Hi,
We bought our house 4 months ago and wish to replace the carpet on the the first floor and the stairs that lead up to it. I have removed the carpet and underlay from the stairs (see 1st pic below) and am now wondering whether it wouldn't look smarter without any carpet if I could remove the old paint, sand and varnish the stairs. However, if I am to do this I must bridge two gaps (see 2nd pic below) and I would also like to eliminate the creaking that seems to emanate from every step except 2 or 3. The underside of the staircase is covered in plasterboard. I was hoping to be able to do everything from above.
1. the first gap is that between the hardwood floor on the ground floor and the first riser. it is up to 20 mm wide in places and curved. The gap exists because the staircase carpet was laid before the ground floor had hardwood floors installed. I haven't seen skirting boards that wide and would appreciate some advice on how to bridge this gap.
2. the second gap is situated between the first tread and the riser to the second step (see pic). It is about 8-10 mm wide.
3. The creaking on each step seems to come from the line where the top of a riser meets a tread. On 2 different steps I have inserted 3 screws vertically through the tread into the riser, covered with dowel and sanded it but it hasn't made an iota of difference. The risers seem to be made of 8-10 mm thick plywood.
I'd appreciate advice on any or all of these points.
Stairs overview:
Detail of the first step (including the two gaps):
We bought our house 4 months ago and wish to replace the carpet on the the first floor and the stairs that lead up to it. I have removed the carpet and underlay from the stairs (see 1st pic below) and am now wondering whether it wouldn't look smarter without any carpet if I could remove the old paint, sand and varnish the stairs. However, if I am to do this I must bridge two gaps (see 2nd pic below) and I would also like to eliminate the creaking that seems to emanate from every step except 2 or 3. The underside of the staircase is covered in plasterboard. I was hoping to be able to do everything from above.
1. the first gap is that between the hardwood floor on the ground floor and the first riser. it is up to 20 mm wide in places and curved. The gap exists because the staircase carpet was laid before the ground floor had hardwood floors installed. I haven't seen skirting boards that wide and would appreciate some advice on how to bridge this gap.
2. the second gap is situated between the first tread and the riser to the second step (see pic). It is about 8-10 mm wide.
3. The creaking on each step seems to come from the line where the top of a riser meets a tread. On 2 different steps I have inserted 3 screws vertically through the tread into the riser, covered with dowel and sanded it but it hasn't made an iota of difference. The risers seem to be made of 8-10 mm thick plywood.
I'd appreciate advice on any or all of these points.
Stairs overview:
Detail of the first step (including the two gaps):