We have collected 23 old fir stair treads. We have 31 steps. What to do?
Mix and mingle is our answer.
Newly-made treads are only 1″ thick. Our oldies were 1.25″, but 3 of them were warped, and one had a chunk cut out of it. We specially-ordered new ones at 1.25″. Thickness-planed the warped ones or cut them up and laminated them for the two large triangular treads. Glued in a chunk.
Brendan came by and was arm-twisted into helping sand them.
Before and after treads
Eventually, installing the stairs arrived at the top of our priority list, and we “invited” professional help – Vincent is helping us.
He took the level of the stringers that our builders installed – they were out of level left to right by nearly 1/2″. Plus, the stringers were only attached at the top and bottom, with a couple of nails mid-way. There’s no likelihood that our stairs would be silent when tread upon, with such loose construction. We shored up the stringers with lots of screws, and Vincent levelled with fillers/shims and construction glue as he installed each tread with finishing nails (two or three per stringer).
Now, we’re staining the new treads to try to match the colour of the old treads, and sanding them all. But, as with the recycled flooring, much of the charm and beauty of the old wood comes from its “deformities”, and we embrace that look and texture/grain. It feels to me like buried treasure that we’ve found.
Added March 6: we have now finished the stairs with the same Bona Finish as the flooring, and are pretty chuffed about how they look.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi B. Sunshine and shorts on the Coast. Deep snow in so many other parts of North America. Great stair treads. Looking forward to the next photos (when am I not).
Joy’s right, the weather there looks worlds away from what we’re getting!
Stairs are looking good!
New photo added to this post – see the stairs finished. Thanks, Tess, for nailing the risers!
Gail the stairs are beautiful.