What's Under the Carpet?

Hi!

I'm wondering if anyone has taken up the carpet on their stairs and can tell me what I can expect to find. Is it sub-floor, wood, etc.?

I'm guessing I wouldn't be lucky and find any sort of finished treasure like in an old home, but I'm trying to determine how much work it will be to convert the stairs into hardwood (with a runner) from carpet.

Thanks for any insight/advice!
Jennifer

Chickacoan Trail

 

when we picked out the options on our house--if the steps were being carpeted, they put a pine subfloor down. if you wanted oak--you had to pay extra for it. we did the wood w/ runner from the bottom floor to the middle, and got carpeted from the mid to the top, luckily they screwed up when the ordered the steps, and now i have an oak subfloor under my carpet--but i doubt they did that on every house out of the goodness of their heart.

 

Well If you live in an older home here, you can bet that when it was new the owners did not pay to get the oak stairs and it is subflooring.

We bought our house in 2003 and put in the oak stairs and took it all the way into the upper hallway. We both grew up in older homes with all wood, and no carpet on the stairs and that is how it is here (except in bedrooms, basement and family room). When the Builder's Floor manager came to do look at an issue with our laundry flooring, he said it was the first house he had seen without a runner on the stairs and said it looked really nice. Fact is, the runner you get from the builder is never wide enough, and with all the traffice going up and down, seeing a dirty carpet when you first walk in...

After previuosly living for 6 years in our old townhouse, we had wood installed from the foyer straight back to the dining / living room. It included 5 stairs. For that it was about 2 grand.

We have used for many years a company in Sterling - in the Safeway shopping center near Regal Cinemas. They have great pricing. lots of choices and are honest and pleasant to work with. American Decorating. 703-444-1177, they are a family run business. Talk to Tammy or Paul.