A wooden staircase is suitable for all types of homes, whether your home is traditional or modern. Most types of wood are also easy to paint if you decide to change the look of your wooden staircase. This section will cover the different types of wood that are commonly used for stair parts, the wood stair parts we offer and things to consider when buying them.
Pine is a softwood and is resistant to shrinking and swelling. It’s light, and natural appearance means it goes particularly well with neutrals such as white and cream.
It is essential to bear in mind that pine can be prone to scratches or dents. It is suitable for painting, staining and varnishing, however, needs a knotting solution before painting.
Hemlock provides a classic feel and is perfect for traditional staircases. As it is less brittle than most other softwoods, it is more durable than many hardwoods and can also be painted without issue.
It is heavy and strong, yet easily split and worked. Walnut wood has historically been used for furniture, flooring and a variety of other wood products.
Similar in appearance to mahogany and is a sustainable replacement for it. Dark hardwood creates a classy look that is perfect for modern and traditional staircases.
How much does it cost to replace wood stair parts?
You can read about the prices you can expect to pay when replacing wood stair parts in our stair parts price list.
Softwoods, such as pine, tend to be cheaper than hardwoods such as oak and ash. This is, in part, due to softwood being much quicker to grow than hardwood, so the wood is more readily available. White oak stair parts tend to be the most expensive.
Should I use hardwood or softwood stair parts?
Deciding on whether to use hardwood or softwood for your staircase depends on your preference of the appearance of woods, your budget and other preferences.
The following woods are divided into hardwoods and softwoods:
Hardwoods
White oak
Walnut
Sapele
Ash
White primed wood like birch or poplar
Softwoods
Pine
Hemlock
The benefits of softwood
Softwoods such as hemlock can be easily painted, allowing you to choose the finish of your choice for your décor. Softwoods such as pine can be grown in a variety of locations, which makes the wood more readily available and more affordable than hardwoods.
The benefits of hardwood
Hardwoods tend to be more durable than softwoods, so are less likely to dent and scratch or show other signs of wear and tear. Hardwoods are an excellent long-term investment and provide a high-quality look.
The wooden stair parts we offer
Here is a guide to the different wooden staircase parts we offer:
Spindles
Our timber spindles are designed made from ash, hemlock, dark hardwood, pine, walnut, white oak and white primed wood.
You should take into consideration whether your staircase is closed string or cut string. The strings on a staircase are the sides which the treads and risers are housed onto. In a closed string staircase, the spindles are fixed to a base rail at the bottom and a handrail at the top. In a closed string staircase, the edges of the steps will be hidden.
In a cut or open string staircase, the side profile of the steps will be visible or even overhang the string. As the stair treads and are risers exposed, the spindle sits directly on the stair tread. For this style, you will need two spindles on each tread. The front spindle should be 900mm long and the back spindle 1100mm.
Grooved handrails contain a groove designed to fit in a wooden spindle accurately. If you are using metal spindles, you can choose base rails and handrails with smaller grooves intended for metal. You can shop our range of grooved handrails and base rails here. For glass panels, you can purchase an ungrooved wood handrail or base rail and connect these with a glass bracket. You can shop our range of ungrooved wood stair handrail parts and base rails here. You can alternatively use glass grooved handrails and base rails for attaching glass panels.
Our newel posts and newel caps are available in pine, white primed, hemlock, dark hardwood, white oak, ash and walnut. Wooden newel caps often need less cleaning than metal newel caps, such as chrome or nickel.
Styles of wooden newel posts
You can choose between various styles, including turned newel posts, barley newel posts, stop chamfered newel posts, fluted newel posts, box newel posts, square newel posts.
Plain square newel posts are among the most affordable styles of newel posts and are ideal if you are on a budget. They also suit a variety of staircases.
Box newels are similar in style to a square newel post; however, they offer a slightly different take as they are more ornate in appearance. Stop chamfered newel posts are square posts with bevels on each corner. The bevels soften the edge of the wood, making the square posts more aesthetically pleasing. The barley twist newel posts offer a traditional appearance and can suit a modern or period home.
If you are aiming for a more elegant look, fluted newel posts may be ideal.
Turned newel caps (such as ball caps) tend to look better on turned posts and caps with a square base (such as pyramid or flat caps) look best on chamfered or square newel posts.
Cross-grain pellets are used in many types of joinery and can be used to hide screws or bolt heads. They help finish off the joined timber to a smooth un-interrupted surface concealing the joint. Our cross grain pellets are available in ash, dark hardwood, hemlock, oak, pine and walnut.
Bullnose steps sit at the edge of your staircase and create that final finishing touch to your stairs. Our wooden bullnose steps are made to order, and we have left-hand and right-hand bullnose steps. You can choose between dark hardwood, hemlock,oak and pine.
Just two coats of our Clear Hardwax Oil will protect and enhance wooden surfaces
Provides a hard-wearing and attractive finish
Quick-drying and easy to maintain
What are bespoke wooden stair parts?
We offer custom wood stair parts, in which we re-create stair parts with the exact measurements and design you have in mind. We offer a bespoke woodturning service and can copy existing or damaged wood spindles, newel posts and bases. You can read more about our bespoke woodturning service here.
Combining wood with other materials
Designing a wood and glass staircase
Combining wood and glass can create an effective combination of modern and traditional themes. You can attach glass panels to grooved wooden handrails and base rails using infill.
Metal grooved handrails have a smaller groove, designed to fit the metal spindles accurately. You can achieve a modern and unique design feature by combining metal and wood.