The staircase is the single biggest item of joinery in most homes and generally the most complex. Its modern timber form and the mathematical principles underlying it were laid out by the Scottish carpenter, mathematician and architect Peter Nicholson in the late 18th Century. He obviously didn’t invent the staircase as they’ve been around for a very long time. The Mayans were building them as early as 2,600 BC and the oldest evidence for them may be from Jericho 7,000 years ago, so it would be a bit like asking who invented the roof or fire. But he did put the idea into its modern format.

Removing carpet gripper

In terms of refurbishment and renovation they can be tricky. Older staircases may be laden with generations of paint work and to take a staircase out and replace it with a whole new one is a messy, costly and inconvenient business (particularly if the client is in residence when the work is being carried out. Beyond replacing the carpet, or removing it, and taking some paint stripper to the hand rail, balustrade etc there isn’t much to be done.

Stairs ready for cladding

This is why this new stair conversion system is proving so popular with our readers. It is a useful compromise between replacement and tedious renovation work. More often than not customers will request some kind of wood finish (real or laminate) floor when having major refurbishment done. Even in the case of extensions (often with a knock-through) wooden flooring, of some kind, is specified as it helps knit the new and existing parts of the building together.

Risers cut to width

When this flooring meets carpeted stairs it can look incongruous or if the carpet is removed means the stairs have to be cleaned up and/or painted. Clients often complain as to how noisy the now naked stairway has become. This is ok if you want to know what time the kids/husband/wife is coming home (or who they’re bringing with them) but can be an annoyance to both the household in question, or even the neighbours.

The Lundbergs’ stair renovation system gets over these problems. Being oak it looks much better with wooden floors than carpet and, although it is never going to be as quiet as carpet, is a significant improvement over a bare staircase.

It is an entirely new system for me so I approached with care and chose a straight flight hoping this would make things simpler first time around. The first step is obviously to remove the carpet, which is easy enough. The next step though is to tackle the carpet gripper. This is, as most readers will be aware, perhaps the most unintentionally evil invention ever. If there is a hell it is lined with the stuff. It doesn’t matter what angle you attack it from it will bite you. Like trying to fight a monkey in a dust bin, it doesn’t matter how big, skilful or careful you are it will win. Bearing this in mind I bravely set my assistant Lee the task of removing it whilst I measured up the tread and risers.

The system consists of 12mm oak risers with a flange that will overlap the equally oak risers. The system obviously allows for the widest stairs you will be likely to come across and so need cutting to size which is no great hardship on a straight flight. The instructions say to allow for a 2mm gap on the risers and treads where they meet the wall and outer string. I assume this is to prevent squeaking and to allow for expansion/contraction (although this should be minimal on an established staircase). For the cross cuts I used the Bosch chop saw (pictured) and a Metabo jig saw for cutting the treads lengthways. I used this as it was the kit I had on me and as the lengthways cut was hidden by the tread it didn’t matter but a Chopsaw combined with table saw such as Dewalt’s D27111 would have been ideal.

Treads cut to length and width

Once all the parts are cut to size it is simply a matter of gluing them down with a non-setting polymer adhesive. This allows for the different rates of expansion and contraction between your softwood staircase and the oak treads. I used the Trend’s hot glue gun, which meant the staircase was ready to use sooner.

The only slightly awkward area was the bottom step with its curved tread and riser but it was fairly easy to box in with off cuts. It may however be worth investing in an extra tread as this could be used to return the flange around the curved tread.

Boxing in bottom tread

The system gives a very professional and satisfying result, which customers should be impressed with, for a minimum of input. If I were to tackle more complicated stairs (such as a kite winder) I would probably have wanted the instructions to be a little clearer and more detailed. Also note that on these kinds of stairs a biscuit cutter will be needed and the installation will become a little more involved.

Applying adhesive

Sticking riser

Finished stairs

For more information on the following manufacturer's used in this feature, visit the following sites:

Lundberg Stairacse cladding system
www.joinerystore.com

Bosch chop saw
www.bosch.co.uk

Metabo jig saw
www.metabo.co.uk

Trend hot glue gun
www.trend-uk.com

DeWalt table saw
www.dewalt.co.uk