Landing Pad - Stair Construction

A landing pad can be located at the bottom, top or anywhere within the stairway. It's usually where a set of stairs makes a transition from one direction to another. The picture below provides you with an excellent example of a stair landing pad, located at the top of the stairway.

Exterior Landing Pad

It's not uncommon to use a landing for a stairway on the exterior or outside of a building. They can be built out of wood, metal or a variety of different building materials.

However, they need to be protected from the elements like moisture, mold, mildew and those pesky insects known as termites. The picture above represents something that you should avoid doing or at least do it correctly.

If you look at the front of the landing pad or the last riser, you will notice that it's suffering from wood rot damage. This tells me that it's only going to be a matter of time, before this floor and possibly the rest of the stairway needs to be repaired or replaced.

Stair Building Tip: Try to avoid covering any exterior wood framed materials with protective coverings that don't work well or weren't designed to be used in that manner.

Another problem I find with exterior landing pads and stairways is what I would like to refer to as the handyman solution. This is where an inexperienced construction worker provides a building owner with a plan to cover up the damage, instead of making the necessary repairs, in order to solve the problem.

Even if this particular floor wasn't damaged, before someone chose to use this flooring method, it will be in the future. In a situation like this, sometimes good intentions, end up creating problems for the property owner in the future.

I know it's difficult to do, but try to hire people who have knowledge and years of experience, instead of someone who's full of confidence.

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