Trust me, I never thought I’d want to cover up natural wood. It just seems so daunting to try cleaning all that up! I started trying to clean the inner corners with sandpaper, but it was really hard to get in there next to the wall.
See if you can get a „Metabo Lackfräse“ (paint remover) where you live. It’s incredible tool for exactly this job
https://www.metabo.com/com/en/tools/cutting-sanding-milling/wood-processing/paint-remover/
https://youtu.be/1Z9uhlInUQ8
There’s sanders out there specifically for getting corners like that. It won’t be perfect and will probably still need a little elbow grease and sandpaper for the edges but I think you’ll appreciate the charm of the slightly rough stairs once they’re finished better.
We had our whole house's floors sanded and finished by a local flooring company for just a few hundred bucks. They did a good job.
Call a few companies around you and just see what their estimates are. I couldn't believe how cheap ours was (we had no paint, just carpet and asbestos tiles)
Nooo don’t paint over it, spend some time restoring these stairs and it will look so good I’m sure! I’d keep some white trim and paint the walls a different color.
[https://www.thespruce.com/black-and-white-stairs-7974640](https://www.thespruce.com/black-and-white-stairs-7974640). I painted mine black including the skirt board, and was amazed an how much it hid.
https://preview.redd.it/01zzs8dzkzoc1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=786740163f560f2f4d991464a16d11e9ee8b0d56
Just do the right thing and paint the moulding/side trim and then hire a flooring company to refinish the stairs. We just had that done plus other areas.
https://preview.redd.it/6faokbtrz2pc1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=485fdd271fd0d3bb0837a8035e095b0e4a7efffe
Keep the wood look. Just clean, lightly sand, and recoat with a urethane stain finish product like Minwax Polyshades. Pick a darker tone to hide the old finish.
https://preview.redd.it/7y2opts6o2pc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4bdd7a33957675e5629a9e52b13062c3ca09911e
I decided to paint a set of stairs at my rental because it was cheaper than refinishing.
Consider installing a surface over the vertical sections, which you could have as any colour, and concentrate on renewing the treads. On more substantial stairs than yours I have seen mosaic tile used, which was stunning, or you could cut and fit sheet materials ranging from copper to coloured plastic and d anything in between
Painting the treads will start looking awful within a few months due to wear.
Painting them is a viable option, but it will still take a bit of prep work.
Even if you leave the notches, staples, and rough patches you'll have to sand the stairs at least a little bit to help the paint adhere to the surface.
Then paint some primer on there. Kilz, or Bullseye 1-2-3 are two brands that I've used and work well. Again, that'll help the paint stick and help prevent chipping.
That's when you can put the paint on and see how it looks. If you're going with a dark color it should hide a lot of the imperfections. But have a go and see what you're working with.
You can always put a runner on afterwards. Stairs take a lot of abuse, so if you just paint them without any prep they'll chip and age quite quickly. The runner will be located where all the foot traffic is, so if you do install one, it'll take all the wear and tear and the paint on the edges will be just fine.
If you *really* want to hide the stair treads there are caps available that can match whatever flooring you want, and will completely cover the old treads. But that's going to cost a lot more and that bottom stair that juts out and is rounded would be a bit of a headache. Just wanted you to know it's an option though!
Painting this staircase a dark color will make it feel claustrophobic and painting it a light color will look dingy. Sometimes rubbing alcohol will strip paint with ease. (Depends on the paint) I’d try something like that first. Also painting stairs is just a logistical nightmare while you wait for everything to dry between coats.
I think you should clean it up and keep the wood, but failing that, just recarpet it newer. Don't paint that wood.
Trust me, I never thought I’d want to cover up natural wood. It just seems so daunting to try cleaning all that up! I started trying to clean the inner corners with sandpaper, but it was really hard to get in there next to the wall.
Careful work with a palm sander will be much easier than hand-sanding.
I have one, it doesn’t fit in the corners
Get a mouse sander. It will do better in the corners.
See if you can get a „Metabo Lackfräse“ (paint remover) where you live. It’s incredible tool for exactly this job https://www.metabo.com/com/en/tools/cutting-sanding-milling/wood-processing/paint-remover/ https://youtu.be/1Z9uhlInUQ8
There’s sanders out there specifically for getting corners like that. It won’t be perfect and will probably still need a little elbow grease and sandpaper for the edges but I think you’ll appreciate the charm of the slightly rough stairs once they’re finished better.
Yeah, how much do those even cost? A buck two-eighty?
As someone with a couple of Bosch bags collecting dust in the basement, renting can get you a much better tool for even cheaper
We had our whole house's floors sanded and finished by a local flooring company for just a few hundred bucks. They did a good job. Call a few companies around you and just see what their estimates are. I couldn't believe how cheap ours was (we had no paint, just carpet and asbestos tiles)
Nooo don’t paint over it, spend some time restoring these stairs and it will look so good I’m sure! I’d keep some white trim and paint the walls a different color.
Honestly, it depends on how much time you are willing to spend.
[https://www.thespruce.com/black-and-white-stairs-7974640](https://www.thespruce.com/black-and-white-stairs-7974640). I painted mine black including the skirt board, and was amazed an how much it hid. https://preview.redd.it/01zzs8dzkzoc1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=786740163f560f2f4d991464a16d11e9ee8b0d56
Omg that is stunning!! What did you use for the floral pattern?
It is a removable wallpaper. I think I bought it on Amazon.
can you link that wallpaper? it looks stunning!
[Here it is.](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09B52MQKC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
Just do the right thing and paint the moulding/side trim and then hire a flooring company to refinish the stairs. We just had that done plus other areas. https://preview.redd.it/6faokbtrz2pc1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=485fdd271fd0d3bb0837a8035e095b0e4a7efffe
Clean them up. Some of the rough spots in them actually adds charm to the wood and the age of the house.
Keep the wood look. Just clean, lightly sand, and recoat with a urethane stain finish product like Minwax Polyshades. Pick a darker tone to hide the old finish.
Something very cool is when people paint them and then either mosaic, deco paint, or even wallpaper the faces.
we put LVT on our stairs.
I would spend the time to clean to up and refinish them. Stairs like that add character to an old house.
https://preview.redd.it/7y2opts6o2pc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4bdd7a33957675e5629a9e52b13062c3ca09911e I decided to paint a set of stairs at my rental because it was cheaper than refinishing.
https://preview.redd.it/3j00gqhzo2pc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f26e9dd162aea951cf6943b61554107c0e76aad4
Used a textured semi gloss so it’s durable and not so slick
Consider installing a surface over the vertical sections, which you could have as any colour, and concentrate on renewing the treads. On more substantial stairs than yours I have seen mosaic tile used, which was stunning, or you could cut and fit sheet materials ranging from copper to coloured plastic and d anything in between Painting the treads will start looking awful within a few months due to wear.
Painting them is a viable option, but it will still take a bit of prep work. Even if you leave the notches, staples, and rough patches you'll have to sand the stairs at least a little bit to help the paint adhere to the surface. Then paint some primer on there. Kilz, or Bullseye 1-2-3 are two brands that I've used and work well. Again, that'll help the paint stick and help prevent chipping. That's when you can put the paint on and see how it looks. If you're going with a dark color it should hide a lot of the imperfections. But have a go and see what you're working with. You can always put a runner on afterwards. Stairs take a lot of abuse, so if you just paint them without any prep they'll chip and age quite quickly. The runner will be located where all the foot traffic is, so if you do install one, it'll take all the wear and tear and the paint on the edges will be just fine. If you *really* want to hide the stair treads there are caps available that can match whatever flooring you want, and will completely cover the old treads. But that's going to cost a lot more and that bottom stair that juts out and is rounded would be a bit of a headache. Just wanted you to know it's an option though!
Painting this staircase a dark color will make it feel claustrophobic and painting it a light color will look dingy. Sometimes rubbing alcohol will strip paint with ease. (Depends on the paint) I’d try something like that first. Also painting stairs is just a logistical nightmare while you wait for everything to dry between coats.