Non-motoring > Staircase repair Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Bobby Replies: 18
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 22:35 
 Staircase repair - Bobby
I live in a 1980s house. Come in the front door and the stairs face you with an external wall on one side and the wall of the living room on the other side.
In the kitchen there is a cupboard that goes inder the stairs (boxed in)

The stairs are creaking and springing like nothing on earth. I found that one tread had actually split through so I have temporarily screwed a sheet of thin ply over the top which seems to be working just now. The staircase is carpeted.

Has anyone any experiences of staircase repairs / replacements. I am reckoning that the staircase was fitted as a complete unit during build? The treads do seem to go through the sides of the staircase. Are these repairable or is it a monster of a job thats going to wreck half my house in the process so should maybe keep till we are planning some major re-decoration?
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:03 
 Staircase repair - legacylad
I know what Thora Hird would have done, but she’s brown bread now.
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:06 
 Staircase repair - Bobby
who?
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:18 
 Staircase repair - Lygonos
Veteran actress who hawked stairlifts in her later years.

Also rhyming slang for a Richard the Third.
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:19 
 Staircase repair - No FM2R
'What would Thora Hird do?' is the question asked by Peter Kay in a long-running ad campaign for Churchill's stairlifts.
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:25 
 Staircase repair - Bobby
>>'What would Thora Hird do?' is the question asked by Peter Kay in a long-running ad campaign for Churchill's stairlifts.

I remember in the very early 90s, working for Norwich Union Life & Pensions, there used to be some sort of financial industry magazine that came into the office every week. In the centre there were tear off postcards for various advertisers where you could fill in details and post off and someone would call you. I remember a guy from Stannah stairlift turning up at my door one night in response to the postcard that my colleague had sent in my name. He was pretty confused when he saw I lived in a ground floor flat! My revenge was sending my mate's details to a conservatory company to pester him. He lived on the 8th floor of a high-rise!
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:27 
 Staircase repair - Bobby
Random information re that job in Norwich Union - my boss was the brother of the Captain of the Herald of Free Enterprise!
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 00:34 
 Staircase repair - smokie
... and I was working at P&O Dover at the time the Herald went over. Tragic, a real local disaster where it seemed everyone really did knew someone involved.
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:33 
 Staircase repair - Kevin
Do you need a step by step guide?
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New Thu 4 Jun 20 23:38 
 Staircase repair - Bobby
Boom!
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 08:19 
 Staircase repair - legacylad
Is the under stair cupboard, accessed from the other side, fully utilised?
Maybe food for thought in future, but when I extended my home, the existing return staircase was turned into a straight down staircase into the new single storey extension. After much deliberation I used a small local joinery firm to build an open tread staircase using Sapele wood, with glass panels and stainless steel bannister. It made the whole area much lighter, and easier to clean.
You would lose the enclosed cupboard but create an open area under the stairs which could be used in a myriad of ways.
I’m happy to email you photos via the mods.
Last edited by: legacylad on Fri 5 Jun 20 at 08:20
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 08:58 
 Staircase repair - Zero
>> Do you need a step by step guide?

Whatever you do, you need to tread very carefully, I wouldn't baluster around, I would go and get a newel one.

Seriously? your options are limited. You have three. Live with it, attack it with lots of strategic screws, wood glue, and ply wood, or replan and rip it out. Most of us chose 1
Last edited by: Zero on Fri 5 Jun 20 at 08:58
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 08:28 
 Staircase repair - Manatee
If it's a straight staircase it probably was a pre-made job. They are surprisingly cheap, maybe £200-£300. The treads and risers are located in rebates in the stringers, they don't go through.

Fairly easy job for a competent joiner. Depending where the door in the kitchen is fitted you might be able to leave it undisturbed.

If there's a hallway at the side of the staircase then the wall there will probably need to be remade, plaster-boarded etc.

I had an open staircase replaced once - they look great but they are a pain in the neck with all the dust coming through and of course you lose the storage underneath.
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 09:18 
 Staircase repair - legacylad
The dust on my open staircase is collected up on the bottom of my feet. That remaining is Henry Hoovered up once a month. Takes 5 minutes so I should probably do it more often!

How do you ‘lose’ the storage underneath ? It’s now open plan so you could have purpose built shelves, customised open storage units , hang clothes ( or sleeping bags) and it makes the whole area appear larger. At least it did in my place. Total transformation which I’m chuffed with.
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 09:46 
 Staircase repair - Falkirk Bairn
A son's house is 15 year old - it has a tight turn before straight up.
The bottom 3/4 steps creaked for years before seemingly falling apart .

Joiner in - 2 hours - he took the bottom 4/ 5 steps out, made some new pieces and put it all back together.

He charged £80 2 hours work +travel time. My son was impressed with his efforts - 1 year later stair is still creak free.
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 10:12 
 Staircase repair - Manatee
I hadn't seen your post so I wasn't posting to disagree!

We had a cupboard/sideboardy thing under ours and it was always covered in dust, as in daily. Maybe carpeted treads didn't help.

We didn't actually enclose ours when we replaced it we just plasterboarded underneath it and changed the bannister. Part of the reason for changing it was it was jerry built all round and looked fit to collapse anyway.

I take the point about storage, but a lot of people keep hideaway stuff like vacuums, ironing boards etc. under the stairs.

I like those glass + hardwood bannisters. We'll probably do that in the new house, although that will not be open tread - it's the return type with a half landing

Last edited by: Manatee on Fri 5 Jun 20 at 10:13
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 10:44 
 Staircase repair - devonite
We had the almost same problem on our stairs years ago, - I chose to saw the offending tread out, leaving an inch of old tread either side where it goes into the sides, then fit another tread onto these lugs and screw them in. - you wont notice the added inch in height when you are running up them. When carpeted over you can't tell the difference (by sight).
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New Fri 5 Jun 20 12:01 
 Staircase repair - sherlock47
>>>you wont notice the added inch in height when you are running up them.<<<


Very surprised that you do notice a 1" difference. You are obviously not as economical with leg movement (SWMBO calls it lazy!) as I am. I reckon that I catch my foot on differences of about 5mm when going up a flight of steps - and it has flattened me on occasion. But I guess that you have trained yourself - do visitors notice it?


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New Fri 5 Jun 20 12:19 
 Staircase repair - devonite
No -one has ever commented on it! - don't think they even realise there's a difference!
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