Step stool

CHILD'S STEP STOOL

This project is rated as: DIFFICULT

Materials needed: 1" by 6" board, screws, 6 penny finishing nails, paint, saw, jig saw, screw driver, drill and bit, sandpaper, paint

Sometimes, children are too short to reach: the wash basin, a light switch, etc. A small step stool is convenient for them to use.

From an 8 foot long 1" by 6" board, cut two pieces that are 15" long and cut four pieces that are 11" long. The 15" pieces will be the steps, and the other pieces will be the supports for the steps.

Print the template needed for shaping the supporting pieces. This template is only a partial template which you will use as follows:

Position the template on one end of an 11" piece of lumber; trace; then position the template on the other end ; trace
The resulting marks on the piece should look like the following illustration:

Do the above on two pieces.

Using a jigsaw, cut away the opening at the bottom edge of each piece.

On another 11" piece, position the template as shown below:

Trace the template onto the board,
Using a jigsaw, cut away the marked part.

Make two pieces like the above.

Sand each piece.

On the 15" pieces (steps), round each edge and each corner.

You are now ready to assemble the step stool.

The sides of the step stool are each made from a horizontal piece and a vertical piece. Position the two pieces for each side as shown in the following illustration and fasten them together with two screws.

The two steps can be fastened to the uprights with nails. First, drill clearance holes for 6 penny finishing nails in the step as shown in the following illustration:

Drive 6 penny finishing nails into the drilled holes and into the upright pieces. Set the nail heads below the surface of the step and fill the holes with wood filler.
When the wood filler is dry, sand the filled holes.

You should also add some supports to keep the step stool from twisting sideways. You can add wooden corner braces under the top step (as was done on the prototype), or you can use metal angle braces, or you can add a board under the top step from one side to the other side.

When the step stool is completely assembled, apply a finish of your choosing.

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