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Home Repair Flooring

Help! How to fix stair banister / floor

4 months ago

Recently purchased house, re-did floors and painted. Stair banister (pictured) at top of stairs is loose. Shakes in place. No obvious screws or ways of tightening / securing it. Have a toddler who is just starting to walk and really worried about safety of this. Hesitant to mount a baby gate to something that is itself unstable.

How do I fix something like this? First-time home owner and no idea where to begin.

In addition, the floor ledge just before the first step seems slightly loose. Similar questions of how to fix it ?

Thank you all in advance!

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Comments (8)

kculbers
4 months ago
Find a reputable licensed carpenter, preferably one that does staircases and bannisters; read his reviews, and interview him. Dont “wing it” yourself, especially due to your safety issue.
PRO
G & S Floor Service
3 months ago
If, the nosing is loose, add face-nails and fill the nail holes afterwards. For your loose post, you will need to add a couple of 4" screws through the base. You can drill pocket holes and plug it.
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It is becoming increasingly more difficult (and expensive) to get oak handrails that are made from a single, non-jointed piece of wood. I've had experiences where I've done a special order specifying non-jointed wood and ended up rejecting and reordering the rail because I kept getting sent jointed material. The last time I ordered was about 1-1/2 years ago and I got what I wanted. The lumber store could supply pieces up to 16' long and the cost -- based on profile and beefiness -- ranged from about $8/ft to almost $20/ft. I wouldn't be surprised if it was much more expensive in this post-covid world. I can't say if your contractor is lying. It may simply be that the supply of unjointed material is non-existent at the moment. As for the conditioner, it won't get rid of the lines, but you will get less contrast between those jointed pieces when the stain is applied, and the darkness of the stain will help hide the actual joint. It won't be invisible, but it could be made significantly less noticeable. I'm not saying you should be happy about this, but your supply options for higher quality may be limited depending on where you live and what is happening with suppliers.
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ksc36
3 months ago
Here's a quick diy newel anchor for your post. If the nosing is loose, pry it up as much as possible and get some adhesive under it such as Liquid Nails.
cat_ky
3 months ago
If that were my house, I would hire someone to come in and remove that railing completely and have a half wall put in there (higher than that railing, so kids couldnt get on top of it, or fall over that ledge). Those things would drive me nuts with little kids around, or anyone, who could fall and get against it, or lean against it and fall over the edge.
E B
Original Author
3 months ago
Thanks, everyone. These are helpful. I don't think our DIY skills are up for a project like this where structural safety is involved. So two follow up questions: -

1. Would you recommend a general contractor or a carpenter if we want to repair / re-do the bannister?

2. Any ideas what price / range to expect for something like this?

Thanks again!
millworkman
3 months ago
Good Interior Carpenter / Experienced Handyman "should" be ale to handle that with no issues.
E B
Original Author
3 months ago
Can anyone give me a sense of what a carpenter should charge for fixing this? With and without replacing the pieces? I got a quote and cannot tell if it's way off the mark or not. Thank you!
millworkman
3 months ago
Probably 2 guys for a day, cost of living area dependent probably $1250-1500 ballpark.

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