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Story
My wife reported that our deck stairs were "loose". From a previous disassembly to fix the stair lights, I had not screwed in all the deck boards everywhere and they could rattle a bit when stepped on. This is what I thought she was referring to. A few weeks later, stepping on the stairs, I felt a distinct depression or softness. This was no a loose board problem, but a rotted frame problem. Loose boards and mushy boards are two very different symptoms.
Only a month before we dealt with another rotted joist problem so this issue was fresh in my mind (see Deck Repair 2023 Page). This was something we needed to fix fairly quickly.
Demolition and Damage Assessment
Initial peek at joist rot.
I started to remove the first board in the area where I knew there was an issue. I was very surprised at the extent of the rot. The Ipe wood planks that were used for deck boards I also used for the step risers, mostly to match visually. This meant that the Ipe board and the 2x6 frame member were joint flush to each other. I failed to understand how bad an idea this was.
By having them flush against each other, water and debris would get in and stay there and this would greatly accelerate the deterioration.
Rotted upper stair step frame.
Rotted lower stair step frame.
Flush mounting the two boards was only part of the problem though. The stair support frame created two somewhat sealed boxes. Since the deck boards had gaps, debris would get in, but it would not come out. There was composting going on under my steps, and the stair frame was part of the composting material. What a mess.
Removed and stacked deck planks.
Old stair light wiring and rotted joist.
Rebuilding the stairs was only part of this project though. The same flush mounted board issue happened on the joist at the top of the stairs. This was even worse because that joist support the main deck boards. Thus, we would have to remove a bunch of deck board in order to replace the top joist.
Rotted lower step stair face.
This was a case of the contractor just giving me what I wanted and not being concerned about the long term maintenance issue, or else the were inexperienced in designing decks to last. To me, anyone that does not think about the long term effects of weather and debris when designing and building an outside structure is being negligent.
Demolition completed (view west).
Demolition completed (view east).
Demolition completed (joist view).
Top Joist Replacement
Old joist remaining south end.
Old top joist remaining north end.
The top joist across the stair had to go, but this joist extended much further and supported almost all the deck planks. The rot was worse by the stairs, but it had started to extend under the other part of the deck. I did not want to completed redo the deck so judged that I could cut out the worst section and leave the other. I would add some extra supports to compensate in case that joist weakened over time.
I found that the original top joist was not installed square to the deck boards: yet another thing I am disappointed about in the original contractor.
Propping up new top joist for installation.
Installing new top joist and supports.
After rebuilding top joist (view west).
Vertical joist support (closeup).
After rebuilding top joist (closeup).
Other joists not replaced.
Stair Frame
Stair frame on end.
Assembling stair frame pieces.
I needed to rebuild these stairs without making the same mistakes as the original: water cannot accumulate and debris must be easy to clear away. I made it so there were no obstructions in the direction of the water flow and ample gaps on the side where a blower could clear things out. I also made it moveable in case I wanted to clean under it more thoroughly. The end result would weight plenty, so no danger of it moving.
The deck surface is level and that is good. The concrete slab that the stair frame sits on is not level. The concrete slopes is both directions too. This means that there was a lot of tricky measurements and cuts needed so that the stair surfaces would be level, even though the frame was sitting on a non-level surface. Actually, the entire stairs needed to be slightly leaning forward to allow water to flow off it, so that was yet another complication leading to all sorts of compound angles we had to master.
Stair frame in place (view west).
New stair frame (view west).
Test fitting new stair frame.
We did a pretty good job of working this all out and cutting, but there was a slight amount of rocking of the frame. I would later screw on some small plastic wedges on the underside to fix this. I used plastic toilet bowl shims for this.
Wire Management
After better wire management.
Wires needing management.
Under the deck is both standard 120V house current wires and 12V low voltage wires. The former goes to outdoor outlets and the later to the low voltage deck lights. Over the years, animals chew on these wires and I had to replace the deck stair light once. The 120V wires also showed size of someone using it as a meal. I wrapped up the frayed parts and then cleaned up the wires by mounting them off the ground on the joists. Who knows what other damage there is to the wires elsewhere, but at least I took care of what I could see at this time.
Joist Tape
Joist tape on stair frame (view west).
As I discuss on the Deck Repair 2023 Page, not using joist tape should be considered a criminal offense. It's cheap and will solve for the most common places where deck joists rot. It prevents any moist debris from sitting in direct contact with the wood.
Joist tape applied (view southeast).
Stair frame with top joist and joist tape (view west).
Joist tape for all existing joists.
Deck Board Re-install
Deck boards after re-installed (view south).
We needed to drill out many of the screws to remove the boards. This meant that we would not be able to use the same holes when we reassembled them. We would need to fill the old holes and drill new ones. You have to pre-drill the holes because the Ipe wood is very dense.
Animal Screening
Closeup of animal screening under steps.
Installed animal screening.
Another design issue with the original deck was that it provided a very attractive homesteading location for the local wildlife. We solve that by adding stainless steel wire mesh to all the entry points as discussed on the Animal Screening Project Page. With this new deck stair design, we needed to close up all the new entry points we created.
Corner of animal screening under steps.
Animal screening and stair joist tape.
Small section of animal screening.
Finishing
We used foam insulation to close up some of the smaller gaps, trimmed it when dried and then spray painted it a dark color to hide it. We also had to sand and put epoxy wood filler in the old hole, then reapply oil to the deck.
Final Result
Completed (view northeast).
Completed (view west).
Completed stairs (view west).