Our stairway is finished at last but carpet installers had to return to fix the skew in the runner (below). (Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson)
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During the past month, whole days were consumed with painstakingly repainting the pickets and risers off-white, painting the wooden treads and rail a glossy black. Then, often using a tiny artist's brush, we had to touch up the million or so spots where the black got on the white and the white got on the black.
We thought we'd never finish, but, finally, we were at the stage where the stair runner we'd ordered could be installed. That, we figured, would be the easy part since we were having it done professionally. Ha!
Our staircase is curving and that presents a challenge because several treads are different sizes and shapes. But curving staircases aren't unusual. Houses — new and old alike — have them in spades. So, we reasoned, experienced installers must have figured out how to deal with these challenges. A special method must have been developed to iron out potential bugaboos.
Ha, again. Even though a client with a curving staircase had problems with her recent runner installation — they had to rip out the carpet and start over — I thought her situation was a fluke. Now, with my customary leaps of fancy, I suspect there's an epidemic of wonky runner installations going around that no one is talking about and it's my job to reveal all.
Our runner installation started out well enough. The installer started by creating a template of each step. He then went away to have the large piece of carpet we'd bought custom cut accordingly. When he returned, however, he found that whoever had cut the carpet had done so upside down.
I'm not sure if the carpet had been laid upside down for cutting or if the templates were placed upside down on the carpet, but the end result would have been the same: upside down.
That would have been fine if we'd been keen to have the runner installed with the pretty Berber top nailed face down onto the treads and risers and the felt backing facing up. Sadly, this wasn't the look we were going for.
So, back the installer went to the store for more carpet. Fortunately there was plenty of the same available.
The next day the installer returned, this time hoisting two huge rolls of carpet and explaining that he'd rather cut the carpet himself on site to make sure it was done properly. Sounds great, we said, and left him to his devices.
In no time, it seemed, he was finished and out the door. I didn't realize he had actually left or I would have inspected the work while he was still there. Perhaps it's best he wasn't.
You see, the Berber we had chosen has a discrete grid pattern. On several of our risers, this pattern was listing to the southeast, on some more dramatically than others, but all in all, disconcerting enough to make you pause and wonder if you'd ingested something intoxicating.
A fourth visit by a different installer corrected the pattern mishap on a few of the less-afflicted risers. A fifth visit took care of the remaining ones.
The lesson here is, if you have a curving staircase and want a runner or carpet on it, think about choosing a style without a linear or grid pattern. There's apparently a science to this stuff and not everyone has nailed it (pun intended).
And, find out in advance if your supplier/installer is willing to fix snafus.
Fortunately, the company we dealt with has been very responsive in solving our problem, despite the fact that after five trips to our house, their profit margin on this sale must be zilch.
DETAILS AND COSTS
- The off-white paint on the pickets and risers is the same as that used on the trim and wainscoting throughout the house — Para Paints "Marble white" in a semi-gloss finish.
- The black paint, by Benjamin Moore, is a high-gloss interior alkyd suitable for metal and wood. As we had "Marble white" on hand, the only cost for paint was about $30 for a quart of the black.
- The runner segments — bound on each side with a taupe-coloured mesh tape — were cut from a remnant of a nylon-based Berber style carpet with felt backing in a pale taupe. It cost us $730, labour and taxes included. The aggravation was free.
