Toronto has disallowed downspouts connected to the sewage system - mostly because it's still a (largely) combined storm/sanitary sewer system, so when there are storms the system gets overloaded. But this thread reminds me why a downspout connected to the sewer, or even a subsurface drainage system isn't a great idea because of the difficulty of cleaning out any blockage that occurs below the gutters. Toronto has required that everyone disconnect their downspouts from the sewer system. It's easy enough to do - definitely a DIY project; cut through the bottom of the downspout, get an elbow, connect the elbow and the length of pipe (either more metal downspout material or one of those flexible plastic things, depending on your desired look, location etc.) and direct the end of the pipe away from the foundation of the house and any walkways. Cap the top of the pipe going into the subsurface system. Of course, in some instances, especially in urban situations with paving all over, it can be darned difficult to find a spot to put the water that isn't problematic or not terribly attractive, which is the only real downside to this.

Before you go cap treading its better to first understand Run and rise along with FFT. Finished floor thickness at landing and adjoining levels along with maximum nosing compliance.. Theres a lot of handymen that will gladly put you right out of code compliance while taking your money and installing topical cap treads. Your local municipality should have clear staircase compliance on their website or in office.

Most economical = carpet. After that, a solid finish (wood, cork, vinyl, tile, stone, etc) will require all the extras. Painted stairs will work...with plenty of elbow grease and with the FULL UNDERSTANDING the paint will wear/chip/"patina" inside of a few years. There are ways to lay a runner on the stairs and then trim out the edges of the tread/riser with wood-looking stuff. This will cut the cost in half of what I mention above. The other option is to place the runner and PAINT out the edges....creating a faux-painted-wood look which could be very handsome yet extremely practical. Notice how carpet keeps on coming up again and again? Yah. There's a reason for that. Those are builder grades stairs made for carpet.

I’m hoping that it’s not going to be too difficult to find the skill and expertise needed to prepare the treads. We’re in the greater Indianapolis area. Is this a unique enough project (preparing stair treads by matching stain and replicating hand scraped texture) that we might struggle to find someone? Quick Google searches suggest to me that many species of wood treads can be purchased online, including treads with various degrees of distressing, but I’d prefer to work more locally so we can see what we’re getting. I’m pretty sure the flooring store, which has a very good reputation locally, will be qualified to do the installation. I need to get back in touch with my contact at the flooring store for thoughts. I might also reach out the man who custom built our kitchen cabinets to see if this is the type of carpentry work he might do (he did a beautiful job on our cabinets).