Painted stairs, worn through
The before photo shows a full flight of stairs with white-painted treads worn down to bare wood across the middle. Scuffs, stains and a rust-coloured mark ran up the steps where people walk. The risers and the white spindle railing were in better shape.
Paint on stair treads wears fastest right where your feet land, and repainting only buys a short time. New treads fix the surface for good and change the look of the whole hallway.
New treads and risers
The crew prepared the existing stair structure and installed new wood treads with a grey-brown tone and a rounded front nosing. Matching risers close in each step, so the flight reads as one continuous finish from top to bottom.
Each tread has to sit tight to the wall on one side and the stringer on the other. Small gaps show up fast on a staircase you look straight up, so we fit and check every step before fastening it down.
We also paid attention to the bottom step. It meets the hallway floor, so its height and colour have to sit right against the planks around it.
Keeping the railing
The turned white spindles, newel post and handrail were sound, so we kept them and cleaned up the edges where they meet the new treads. Keeping a good railing saves money and keeps the character of the house.
White stringers and spindles against the darker treads give the stairs a crisp outline. At the bottom, the tread colour lines up with the grey plank flooring in the hall.
What to know before you redo your stairs
Decide first whether you want the treads to match your floor or contrast with it. Matching tone makes a small hallway feel bigger. A contrasting tread makes the staircase a feature.
Tell us at the quote visit if you want to keep your railing. That choice shapes the scope more than any other. We check the spindles, newel and handrail for looseness before we plan around them.
Staircases get used every day, so plan for the time the stairs are out of use. We work in a sequence that keeps the stairs passable for as long as possible and talk through the plan with you before we start.
