Sunday, September 14, 2014

Our Most Ambitious Stair Project Yet

 
 
 
My husband is an incredible woodworker.  He can make just about anything!  He's put oak stairs in two of our last three houses and walnut stairs in this house.  Recently a good friend asked us to help her with her stairs.  She lives in a 100 year old house that she is redoing room by room.  Last year we helped her put in a mudroom.  This project again provided tight spaces for three adults, but we can honestly say, we're all still very good friends!  :)
 
She wanted the stairs made out of hickory to match what she's planning to use on her first floor.  It's the first time my husband has worked with the wood.  It's sure a beautiful wood!
 
 
 
We thought we had a true 'before' picture of the stairs with carpet on them, but none of us can locate the picture.  Instead, we have these, after she ripped out all of the carpet.  We are guessing by the way they came out, that they built the original stairs elsewhere and put in the whole set as one piece. 
 
 

 
 

 
After we removed all of the old stairs and old stuff that they were built with, there was only a center 2x4 with little 1x6's nailed to that.  Talk about being Billy Goats climbing up those 14 steps! Here she is cutting off the old nails that were put in from the other side.  Good balancing act!
 
 
We added three new stringers, then secured them to the walls, the center support and down to the floor at the bottom.
 
 
Several weeks of cutting, sanding, gluing, staining the hickory at home.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Once we had all three stringers in, we started from the bottom building the frame for each step.  We had to be very careful to make sure everything was level, even, etc.  After we built all of the support steps, we glued down the hickory.  We'd put one stair in, then the riser, then he'd precisely measure for the next stair, and on and on...


 
The first 13 stairs are in!

 
 
The landing is now securely built, ready for the hickory.
 
 
 
She wanted a similar landing to the one he made for our house.  Lots and lots of cutting, gluing and screwing the boards together.
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 

 




 

 
The last four stairs were a bit out of square, etc., but that was fixed.
 
 
 
 
 
Woohoo!  The last tread is put in place.



 
 
And the project is about done!  She still needs to caulk the risers and touch up the drywall, but the bulk of the project is complete and she's thrilled!
 
 
Thanks for your visit!
 
Pam
 
 
 
I am linking to the following parties:
 
 
 

Dwellings-The Heart of Your Home


 
 

19 comments:

  1. Great effort. Your husband is really great woodworker. Your stairs are looking attractive.

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  2. Wow beautiful job! Love the landing design, the wood, the whole project! Well done!

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  3. WOW, amazing work. your hubby is so talented.

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  4. I hope your husband is aware of what a talent he has been blessed with!! I can see lots of hard work for all parties involved. You didn't mention how your husband liked or disliked working with the hickory wood, since this was his first experience with it. Beautiful job, and you should all be proud.

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  5. Your husband is seriously so amazing. I love all the woodworking projects you share of his. Your friend is so lucky to have you both.

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  6. They sure do look beautiful, but yes very ambitious. We just stripped our outdoor deck stairs to get ready for new stain, and I thought it was going to kill me lol!

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  7. What a beautiful difference it makes when you have a talented craftsman like your husband.

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  8. Those are fabulous and I love the landing. Y'all are good!! I hope to some day take the carpet off our stairs.

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  9. Whoa! The stairs look great and the detail on the landing is amazing! Awesome job!

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  10. I am a foodie, but I had to stop by and tell you what an excellent job you and your husband did. So many times we see "good enough to fool you" work. This is pure craftsmanship.

    Madonna
    MakeMineLemon

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  11. Pam, I saw your feature over at SSS so I wanted to pop in and visit! Your husband never ceases to amaze me with his skills, and I'll have to say that your friend has some good balancing skills, too! The stairs are gorgeous!

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  12. I'm impressed with how good those stairs look in that after shot. I've got carpet covered stairs right now that I've been thinking about changing to wooden ones. After seeing this, I'm sure that my home would look so much better if I actually get it done!
    Keara | http://www.crumpconst.com/our-services

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  13. The stairs look great and I really like the way that they turned out. I hope that you are pleased with the way they turned out and like your new stairs. I love how the step part is darker wood and then the face is white, I think that is really in style right now and really elegant. http://www.huberlumber.com/about

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  14. These stairs look absolutely great! I like that they are in two different shades. It looks very modern but also classic. I am about to start remodeling my home and I might think about adding this into the plans! It looks absolutely great and I would love to have something like this for my stairs. Do you have any other tips for a remodel? http://www.congroremodeling.com

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  15. Amazing! I have been eying up my carpeted stairs and seriously considering replacing them.

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  16. You did a great job with that stair case. They look much nicer than the ones you replaced. I imagine they are going to last a very long time.
    http://www.brettwhiteconstruction.com.au/renovations--additions.html

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