Stairs

Sanding and finishing stairs is the most difficult part of a floor sander’s work. As an example, a box construction design staircase rising a single storey has over 140 corners which require sanding with a detail sander. In between coats, all of the corners and the front edge of each tread, need to be sanded by hand.

Stairs are often sanded at half the frequency of timber flooring in the same property. This is indicative of the time required to prepare them for coating.

Our gallery displays a variety of stair construction types and timber types, including: box construction, waterfall (no stringers), single spine and open tread constructions. The most difficult of these types to sand and finish are the open tread construction in which the lower face of the tread is visible. This stair construction style requires sanding upside down whilst applying pressure and balancing on scaffolding or a secured ladder. Additionally, up to three coats are applied to the underside of every tread.