:00 I would make the stairs nearly as steep as before from the bottom and extend the sidewalk at the top. Or change the slope halfway up. This would follow the lay of the land a little more naturally.

great video! thank you sir. this demonstration looks just about like what I need too do. Is there any videos that show you how to do the foundations etc? My hillside is only about 32 inches high? Mabe 5 steps...HELP!

I eventually figured this problem out myself similarly to this, except I used trees present on the hill as my markers. Clean solution here

I remember going over all this in middle school and high school, and then you don’t use it for years, and then by the time you need to know how to do it you completely forget. Good old trigonometry and geometry.

Great video, enjoyed watching , my best wishes

Thanks for this. It is going to help me start the process. I am going to build steps down a mountainside. I have to build them almost parallel to the mountainside due to the steep angle. I am trying not to let the wood touch ground as it is a very wet climate. (Yes, I will use pressure treated.) I will have to put at least one landing along the way as it is a very long space. But at least I now know how to find the rise! This is my first big project so any advice will be appreciated.

Thanks for this!

Great video!!

Small detail, but do you mark the top of the horizontal board, or the bottom?? Marking the top would add the thickness of the board rather than going from the ground (bottom side). Maybe it doesn’t make a difference as long as you do both markings in the same way??

I have a slightly easier suggestion, which is to use steel fence posts and string. I used this on a 15 foot rise over a 24' run and it worked great.

I liked your video. However, I need to figure out how many steps I need to make and do I start from the bottom or the top. This is a dirt slope outside of our back yard that goes from a railroad tie at the top down to the level ground at the bottom. I would like to use recycled bricks for the risers and also to support 12 inch square pavers for the treads. I think the rise from bottom to top is about 4 feet, just by looking by my eyes.

Love it

How would you add a landing in the middle of these?

Hi I have a different issue. I have a small deck attached to a building. the rise is 92.5" However if we go out about 10' from the deck, the rise is 61.25". What is the best way to verify that I am creating the steps properly. Thank Jeanne

How does one get rid of the stairs and just lay concrete over steps as a slope

On a steep slope, do you have suggestions on how to lay out a curved stairway since I don't have enough run to cover the rise with a straight set of stairs. I have a set start and stopping point for the stairs with a deck at the top of the stairs and landing on a lake front at bottom so I have to add a longer length stairway using a curved stairway path. I'm planning on using a 7.25" rise and I want the stairs to be 13" treads. Do I just calculate the distance from the center point of the treads on the curves or would I need to calculate the the outside and inside curve dimensions as well? Any insights would be helpful.

Can you use a laser and tape measure to calculate the rise?

Good video. But I have a very short rises that I need steps for. Probably only two steps. In my backyard I have a lower and upper areas. There is a retaining wall dividing about 3/4 of that area. The remaining space is 81/2 feet. How do I figure this out?

Tell us how to calculate the number of steps

You gave total rise but did not continue on figuringing the equation to thread and if a landing pad is needed

I have a peculiar situation that’d I’d love some suggestions on. I need to build some stars down 40’. Only problem is that it is all rick face so I can’t pound 2x4s in along the way.....

With your total inches of 105 each riser measures 7". How did come up wth a run of 11" or 17" ? How do you calculate for that?

This is great and, the video is alright.

Can I just use a Beeping laser for my riser

How much money would it cost to make a 7-step stone and concrete staircase in front of the house?

How about just have a lazer without multiple stakes??

Very convoluted. ..

You could use an eye level and do same thing

I am from Sydney Australia we don’t talk in inches and foot we talk by millimetres and metres my apologies. As I am out landscaping contractor I would not do it your way because it involves too much work very excessive I appreciate your presentation but always modification comes from the beginning from the top. To estimate the true rises and less work you have to calculate do some work from the top that is the very first step. There for such a long steps I would make it 150 maximum 160 mm each riser therefore front of the house all the links I will dig out the 50 or 160 mm to lower the ground As one step into the house. And then I have 6 m long straight edge instead putting the posts everywhere levelling plumbing all I do is I put 6 m straight age from the top then I measured the height from the other. And then you cut into a plywood a Stringer for threads and risers, You duplicate for other side as well this will sit on top of the hill for the ground without digging in steps and razors don’t need to dig a remote access soil from its side because the steps seeds on top in the

Not much information provided Because you also had to provide how many steps will Be needed. and basically that’s what people come here to help them figure out how things needs to be lay out

How bout a laser level