Woodworks have been a solid foundation in building ever since the old era of our great grandparents. This material has been very useful even up until now whenever we build homes since it serves as a tough foundation, especially if you chose a higher quality wood. These are also being used in creating furniture such as wooden chairs and tables, and some are as tough as it is heavy. Woodworks were also applied in tools that you can use for various purposes, and one of these are the step ladders.
Image source: sylvanuswoodcraft.com
Step ladders are known to be one of the most useful tools that you can ever use thanks to its functionality in letting you easily climb up certain heights without any risk of easily getting an accident. It’s all thanks to the steps which made up the ladder to assure you a better way to step your foot fully – unlike the normal ladder which only has narrow steps.
Image source: plavni.com
Gladly this tutorial will provide you a good way to learn how to create a step ladder. The steps needed to follow in order to successfully make one will be discussed in this article, and if you have at least some experience in building crafts, you will find this step very easy to follow.
Materials and Tools Required
First of all, you need to have the following materials in order to completely build the wooden step ladder. These will provide you its folding functionality, and at the same time the structure of the tool. The materials needed to purchase are extremely easy since you can order them in a hardware store. Here are the following materials needed:
- Carriage bolts – it must be an M6 type bolt, and must measure 55 – 60mm.
- Washers – it must also be M6.
- Lock washers – it must also be M6.
You need around 8 – 10 pieces of each hardware. These are convenient tools in order to build the foldable feature of the tool.
- Wood – The wood that you need to use can be any type depending on what’s purchasable there on your end. Any type of wooden material will do, but the measurements must be specific. It must measure by 95 x 20 x 850mm.
The amount of wood needed to purchase will depend on the height of your foldable step ladder. Based on the amount of hardware needed, the wood planks must be around 7 to 10 pieces.
The following are the needed to perform the task successfully:
- Drill
- Saw
- Jigsaw
- Drill press
- Square – for cutting.
- Router – for rounding and cutting.
- Sandpaper – to smoothen the wood
- Eye protection – for safety purposes.
- Earmuffs – safety purposes. It will require you to use powertools for the task.
Steps to Build the Ladder
Once you’ve purchased the following materials and tools, you are finally ready to make your own step ladder. Here are the following steps:
-
Learn the Concept of the Ladder
You must first have a grasp of the ladder’s various parts for you to understand how it’s built. First is the sides which are side pieces with its ends rounded. Two of these must be needed as it will serve as one of the main supports of the ladder. Next is the back support which are two sides that have stretchers. It also has butt joints. The steps are flat slabs of wood that’s connected to the side supports, while the top is a larger slab of wood which serves as the last step on the ladder’s peak.
-
Cut the Wood
Next is to cut off the wooden planks according to your desired size in order to make sure that the ladder will look like the following parts needed to build the foldable step ladder. Use the saw in order to properly cut the wooden materials to your desired appearance. You can creatively or basically craft a step ladder of your own design. Use the router to cut the other parts properly.
Be sure to cut the supports depending on your desired height. The amount of steps needed to cut will depend on the height of the side support. The steps must all have the same measurements. For the back support, you have to make two wooden planks of the same size as the side supports. You will also use smaller wooden planks which will serve as the foundation of the support. The top must have a higher measurement than the steps.
Drill holes on the side and back support, and cut wooden pieces and round them with a router so then it can be attached to the steps and back support’s foundation so then it can be properly connected without the use of nails anymore. It must be made to fit the drilled hole on the supports.
Optional Tip: You can go ahead and use the router in order to round some parts of the ladder for better design.
-
Attach the Steps and Top
Place the side supports in order to build the step ladder. The side supports must have holes drilled, while the steps must have wooden pieces that fits into the hole you drilled. These will assemble and shut the steps to the side supports tight. Include attaching the back support and its foundation.
The top step must be attached properly to the peak of the side and back supports. There must be four wooden pieces that will exactly to the hole that you will drill on the peak part of the supports. You can also use nails at this point if you prefer it as a better option. All you have to do is to connect the supports to the bottom of the top step, and attach them together in order to fully form the ladder.
Image source: davidadamsantiques.com
-
Job Done!
Once done, you will finally be able to use a type of ladder which will provide you safety when going up. It will help you in various construction tasks or other things needed to be done at home or in other places where reaching higher heights if needed. It’s also a good way for you to save money because materials are cheaper than the actual tool when purchased in a hardware store, and note that you can save more money if you have the tools as well.
Incoming search terms:
- 2 step wooden step ladder
- build a step ladfer
- diy folding wood ladder
- DIY step ladder plans
- diy wood stepladder
- diy wooden step ladder
- diy wooden step ladder plans
- How to build foldable ladder
- how to make a step ladder
- https://paintingtheme com/how-to-make-your-diy-wood-step-ladder/
