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| Installing railing along the stairs | Login/Join |
| (self-titled) semi-posting lurker Minor Deity  |
So, is this a diy job or do you think we need to hire someone to do it? I think it can be anchored to the wall at the top (hopefully) but one challenge maybe is what it would be anchored to at the bottom? The pics again, for reference:  
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Has Achieved Nirvana |
I’d hire a carpenter. There is a lot more to stair railings than you would think. There are stair companies who specialize in it.
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| (self-titled) semi-posting lurker Minor Deity |
Good to know! I wonder how much it will cost? If we're not doing the floor, we can just put that money into the railing. (hopefully the railing is less though!)
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Has Achieved Nirvana |
Agree with Steve. It will have to be anchored in multiple places, not just the top and bottom.
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
Cost will depend on what you want to do. Just start looking at "indoor stair case" and see what comes up.  I like this one, but it would be totally expensive because structurally it's nothing like your current stairs...and it's custom metalwork... 
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| (self-titled) semi-posting lurker Minor Deity |
Yes, I was imagining that the anchors for the middle section would be along the wall there, but I'm having a hard time picturing the bottom anchor. Anyway, I'm totally fine paying someone else to do it! The main goal here is safety (attractiveness will be a secondary goal), so I think we'll try to find the best pro we can. I think maybe it should be wooden, something to match the trim and other wood items....
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
What they did with the carpet being finished over the edges of the treads is an unusual treatment for basement stairs. And I almost have to bet that there was a wall or a railing that was removed there. Leaving the railing off altogether is a bit odd. A ton of ways to go design-wise with railings. And depending on what you choose, some would require re-working the carpeting, so this is the time to consider whether you want to keep it or not. I wonder what the treads look like under the carpet on those stairs. Are they oak?
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
We re-did the railing in our upstairs hall about five years ago. The old railing was wrought iron and very 1960s. It was originally painted black; we had painted it white a long time ago but it didn't help much. Plus it didn't meet code; it was too short and the balusters were too far apart. Stair and railing anatomy:  This is what we ended up with. Oak handrail and shoerail. Painted poplar balusters. Oak caps on the posts.  Simple as it looks, lots of decisions to make. Overall design aesthetic was first. We weren't going contemporary so glass panels or wires were out. Wood handrails were an easy choice. Thought about metal balusters but decided on painted white wood. Do a shoerail or attach the balusters to the floor? We went with a shoerail.  Do you run the shoerail the same direction as the handrail? Or do you flip it over and have the spindles go in a groove that's routed into the shoerail. Small pieces of wood in between the spindles make it look solid.  Do a half newel post on the wall, or just let the handrail and shoerail return into the wall and the trim? We skipped the half newel.  What size and shape caps on the posts?  You're going to have to decide all of that, plus how to attach the railing to the stairs.
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
Here's one way to attach the newel post:  https://www.stairbox.com/stair...ng-guide-newels.html
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
And if you did nothing with the carpeting, you might get something more like this: 
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| (self-titled) semi-posting lurker Minor Deity |
Ooh, thanks for these photos WTG! Super helpful to see and read about, even if the details will be different.
Yeah, I was wondering about a wall being removed as well. No way to know now.
Yep. Of course, Mr SK and I have been talking and we're pretty much decided we won't do anything to the basement flooring for now. So if we end up having to re-do the carpet on the stairs, that would be ironic!
No idea, and I'm thinking that we wouldn't be able to tell without pulling the carpet up, which I would like to avoid if we're going to keep it.
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
Yes. It helps to understand what the different elements are of the stairs and railing, and the various ways in which they can fit together. Once you start looking at pics of various styles it probably won't take you long to figure out what you like and what would fit in the overall style of the house. Prairie style or mission are probably your keywords, at least for a start. This blog has some photos of other ways we might have gone with our railing. Metal balusters instead of painted wood, the balusters attached to the floor rather than a shoerail, fancier newel posts (instead of a simple square), stained oak instead of painted poplar posts. https://amyleonski.blogspot.co...-white-spindles.html choices, choices...
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| (self-titled) semi-posting lurker Minor Deity |
Indeed! I've been googling around and it's kind of overwhelming. I'm thinking we want something very simple... Here is the railing at our rental house, what style would you call this? 
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| Has Achieved Nirvana |
TBH, to me it looks like railings that were being installed on decks back in the 70s and 80s, with those balusters attached to the outside of the stairway. For interior use, looks like what I've seen in 1960s vintage homes. Don't know what to call it...maybe MCM? I don't think that baluster spacing meets code. They should be less than 4" apart, so a kid can't get their head in there. I think it's called the "4 inch ball rule".
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| (self-titled) semi-posting lurker Minor Deity |
Yikes! I bet you're right! As it happens, I just got off the phone with a carpenter/contractor (rec'ed by my real estate agent) who is going to to come out for an estimate, and he talked about the 4" inch rule. Re the carpet, he said he could probably peel back the carpet and then have a carpet layer replace it after the railing was installed (i.e., we wouldn't have to get new carpet). If so, that would be good bc I don't think we're going to do anything to the flooring down there for now. Another contractor I talked to (I've been on the phone all morning...) pointed out that an alternative to railing would be to add a wall there. He said that often ends up being less expensive than doing a railing, because you just do the frame and the drywall. I don't think we'll go that route because I think the railing will look nicer. But it was nice to have that info.
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