Hardwood Floor Landing, Stair Stringer Fascia, New Baseboard Trim

BY: Ryan Lutz on 11 Sep 2024

In the Sail Harbour Community near Healthpark Hospital in Southwest Fort Myers, Florida, there is a noticeable issue with the balance and alignment of stair trims. Specifically, it appears that the stair trims are significantly imbalanced, with the left side having almost no trim, while the right side has nearly 3 inches of trim. || This imbalance likely stems from a misalignment in the initial construction process. It is suspected that the metal stud floor tracking was not laid correctly, leading to walls being out of line. As a result, the stair framing area is wider than it should be, causing the trim to appear crooked and protruding about 3 inches further on the right side. This kind of imbalance and abstraction might be acceptable in art, but it is not acceptable in the context of carpentry and construction.

Stairs, HArdwood Floor, Baseboard Trim 2

Homeowner Goals

Balance the Baseboard, wood floor install and prep for finish painting and runner

Summary

Cost- $3500
Symptom(s): Carpet needs replacement, left fascia 3" wider
Size- 16 feet stairs, 4x5 landing, 3 stairs at base
Location- SailHarbor (Fort Myers)
Duration- 3 visits, + 1 follow up check in

Before

A stair stringer is the weight bearing portion of the stairs, the structural piece. The treads are the part your feet step on and the riser is decorative.

And this is leaving a large baseboard trim on the right of almost 3 inches. However the left is completely different with the LEFT baseboard width being zero. See the photos below and you will quickly understand.

The client wants to remove the carpet to add a rug runner, thus this was the opportune time to resolve the problem with the trim.

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After

Clean installation of nuanced stair stringer fascia trim work. New baseboards added in the stair area to match the baseboards upstairs.

Landing flooring completed. Bottom area trimmed out to transition to downstairs area. Area is prepped and ready for whatever the homeowner decides for the next phase.

Starir Trim After

Tools

Starir Landing Hardwood Floors After

IG Balacned Stair Stringer Fascia

Stair, Trim, Baseboards

Julio got the stair stringer fascia cut and I laid the floor on the landing. It turned out really nice with alot of craftsmanship and detail.

The next step is to get the stairs stripped and then the homeowner is going to paint the stairs white and add a runner made of indian cotton. Which unfortunately means that the nice wood grain is going to disappear.

Contractor Reccomendation

Client wants to area prepped to add a runner that is a woven Indian Cottom rug. We advised the client that this would not be appropriate for installation on stairs. From a safety and longevity standpoint we cannot install the runner that is going to rip apart. However we can prep the stairs and get them ready for the next phase. when she hires someone to paint and install the runner.

Process

Rip Out Carpet and Prep

Template For Stair Fascia

Measuring this stair stringer fascia is a very nuanced and precise job. To keep the gaps below 1/4" and ideall 1/8" of an inch requires expertise and focus.

Hardwood Floor Landing

The landing is completed in a white oak. The nosing is a red oak which the customer bought because this was all they had in stock. Unfortunately, the customer intends on painting these floors white. Thus the thought was that the red oak would be acceptable. The customer was advised that we should source the correct stair nosing in the event that she ever decides to refinish the floors.