Cladding wooden stairs

Cladding wooden stairs  

Wood on stairs or all-wooden stairs are perennial classics, as popular today as they were in the past. Whether you have a monolithic staircase clad in wood or an all-wooden prefabricated staircase, both versions can pleasantly lighten a room and give it a natural touch and warm feeling. But let’s take a closer look at using timber for stairs.

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Wooden staircases 

For every staircase, there are two parts to consider – the supporting structure and the surface. And wood is commonly used in both cases. Then, of course, there is the question of price – and this is very variable with wood, depending on the choice of wood species. Softwoods such as pine will be the cheapest, while oak, beech, ash, or maple will be in a similar but more expensive price range. However, all of these local woods will have very similar shades and if you are looking for something more interesting, you will have to reach for the exotics, which will also be significantly more expensive.

The use of timber as a load-bearing structure is very popular mainly because of the low purchase price and the relatively easy assembly and disassembly, which does not take too long even compared to concreting, as no technological downtime is required. At the same time, when choosing wood as a construction material, it is no longer necessary to decide what to put on the surface of the staircase – wood "only" needs a good surface treatment.  

Cladding stairs with wood is the second way to use the material. It can be clad either with solid wood (which of course costs much more) or with a two/three-layer floating floor. Cladding is definitely the cheaper option to get some nice wood for your home; however, a low price is very often a direct indicator of durability in this case.  

Let’s take a closer look at the key properties of wood for staircases:

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ADVANTAGES

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• Supporting structure 
  • Low purchase price option
  • Relatively quick and easy assembly and disassembly
  • Once acquired, it is not necessary to clad anything
  • Low weight
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• Surface
  • Natural material – attractive fragrance  
  • Warm and soft feeling when stepped on
  • Acoustic insulation (only in case of cladding)
  • Variety of shades, grain patterns, and nosing shapes

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DISADVANTAGES

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• Supporting structure 
  • Reacts to changes in temperature and humidity – changes dimensions
  • With frequent use it starts to creak
  • Wood has a much lower lifespan than most other materials
  • Degrades very quickly in humid environments
  • Susceptibility to pests
  • Possible loss of handrail safety with time
  • Compared to other materials, very low durability
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• Surface
  • It wears down relatively quickly and creates unevenness, cracks, or loose chips
  • Requires regular and costly maintenance – sanding, surface treatment
  • The surface is not waterproof without a special surface treatment
  • Not UV resistant – not colourfast
  • Not resistant to point loads (material may be chipped by sharp objects)
  • Harder woods are more expensive and the choice of shades and patterns comes at a high price
  • Regular grinding of the material can quite quickly lead to its complete removal
  • Due to its reaction to water, the surface cannot be wiped regularly or conventional cleaning chemicals used
  • Compared to other materials, very low durability

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Our evaluation of concrete as a material for interior staircases 

• Supporting structure: 6/10 
• Surface: 6/10 
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Wood is a popular material in general, and rightly so – it provides highly desirable properties such as low cost (in the case of cheaper species), huge flexibility, and the warmth of the material, which visually makes the home cosier. However, due to a number of drawbacks, there are comparably priced alternatives that offer the same advantages and resolve the disadvantages – especially the biggest ones such as durability, resistance, erratic costs, and the need for frequent maintenance. 

If you’re considering building a new staircase or rebuilding an old, non-functional wooden staircase (not every staircase can be reconstructed and for safety reasons – in case of any doubts or significant wear and tear – were commend consulting a specialist), we recommend you consider an alternative in the form of the CEMVIN STEP staircase construction set, made of fibre-cement boards. It is a very flexible alternative embodying all the key advantages of timber in construction and none of its disadvantages.

If you have wooden cladding that is losing its functionality or an all-wooded staircase whose surface is not what it used to be, there is more than one option for renovation. Of course, you can always clad with wood to preserve the original features (although wood cladding doesn’t usually solve creaky stairs). And since we sell laminate cladding at TOPSTEP, we naturally want to show you why we believe it is a great choice for cladding a wooden staircase. 

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TOPSTEP laminate cladding 

Laminate cladding is generally a very good option for wooden staircases, but of course we cannot guarantee the general quality of products from other manufacturers. But we can vouch for ours, and we do. We pride ourselves on the high quality of our products – from the materials (highly durable HDF board body and the highest quality laminate), to the processing (we offer unique laminate processing on postforming machines that allows us to deliver products with a rounded edge on the cladding tile without any splitting of material that occurs with our competitors), to the installation (by our trained craftsmen). In addition, our cladding solves all the disadvantages of wood (all those that can be overcome by surface changes + creaking) and it is the ideal material for staircase reconstruction – even uneven treads or chipped material are not an obstacle: our systems can cope with all such problems.

We are happy to describe the great features of our cladding, but we have to change our approach slightly, and move from advantages and disadvantages to properties. In fact, we have tweaked our cladding systems so that we don’t see any disadvantages.

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Properties

Flexibility: TOPSTEP laminate cladding can be used to clad staircases of any shape, number of steps, with or without a landing. It can be used for cladding newly built stairs as well as for reconstruction by cladding – it also solves any unevenness and loss of surface strength of the substrate.

High resistance: The A3-4 quality laminate is virtually unbreakable, resists heavy impact and abrasion, and is resistant to UV rays and common chemicals.  

Long-lasting beauty: TOPSTEP laminate profiles retain their appearance for many years without the need for maintenance work, the only maintenance required is wiping off dirt with a damp cloth.

Wide range of decors: We offer a variety of shapes, patterns, and colours that make it easy to match the stairs to the rest of your home’s interior. But unlike selecting between different types of wood, you’ll find all wood (and non-wood) decors at the same price.

Easy and quick installation: Our laminate systems are designed for efficiency, ensuring both easy and quick installation – a simple staircase can be clad in as little as one day, and it’s ready to go as soon as the job is complete. And you don’t have to worry about mess either, installation creates the absolute minimum of it.

Cost-effectiveness: Laminate offers an excellent price-performance ratio, is more affordable than many other materials, but does not compromise on quality or appearance.

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How about the cladding? With TOPSTEP it’s easy! 

TOPSTEP offers laminate staircase cladding in two product series – FLEX and PROFI. The product series do not differ in quality, but there is a price difference. This is due to the difference in approach – FLEX is designed for self-installation by the customer (and therefore you only pay for the material), while the PROFI series comes with a complete service, from measurement to installation – you just have to choose which you prefer. What you can specifically expect:

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PROFI

• Installation within 3 weeks
• Choice of 15+ wood decors and 3 nosing profiles
• 3D configurator – you can design the entire staircase and immediately see how your chosen elements would look, with the option to send the configured stairs directly to a TOPSTEP sales representative
• Staircases without work and stress free, with guaranteed high-quality workmanship and installation
• Possibility to choose accessories such as banisters or LED stair lighting

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FLEX

• Delivery of all material within 5 working days 
• Choice of 8 wooden decors with the option of a white riser 
• Lower price – you are only paying for the material 
• A fun Saturday with a construction set for adults