AMN Construction · Finish carpentry · Stair railings and treads

Stair railings and treads, solid underfoot and in hand.

A stair has parts you walk on and parts you hold. We build and install handrails, balusters, newel posts, treads, risers and skirt boards, so the stair is solid, quiet and passes inspection.

Email photographs and measurements 805 886 0988

In short

A good rail does not move or rattle when you lean on it.
Rail heights and baluster spacing are set by code, and the inspector checks them.
Carpeted stairs can become wood stairs, but what is under the carpet decides how.

HandrailFixed so it does not flex. Its height is set by code and checked by the inspector.
BalustersThe uprights. Their spacing is set by code, so the layout is worked out first.
Newel postAnchors the rail. A newel that moves makes the whole rail feel loose.
TreadWhat you step on. Wood treads are fixed so they do not squeak.
RiserThe upright face between treads.
Skirt boardTrim along the wall, cut to follow every tread and riser.

A stair from the side: the parts of a railing and the steps beneath it.

Built by Tom. Fifty years of custom cabinets and finish carpentry, from Oregon and Hawaii to Malibu, Pacific Palisades and Westlake Village, and now from Goleta to Carpinteria. Meet the carpenter

What we do

What is included.

Handrails: the rail you hold, shaped to fit a hand and run continuously.
Balusters: the upright spindles under the rail, in wood or metal.
Newel posts: the large posts at the top, bottom and turns that anchor the rail.
Treads (the part you step on) and risers (the upright face between steps).
Skirt boards: the trim along the wall that follows the slope of the stair.
Replacing carpet with hardwood treads and painted or stained risers.

How it goes

Step 1
You send photographs of the stair from top and bottom, and tell us what is loose, worn or dated.
Step 2
We inspect on site, including the framing under the carpet where we can, and confirm what code requires.
Step 3
Parts are ordered or made in our small boutique shop in Carpinteria, and the wood adjusts to the air of the house.
Step 4
Old parts come off, then treads and risers go in, then posts, rail and balusters.
Step 5
Everything is sanded and filled, then finished, and the inspector checks it where a permit applies.

Yours to decide

Decide these first.

Style. Square and plain for a modern house, turned and shaped for a traditional one. The newel post sets the tone.
Wood or metal balusters. Wood can be painted or stained to match. Metal is thinner and lets more light through.
Tread wood. It should match or sit well with the floors at the top and bottom of the stair.
Paint or stain. Stained treads with painted risers is a common pairing. Painted treads wear through where feet land.
Repair or replace. A sound rail can be tightened and refinished. A loose or undersized one is better replaced.

How to tell good work

A newel post that does not move when you push it. Everything else depends on it.
No squeak underfoot and no rattle from the balusters.
Balusters evenly spaced and plumb, which means truly upright.
Rail joints that are smooth under the hand, with no step or sharp edge.
Treads with the same depth and height from step to step, and a skirt board tight to each one.

What moves the price

Length of the stair and the number of turns and landings. Curves and turns take the most time.
Parts and material: stock balusters and rail cost less than custom-made ones.
What is under the carpet. Rough framing needs full new treads and risers.
Finish. Staining to match existing floors takes more steps than paint.

Prices vary with the materials and the hours a job takes. Each job is custom and unique, so we price it once we have seen the room.

Our work

Stair railings and treads, built and fitted.

Santa Barbara South Coast

Painted cabinetry and closets through a remodeled house

Finish work through a whole remodel: a kitchen with sage-green base cabinets and white uppers, a pantry nook with open shelves over a wood counter, a painted bath vanity, closets fitted with shelves and hanging rods, and a stair with new wood treads.

Custom cabinetry · Custom closets · Custom shelving

A long kitchen run of sage-green Shaker base cabinets with brass pulls under a white counter, and white wall cabinets — The kitchen: sage base cabinets, white uppers

A nook with white open shelves above a wood counter and sage-green open base cabinets — The pantry nook

A cream painted Shaker vanity with brass pulls under a green stone top — The bath vanity

A painted white closet with shelves and hanging rods on three walls — A closet: shelves and hanging rods

A narrow walk-in closet fitted with white shelves and double hanging rods on both sides — A walk-in closet

A stair with new light wood treads, white risers and a wall-mounted handrail — New wood treads on the stair

Santa Barbara South Coast

Cabinetry in a log house

Tom built the knotty wood cabinetry and trim for this log house: a bookcase wall built between peeled log posts, a bar and desk with glass-fronted cabinets, bath vanities, a loft railing, mantels and wainscot.

Built-ins · Custom cabinetry · Bathroom vanities

A wall of knotty wood bookcases and base cabinets fitted between peeled log posts — The bookcase wall, built between log posts

Knotty wood cabinets with glass-fronted doors above a granite bar and a built-in desk — The bar and desk

A knotty wood bath vanity with drawers and a tall linen tower beside it — Bath vanity and linen tower

A log-walled living room with a plank ceiling, wood-cased doors and a kitchen of knotty wood cabinets beyond — The living room, toward the kitchen

A bedroom with a log mantel over a stone fireplace, wood wainscoting and a plank ceiling — A bedroom: log mantel and wainscot

A loft game room with a wood railing of square balusters and a plank ceiling — The loft and its railing

Santa Barbara South Coast

Cabinetry, a stair and a library in a traditional house

Tom built the woodwork through this traditional house: a kitchen in warm wood with glass-fronted cabinets and a hanging pot rack, a butler’s pantry, a painted stair with a turned-baluster railing, a wall of library bookcases around a window, and a bath vanity.

Custom cabinetry · Stair railings and treads · Built-ins

A large kitchen with warm wood cabinets, a tiled island and a wood pot rack hanging above it — The kitchen

Warm wood wall cabinets with glass doors beside a range and hood — Glass-fronted cabinets by the range

A stair with wood treads and a white railing of turned balusters rising to a gallery — The stair and its railing

Floor-to-ceiling wood bookcases built around a window, full of books — Library bookcases around the window

A butler’s pantry with glass-fronted wood cabinets, a small sink and drawers — The butler’s pantry

A long wood bath vanity with drawers and a dressing table section under a wide mirror — The bath vanity

Santa Barbara South Coast

A deck and stair railing

New decking, a guard rail of closely spaced balusters, and a stair rail to match, photographed in bare wood before finishing.

Stair railings and treads · Exterior trim

A new wood deck with a railing of closely spaced vertical balusters along a board-and-batten house — The deck and its railing

Tom, a white-haired carpenter, sanding the top of a new wood stair railing — Tom easing the edge of the stair rail

New deck boards running to a solid-looking guard rail of vertical balusters, with trees beyond — Deck boards and guard rail

All finish carpentry projects

Questions

Stair railings and treads: what owners ask.

Can you replace carpeted stairs with wood treads?

Yes, in most houses. Under carpet there is usually rough framing lumber, not finished wood. We fit new hardwood treads and risers over or in place of it, keeping each step the same height. The rail and balusters often need adjusting at the same time.

How do you fix a wobbly stair railing?

By fixing the post it hangs from. A loose rail usually traces back to a newel post that is not anchored to the framing. We open up the base, bolt the post to solid structure, then tighten the rail and balusters. Glue alone does not last.

How tall does a stair handrail need to be?

The building code sets the height, along with the spacing between balusters and the shape of the rail. We build to the code in force and the inspector checks it. If your existing rail is lower than today’s rule, replacing it means meeting the current one.

Why do my stairs squeak?

Because two pieces of wood are rubbing. As a house dries, treads loosen from the framing below and move against nails or risers when stepped on. The cure is to fasten the tread down firmly with screws and glue, from below if the underside can be reached.

Where we do this

Built in our small boutique shop in Carpinteria where the piece is custom, and fitted on site in:

Carpinteria Summerland Montecito Santa Barbara Hope Ranch Goleta

All finish carpentry · see the projects

Inquiries

Have a room in mind? Send us the photographs.

Email photographs of the room and rough measurements to purchasing@amnbuild.com. Matt reads it himself. No forms.

Email Matt the photographs Or call Matt · 805 886 0988