How to Install a Stair Runner
If you have plain wood stairs that could use some style, a stair runner is a smart way to add color, texture and even a little padding under your feet. It’s also a project you can knock off in a day for not much more than the cost of the rug. Besides the runner and carpet padding, you will also need staples and a staple gun, double-sided carpet tape, bolster chisel, chalk line, felt-tip marker, scissors, combination square, tape measure, straightedge, narrow-crown pneumatic stapler and air compressor, and a thin pry bar for this DIY project. Learn how to install a stair runner in this video by This Old House:
1. Measure the height of one riser and the depth of one tread and add them together. Multiply by the number of stairs and add on another 12 inches. This tells you how long of a runner or runners you’ll need.
2. Measure and mark the center line of the stairs and line up the middle of the runner with your mark. Make sure the reveal at each side is even, then use a pencil to mark the runner’s edges on the tread. Use a combination square to repeat identical edge marks on each tread.
3. Slip a piece of felt padding under the runner bumped in a little from the edge to create a smooth transition with the tread. Now cut a section of padding four inches longer than a tread. Snip off the two front corners, then use it as a template to mark the other pieces of padding, one for each step.
4. Center a section of padding on a tread and leave a small gap between its back edge and the riser. Start at the center and work your way out as you tack the rear edge in place with a staple gun and 5/8″ staples. Smooth out the padding and staple the front edge in the same way about an inch back from the end of the tread, then wrap the rest of the padding over the nosing and staple it to the riser.
5. Once all the padding is in place, you can start installing the runner starting at the top step. Stick several pieces of double-sided carpet tape to the riser and press the runner against the tape. Then use a pneumatic narrow-crown stapler and 1-inch staples to fasten the runner to the riser. Use a bolster chisel to tuck the runner in tight along the gap behind the padding. Fasten it down with the pneumatic stapler, then smooth the runner over the nose of the next tread and tuck and staple it in place. Stretching the runner from the nosing diagonally to the base of the riser is called the waterfall style. Continue installing in this matter until you reach the end of the runner.
6. Next you’ll need to seam two runners together. Trim the first one about two inches past the base of the riser and fold it under to create a hem. Tuck it down into the padding gap with the bolster chisel, then staple it straght down into the tread. To join the second runner, simply overlap a hemmed edge over the edge of the first runner and staple it down.
7. Continue installing the runner until you’ve reached the floor, then trim the runner several inches longer than you need. Fold it under to create a hem and staple it into the riser itself. If there’s a piece of molding where the stairs meet the floor, just attach the hem right above it.
