Measure Staircases

Learn how to measure interior and exterior staircases.

Follow these steps to measure a staircase: 1. You can start a closed shape measurement by tapping on '+' in the bottom centre of the app and choosing Closed Shape. A closed shape will provide the perimeter as well as the square footage/square meters. 2. In the following screen, you can start measuring. At the bottom, you will see the available path types. By default, the path type it will measure in is 'Straight Line'. This means that the pause points (the points at which you place the device down) are connected by a straight line. You can leave it on Straight Line. 3. Choose a memorable start point at the bottom of your staircase, for example at the left bottom of the staircase. Place your device stationary at that start point to record your first measurement point.

4. Walk up the stairs and stick to the side you've chosen (e.g. if you started on the left, stick to the left) and place the device down every 6-8 seconds. There's no rush in getting to a specific point, you can pause as many times as you want/need. 5. Once at the top, pause to record that measurement point and then move to the other side of the staircase (for example right) and place the device down to capture the furthest point on the other side of the staircase. 6. Walk down the staircase and repeat step 4 (stopping every 6-8 seconds by placing the device down making sure it is stationary). 7. Once you reach the bottom, stop again. 8. Now walk to the other side to finish at the same point where you started so that the shape is closed. 9. Tap the red stop icon at the bottom of the screen to complete your measurement. You will now see the 2D 'plan view' of the drawing that you have captured which shows a top-down perspective of your measurement where you can see the perimeter and area of the staircase. By tapping on the 3D cube, you can explore elevations, grades, or gradients. Tapping each selected point reveals their relative XYZ coordinates, with Z showing the height elevation. By tapping on a selected edge, you can view the length, rise and run. Read more about inspecting point coordinates and understand views.