I adore my husband, but a handy home-fix-it guy he is not. When he saw me fiddling with BalusterPro, an app for the iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad, the he immediately thought I was doing something kinky. To his disappointment, I was not.
A baluster (pronounced BAH-lis-ter … not bawl-LUST-er, as a certain someone first thought) refers to the structures (often made of wood or metal) that are installed between a staircase and the handrail. Some calls these “stair rails” and in less, um, refined parts of the country, they’re sometimes referred to as “stair sticks.” When people speak of banisters, they’re often thinking of the balusters and the handrail as if they are one whole part (even though they’re not one piece).
But, enough finickiness over the English language. Let’s talk about why the BalusterPro app could work for you, even if you’re not building or fixing a staircase!
Tha BalusterPro is yet another pocket calculator for the iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad that helps wannabe woodworkers, DIY’ers and home improvers who didn’t spend enough time paying attention in math class. Through the app, you plug in what you know about your dream staircase to figure out the size and / or spacing of the balusters you hope to build and / or install. The app lets your choose the style of staircase, style of balusters and allows you to enter in information you know already (like if you already know the width of your balusters, the length of your staircase, etc.). You can work in both metric and imperial measurements. The app then fills in the blanks for you so that your balusters look good, are evening spaced apart and work for your style of staircase.
And if a staircase isn’t in your future? You can use the app to figure out how many “stair sticks” to use in a balcony, railings for a bench, fence posts for your yard, rails for your unofficial UFC cage for your basement … the list goes on!
For only $3, the BalusterPro is a welcome addition to any handyman or handywoman’s iPod or iPhone.
