Terrorists and Your Uncle Bob

I bet your wondering what does your uncle have to do with terrorist. Hopefully nothing unless he happens to be working for the FBI. As we have witnessed with way too much frequency, terrorists are not always the smartest or most adept people. It can be said they have just enough skills and knowledge to be dangerous.

And so it may be with your Uncle Bob.

Everyone knows or has an Uncle, friend, sibling, family member who is handy. You need something done around your house, you call this person or perhaps they willfully volunteer their services. This person makes it all sound so very simple. Easy peasy. Things like plans and permits that you in your naïveté thought were necessary, are scoffed at by this self proclaimed skilled artisan.

After being reassured for the 100th time, that this project will be a piece of cake, the task is undertaken. All the while there is a nagging little voice in your head. A slight feeling of unease about the project. Something just doesn't feel right, but you soldier on, constantly assured at every seemingly bad turn not to worry, it'll be fine.

I find it extremely hard to fathom in this time of vast amounts of easily accessible information at ones finger tips, that any project can be done extremely wrong. A little I can understand, but so much so it becomes a comedy. I just don't get it.

So was the case not long ago with a brand new deck I found during a home inspection. The deck has to be the number one DIY project. They look so deceptively easy to build. What's to know? A few boards here, some nails there, bada bing, bada boom, a deck!

NOT!

Take a close look at the stairway to this new deck. Notice anything odd, off kilter?

The railing is higher at the bottom than the top. Also, a railing hasn't been installed along the opposite side of the stairway. 
And that's far from all.

The width of the stairs is too narrow (36" minimum), the stair treads are again too narrow (10" minimum) and not well secured to the stringers. The height of the treads is to high (not to exceed 7 -3/4"). The angle of the stairway is more like a ladder than a set of stairs. 
There is word for this, a teardown.

Keep in mind that's just the stairs. The support structure I'll save for another post.

I'd say these stairs as pretty terrifying. But that's just me.