Depending on the skill level of your carpenters, you can easily save 30 to 50 percent by using prefabricated ladders instead of site-built wooden ladders. Fabricated stairs are available in almost any style or configuration used in custom built homes. From the simplest to the most complex stairs, they can be manufactured off-site and delivered for installation in a timely manner.

Stair construction is the second most difficult and time consuming carpentry task when building a new custom home, with conventional roof framing being number one. Building a simple set of straight stairs from one floor to the next requires around 280 saw cuts and can easily take a single highly skilled carpenter 4-6 hours. By comparison, two carpenters can install the same set of prefab stairs in less than thirty minutes.

At the current price of journeyman carpenter labor, this alone can be a significant cost reduction. If the stair is going to consist of carpeted treads, most manufacturers will build them from recycled material, which will lower their cost, which equates to reduced prices for the consumer. With site-built stairs, sixteen feet, two by twelve, are needed for the stringers and treads, which are sometimes cracked, cupped, or bowed, rendering them unusable. Number one stair material can be purchased, but it is more expensive than SPF #2 (fir, pine, or fir).

If you want to use custom wood treads and risers, they are available in a wide range of styles and species. Brazilian cherry, walnut, and oak are a few examples of some of the different types of wood that can be used for custom steps. In addition to straight I-shaped precast stairs, 90-degree L-shaped with landing, 180-degree U-shaped with one or two landings, 90-degree curved, spiral and U-shaped stairs are also available. hourglass