Hello darlings!
Have I ever told you the story of how my sister installed my dad’s floor with the help of me, my mom and my dad? It’s a hilarious one that includes a bruised palm, a heavy hammer and some gorgeous flooring.
How about the story about how we made our home renovation revolve around the place of the staircase? After spending my childhood passing the feet of my parent’s bed to go to the staircase in order to reach the kitchen and the living room, me and Nick were convinced we wanted a room with a door (and a lock!) So the staircase had to change places, the hole in the ceiling had to be filled and a new hole had to be cut (fun times!).
The result is a gorgeous house where we enjoy spending our times and the door to our bedroom locks. Of course little Natalia is in the same room and on the same bed with us but that’s a story for another blog post.
How about you? If you’ve been thinking of ways to add value to your home, how about adding oak flooring to your stairs? Wondering how to go about it? Take a page from my book and DIY!!! One word of caution though: do not use your palm to put the boards in place!
Most flooring companies will take care of everything for you. The professionals will visit your home and offer a quote that encompasses the entire project. Once everything is agreed upon, including laying style and the oak floor finish, the project can begin.
The Renovation Stage
The first stage of installing oak flooring on your stair case consists of ripping up your old flooring along with any underlay from the staircase and hallway. Once the oak floor is installed, the professionals can take all the measurements of your stairs, including careful and detailed measurements of the tread, rising and nosing of the stairs to ensure a perfect end result.
The next step is to rip off all the treads and remove them so as to put on new nosings. Typically, the nosings are made of the same kind of oak flooring as that which is used in the hallway. You can clad the existing treads to the new ones and then install the nosings. If you plan on making this a DIY project, it’s worth knowing that Fine Oak Flooring sells engineered oak flooring in the UK.
How Long Does the Renovation Take?
The process of laying oak flooring on a standard staircase with new treads should take around five hours. Once you’ve completed the project, you should sand the stairs and top the flooring off with a finish of your liking. Most top-quality finishes will dry extremely quickly. The drying period, overall, can take up to an hour per coat. So, it takes a total of about four hours to apply the finish.
Keep in mind that it does take a little longer for the lacquer to cure, usually about 48 hours. But, you will be able to walk across your newly finished floor just an hour from when the last coat is applied without damaging it.
Finding the Perfect Fit
You’re probably wondering how you should ensure that your new oak flooring will fit perfectly. To make sure there is a perfect fit and, of course, a perfect final result, you can use different sized oak boards for your project.
For example, if your rise is around 180mm in height, you can use 180mm wide boards and then cut them to fit the length of your staircase’s tread. But, if your treads are 320mm wide, you can use two 160mm boards and glue them together and sand them for a uniformed look. You can then cut off the tongue of the board to add a new nosing and create the same look. Or, if you’re a dab hand with a router, you can create a bullnose to ensure the colour is the same all over.
Installing oak flooring on your staircase is not a difficult job if you’re armed with accurate measurements and know-how. It can be a fun DIY project, but if you’re not too confident, you can always call in the pros for help.
Lots of love