Here is a simple list of the stair parts you  will need to create your new or remodeled banister.  Balustrades can be broken down into two types that are in turn reduced into several components.  In order to determine the stair parts you will need for your specific balustrade you will need to consider each type.

The types are Stair Balustrades and Floor Level Balustrades.  Today I will break down the components of each then in a future blog show you exactly how to calculate the quantities of each.

Stair Baluststrades consist of the following components, some of which are of course optional:

• Aprons – This includes the Skirtboard under the banister and what is often referred to as a Kickboard against the closed wall side of a stair.  Aprons may be a solid piece of wood with or without an accompanying moulding or a plywood with moulding.
• Open Treads:  Solid Treads and Risers or False Tread End Caps and/or Wall Caps and risers.
• Kneewall: Shoe Plate also called Landing Tread and/or Shoe Rail
• Newel Posts – Turned or Box Newel Post which may include accessories.
• Balusters – Balusters may include wood balusters, wrought iron balusters, wrought iron panels, glass or any combination of these.
• Handrail – This of course includes straight handrail, bending handrail, and handrail fittings.

Floor Level Balustrades consist of the following components.  Again some of these depend on the situation or may be optional.

• Aprons – Skirtboards only under the banisters and these again may be solid wood or veneered plywood or paint grade material with or without accompanying moulding.
• Landing Tread, also called Shoe Plate, with accompanying moulding and/or shoe rail with fillet.
• Newel Posts – Turned or Box Newel Posts.

Many customers ask if it is possible to replace wood balusters with wrought iron balusters without replacing the handrail, tread caps, etc.  While this has always been possible the process was a little tricky to insure that the previous holes were covered and that the result looked clean and professional.  Now however, one of WoodStairs.com’s suppliers has come up with an ingenious method that makes the process easy and results in a professional finish every time. 

LJ Smith’s IronPro makes replacing wood balusters with wrought iron balusters for remodel applications so easy that virtually anyone can do it.  Replacing wood balusters can completely revitalize the look, style and feel of your balustrade.  Wrought iron balusters come in a far larger variety than the typical wood designs and offer the ability to create unlimited variations and patterns.  IronPro is a wrought iron baluster accessory that enables you to replace only the balusters, potentially saving thousands of dollars, by preserving the remaining wood components.  Your existing handrail, newel posts, tread caps and moldings are virtually unaffected and completely reusable.  In fact, they don’t even have to be removed to replace the balusters.  

Additionally, with IronPro, you can enjoy a beautiful new wood and iron balustrade that can be installed in 1/3 of the time of a typical installation.  The IronPro hardware is secured to the handrail, treads and kneewall utilizing high quality, self-drilling screws or bolts that require very little skill and virtually anyone can perform.   While IronPro hardware adds to the material costs of a new balustrade installation it is an excellent choice for the do-it-yourselfer.  It makes the process so simple that the time saved, or the professional installation costs, are such that in the end it is usually well worth the cost.

Many of our customers want to know how to fix their squeaky stair treads.  While there are a couple of ways to address this issue, the best think you  can do is prevent squeaky stairs in the first place.  Today, I will try and help you with both possibilities.

Stair treads can squeak whenever there is movement and a wood on wood surface.  The movement of wood against wood creates that squeaking or creaking sound whenever the tread is stepped on.  The problem with fixing the situation is that it is sometimes difficult to determine whether it is the finished treads themselves that are squeaking or the framed rough stair treads beneath them (or both).  Fixing squeaking sub treads will require you to pull up the carpet runner or the false tread cap and screw it securely to the stringers.  It is also possible to drill through the tread cap then secure the sub tread down with a screw and then plug the finish false tread cap.  Of course this will leave a plugged whole in the top of the cap.  Sometimes the stairs can be accessed through the drywall on the under side, where they can be screwed from the stringer upward.  This will require drywall and painting repairs though, but at least it doesn’t leave a plug in the top  of the false tread.

If you have squeaking solid stair treads there are usually only two solutions to the problem.  That is to screw the treads down securely and plug the holes.  If possible you can remove a couple of balusters and screw the tread down where the baluster will cover it.  However this is usually quite difficult since it typically requires removing the handrail as well.  You can also try nailing the tread down with finish nails.  While not as secure as a screw they are far less visible and will sometimes do the job.  Sometimes a shim between the tread and riser will also help to separate the pieces and prevent squeaking.

Today I’d like to offer a simple solution to a common problem.  We receive calls on a fairly regular basis from customers who want to know how to stop loose balusters from rattling.  It is a common occurrence for both dowel top wood balusters and wrought iron balusters and there is an amazingly simple solution, but I’ll get to that shortly.  First, let it be known that even professional installations occasionally result in a loose baluster or two, so don’t be too hard on yourself or whoever installed the balustrade.  If the system as a whole is structurally sound and a quality product, don’t worry too much about one or two loose balusters.  Of course that doesn’t mean you have to live with the constant reminder rattling at you every time you walk up the stairs.

Most balusters, wood or iron, are installed into holes in the floor or shoe plate and also into the handrail.  This is true as long as they have a dowel top.  Usually wood balusters are installed with a small amount of wood glue in the hole, then finish nailed.  Sometimes the finish nail can curve up into the hole and not actually penetrate the handrail or a hard bump can even break the glue joint.  The best way to fix a rattling wood baluster is to simply re-nail it.  This is done by shooting a finish nail into the baluster where it meets the handrail.  The nail goes through the dowel top and into the handrail on the opposite side.  However there is another method if you don’t have a finish nail gun or if you have wrought iron spindles, a toothpick.  Yep, that is the professional secret to securing loose balusters.  Wood toothpicks are perfect miniature shims for this application.

Balustrade installation requires knowing the degree of the stair and how to use this angle to determine the other stair angles and miters you  will need to cut balusters, handrails, and moldings.  There is basically one number that is a constant that is very simply used to determine all of the other angles on a staircase.  Knowing the degree of the stair will make all of the cuts and miters easy to determine and eliminate a lot of headaches.

The degree of the stair can be found by using a digital level or one of several different types of angle finders.  Also, there are a number of stair angle calculators you can search and find online.  If all else fails you can use trigonometry for finding the angle of a right triangle.  This is a little more complex if you don’t know how to do and in such cases we recommend one of the previous options.

Once you have the degree of the stair all of the other angles and miters are very simple.  Since most of these angles are used multiple times throughout the installation process, we recommend that you make a cheat sheet at the beginning that you can refer to periodically as you need it.  Let’s assume a fairly typical Degree of Stair of 37.5° for the following examples.  Basically however, there are five cut angles you will need to know; Degree of Stair Level Cut, Level Miter, Plumb Cut and Plumb Miter.

In addition to helping you solve for the other cut angles, the Degree of Stair is itself used as a cut angle.  For example, the tops of square top wood or Craftsman balusters are simply the Degree of Stair and the bottoms of wood balusters on a curbwall.
Example:  Of course this angle would be 37.5°

Decks are often a place of relaxation. They are also often the extension of the house to the garden or backyard. Therefore, they often have to have a staircase leading to the garden below. But many homeowners are afraid of installing deck staircases because they think that it requires too much work or is very expensive.

There are ready-made staircase kits that are available in hardware stores but they can be a bit pricey. If you don’t want to spend a small fortune on staircase kits, you can order staircase parts and build the staircase yourself. The process may look intimidating at first but once you learn everything that you have to do, you will see that it is really just a simple job if you have all the stuff you need.

Installing a Deck Staircase

• The first thing that you need to do before you start ordering materials is to measure the height of the staircase and determine the rise and run. You can do this by measuring the distance of the deck floor to the ground and divide the result by 7.5 to get the approximate number of steps.  7.5 is the ideal rise but you can go up or down slightly from here.  The maximum riser height required by most building codes is not more than 8”.   So, dividing by 7.5 gives a  good starting point.  The result will be the number of steps needed for the staircase (e.g. 92”/7.5=13 steps).
• To determine the rise of the stairs, you then divide the height of the stairs to the number of steps that you are going to make (e.g. 92”/13steps=7.07 inches).

Spiral staircases are a beautiful addition to any home especially  those with small space requirements.  They are elegant pieces of fine furniture in themselves and add they character to any structure. Because of the helical design, many people think that building or installing one is very hard.  While they are difficult to manufacture from scratch, WoodStairs.com offers spiral kits that have been custom manufactured out of solid wood with wood or iron balusters.  These are not your typical cheap spiral staircase kits however but custom manufactured stairways that are completely assembled in our mill then disassembled and shipped in pieces that are relatively easy to reassemble onsite.  These kits include everything that you need, including instructions, all of the components and hardware. Hence, you can create your own wonderful spiral staircase on your own.

Ordering your Spiral Staircase Kit

Before you pick up the phone to order your spiral staircase kit, you have to take the necessary measurements so that you would know what size of staircase you need.

• Measure the height of the staircase by measuring from floor to floor.
• After you have determined the height of the staircase, you can now decide the diameter.  Often this is predetermined by the size of the opening if it is passing through a hole in the upper floor.  Sometimes however, the staircase will be beside an upper balcony so the diameter is up to you.  In most areas the minimum diameter allowed by code is 5’ 6” which gives you a usable width of about 2’ 6” after the center column and handrail have been deducted.
• You should also decide what kind of materials you are going to use for your spiral staircase. You can choose wood or metal staircases or a combination of both. It is up to you. WoodStairs.com offers Solid Wood, Wood and Iron or all Iron staircases.  Our iron staircases are designed for interior or exterior use.