Creating Mitered or Wrap Around Stairs


Reference Number: KB-00788
Last Modified: July 16, 2021

The information in this article applies to:

Chief Architect Premier or Chief Architect Interiors



QUESTION

How do I create mitered or wrap around stairs on a deck?

Deck with wrap-around stairs leading to terrain


ANSWER

You can easily create wrap around or mitered stairs on a deck or other structure by simply dragging the stair edges to the corner where they should join.


To miter stairs

  1. Select Build> Railing and Deck> Straight Deck Railing  and draw a rectangular deck on your structure.

    Deck room


  2. Select Build> Stairs> Draw Stairs or Straight Stairs .

    Deck room with two staircases

    • Click once on the outside edge of the deck railing that is parallel with the structure to place a set of stairs.

    • Click again on the outside edge of the deck railing that is perpendicular to the structure to place another set of stairs. 


  3. Using the Select Objects  tool, click on the first stair section that was placed.
     
    • Place the cursor over the Resize  edit handle closest to the corner of the deck, then left-click and drag to extend the width of the stair section.

       Moving the stair edge to the deck corner

    • Repeat the process on the other stair section.


  4. Once both stairs sections are within 6 inches of the corner, the program will automatically wrap the stairs around the corner.

    Mitered and Wrap Around Stairs

    • If you are experiencing trouble making the stairs wrap, first check to ensure that the Allow Wrap setting is enabled on the Style panel of the Staircase Specification dialog.

    • Stair sections that wrap around a corner to meet one another must have similar attributes.

    • Curved stairs and stairs with multiple subsections cannot be wrapped.


  5. This process works for any angle you may have on your deck, to allow for a wide array of unique designs to fit any need.

    Wrap around stairs at any angle


  6. You can also apply this method to the outside or inside corners of decks, interior rooms with railings, and even stair landings.

    Wrap around stairs on inside or outside deck corners