Stair stringers and treads: terminology explained
Before we plunge into the stair calculation formulas, and discuss why nobody on the Internet knows how to count stairs, we need to establish a common ground: terminology. Our stair calculator uses many specialist terms, and it’s important that you understand them before we move on:
- Run/tread: the run of stairs is the horizontal part you step on.
- Rise/riser: the vertical part of the stairs, measured between two consecutive treads.
- Stair stringer: it’s the construction that the steps are mounted on.
- Angle: the inclination angle of the staircase.
- Landing: a platform connecting two flights of stairs.
- Nosing: the portion of the stair tread that overhangs the front of a riser.
- Flush mount: in a standard mount, the last tread is one step below the floor level. In a flush mount, it is at the same height as the floor level.
- Headroom: the space between the tread and the point on the ceiling directly above it.
- Handrails: a railing or baluster that runs along the stairs. It serves a double purpose – you can hold it when walking up- or downstairs, and it prevents you from falling.
- Stair width: it is measured in clear, meaning that it doesn’t include handrails.