Upholstering one side of a stairwell with thin Millican carpet.

[highup]

There's 14 steps that need one side wrapped. The side faces the homes entryway. Basically, from top to bottom, the stair case makes a 45 degree turn with the middle 3 or 4 steps making most of the turn.
The carpet is a patterned Millican cut pile...... no loops. The carpet is thin. Last time I did a wrap it was way back in the thick carpet era. It was easy to hide the folds and seams. But this stuff is thin and light colored. The wrapped edge is close to 3 inches wide. I'm not sure how well it will hide staples.
It's probably been 25 years since I've been asked to wrap the edge of a stair. OK, one 10 years ago.
Anyone have some pointers or how toos when working with and wrapping the sides with this thin carpet?
I usually work from the top down.

 

[DarisMulkin]

Are you just wrapping the sides and water falling the rest or is it a contour job?
I'd use a glue gun to hold it up. I taught how to upholster step without any staple when I was training for CFI and Orcon. The brag was we could do a stairway without any staples or tacks.

Daris

 

[highup]

Are you just wrapping the sides and water falling the rest or is it a contour job?
I'd use a glue gun to hold it up. I taught how to upholster step without any staple when I was training for CFI and Orcon. The brag was we could do a stairway without any staples or tacks.

Daris

Yes, it's waterfalled. It's a 40+ year old custom home. The risers are even at an angle which helps a lot.
My question is more like, should there be folded under, or mitered and butted corners on the top edge?
I think the stair tread and riser edge extend 3/4 of an inch out over the sheetrock. Right now, the old carpet rolls over the side of the step, curls back under and butts right to the sheetrock............... and has staples every 1/2 inch.
Yesterday I tore out the upper hall so I could use it as a pattern to make cuts. I didn't have time to start stair removal. I'll have to take off a full stair edge today to see more of what I'm up against.
Wallpaper currently fits to the carpeted edge, so the new carpet, if butted the same as the old, will leave a 3/8" bare spot because the pile is shorter.

I'm not sure yet, how much extra carpet I have to waste on each stair to make s single seam like is in the first step in the drawing. Years ago I did some with thick carper and had to plug the corner of each step. Adding 4 inches to each step is going to add a good 5 feet to what I need. I think the pattern will be forgiving.

 

[DarisMulkin]

Don't fold it under. We had a certain way of cutting our corners but a good miter and glued/seamed together should work good. A little hint if there is a turn down the front of the riser run a bead on the edge of the riser and hold it in until the glue sets. When it is done it is a hell of a job to take it off.

Daris

 

[Ernesto]

If it meets the sheet rock and you don't fold it under then won't the edge of the sheet rock be exposed since the carpet is thin?

 

[Don Monfils]

This is the CFI true cut method
http://www.cfiinstallers.com/pdf_stuff/True.pdf

 

[DarisMulkin]

This is the CFI true cut method
http://www.cfiinstallers.com/pdf_stuff/True.pdf

That's the method I was talking.

Daris

 

[highup]

That's the method I was talking.

Daris

Just popped in............. I'll look at that.

 

[highup]

Here's kinda what's going on.
The stair edge has a 3/4 inch by 2 inch edge added on which extends out beyond the sheetrock. The carpet wraps out around that and folds under it and is stapled into the exposed edge. I'm guessing there will be 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch to staple to if I butt it to the sheetrock.
Because this carpet is thinner, I may have to add a 1/4 inch strip of wood to all these edges where the carpet will be glued or stapled so that the edge of the wallpaper is still covered.

Like the overhang shown in the CFI photo, I think this stairway has that same overhang on the riser too........................ In other words, a continuous edge all the way from the top of the stairs to the bottom.

 

[highup]

There are no ballisters. The railing is wrought iron. The railing is supported by a steel support at the top, bottom and one in the middle. Those are all 1 inch square.

 

[DarisMulkin]

I'd say it sounds like you have a plan. But you already have the job done, right?

Daris

 

[highup]

I'd say it sounds like you have a plan. But you already have the job done, right?

Daris

No, barely started. The hall is 'C' shaped and has 6 doorways, a closet. The top step and railing support have a 4 foot edge that overhangs the big entry hall below. The three sides of the hall are 16 feet, 18 feet and 12 feet. It's gonna be fun just unfolding the piece to get started.
The closet will be in two pieces and the other end of the hall will have a seam because it's over 15 feet wide and needs a 3' by 8' fill. I need to ramp up the tackless to the marble floor in the bathroom, and the master bedroom has French doors. Someone ended the bedroom's laminate floor with a wooden T molding which is unsupported on the carpet side.......... (it rocks to and fro)
It took me a few hours at the warehouse just to decide where to align the pattern, get my fills and leave enough for the stairs.
The baseboards are being replaced, so I removed those yesterday, and replaced all of the tackstrip because it was places so haphazardly.
The pad is almost done, so I'm about ready to get underway.

 

[DarisMulkin]

If the carpet is that thin you are going to have to lower the pin height on the strip also. You say you have to ramp the bathroom door, you definitely don't want a pin to poke the feet there.
I did a job where I had to lower the pin height and all I had on the semi was a piece of cheap vinyl. Cut it into strips so it overlapped the pad about an inch and drove it down onto the strip with my rubber mallet. Man it worked out great.
I thought I was the only one that got job like that.

Daris

 

[highup]

I'll draw you a picture.
Yup, I've done some pin shortening too. A layer of that old cotton binding works too.
I've used a couple of layers of that sticky, mesh type drywall tape too. Just build up a few layers till it performs as you want it to.

This carpet is thin, but I got the bathroom doorway and the wide doorway to the master bedroom done today and the pins aren't bad. I might gently tap down a couple of the high ones. Not as bad as I thought. Bathroom doorway height impressed the customer. ...........she's impressed, so I'm a happy camper.
They own a restaurant.
He came home briefly this afternoon and brought me a nice slice of peanut butter/chocolate cream pie and coffee. (fresh pie made at the restaurant, not frozen) ..........yes, I still work for food.

 

[highup]

Here ya go Daris. Where's your first stretch? ...........second? ..........third? ..........15th?
It's a fun pattern with written, but barely discernible words and symbols on it. It's gonna be pretty neat when all said and done.

 

[DarisMulkin]

I think I would set the curve and work away from it. Think of it as a corner. My question is to you how are you going to cut for the spindles? Each one individually and out over the side or the length of the rail and have the seams in between each spindle? I presume that is the length of the carpet coming down over the step and not the width.

Daris

 

[highup]

I think I would set the curve and work away from it. Think of it as a corner. My question is to you how are you going to cut for the spindles? Each one individually and out over the side or the length of the rail and have the seams in between each spindle? I presume that is the length of the carpet coming down over the step and not the width.

Daris

The railing has a top and a bottom, with decorative scrollwork and spindles holding is all together. From the wall flange on the upper landing, to the very bottom, the entire railing is all welded together in a single piece.

In addition, the entire railing is suspended a few inches above the stair surface by four flanges. There's one flange on the edge of the landing, another one is located half way down the stairway, and of course, another one on the first step. There is another flange/connection on the landing attached to the wall.
So there's only 3 supports to cut around. I split the top one so the seam is straight down the face of the riser.

The picture shows two of the three support locations. If this stairway had 3 spindles connected to each tread, .................I'd just shoot myself and be done with it.

 

[highup]

What's the preference? Install each step individually, and then do all of the end wraps in one continuous endeavor?
....or install each step and each end wrap before moving on to the next step?

 

[DarisMulkin]

Install the steps then go back and do the ends. That way you will have a flow going and everything is fresh in your mind so you do them all the same. On tailored steps I used to do the bottom 3 different from each other then figure out what method I liked the best.

Daris

 

[highup]

Install the steps then go back and do the ends. That way you will have a flow going and everything is fresh in your mind so you do them all the same. On tailored steps I used to do the bottom 3 different from each other then figure out what method I liked the best.

Daris

That's what I was planning, mainly for consistency like you said.
Took 4 1/4 hours just to remove and pull staples off the end caps. They used a box per step. Half way through the effort, I figured I should have pried off the wood end caps, and made new ones.
................Kinda like people that do a major remodel, then decide a month later it would have bee better to do a complete demo and build a new house.