Oak Tread Around A Curve

ATH

Situation:

Husband did much remodeling in the house, including constructing the stairs in this photograph. Wife claims that husband (a) got tired of the work and (b) didn't know how to deal with putting an oak tread on this curved bottom step. She called us in to see if she could get it taken care of.

I have a few partially baked ideas on how to cover this step with oak and have it look good, but I thought I'd ask the assembled throng of experts and see if anyone has already done something like this.

So, how have you handled putting treads on a step like this (photographs, drawings, and the like especially appreciated)?

Note that I am not sure if the curved part is a circle or not. If it is a circle, the center of the circle is certainly somewhere on the rectangular landing on the next step up. Husband wasn't around to quiz on how he layed out the shape.

Note #2, they are not interested in removing the bottom step in favor of another shape as the flooring was cut around this shape, they don't have any spare flooring, husband likes his design ... you get the picture.

Thanks, in advance, for any words of wisdom.

Attached Thumbnails

 

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Wayne
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WNYcarpenter

There may be better suggestions or perhaps this is one of your plans,

...I think it's more important to match the landing with the stair treads than matching the landing with the floor. We often use custom millworks for our treads so they can run a few pieces of flooring out of the same material to cover the landing. With a template and quick sketch the same shop can fabricate a custom bullnose.

Dry fit the flooring staying proud of the arc and flush cut with a router....Pull out the board butting into the next rise and rip it down to accommadate the for the bullnose.

StairBuilder

I would have an oversized blank glued up at my local shop and then cut it in. Deal with the nosing last. Use a 1 1/4" block against the riser to trace the overhang on the underside of the tread. The hardest part will be cutting the radius. I do it free hand with a jigsaw. I just go slow and then sand out any slight ganks.

Another homowner digs a hole...

You'll have fun trying to shim your treads and risers the way he closed up the framing.

ATH

Thanks for the replys.

WNY,

I'll have to look into the idea of getting a custom bullnose made. I hadn't considered that option.

I'm not 100% sure I understand the part about cutting the board nearest the next tread to allow room for the bullnose. Wouldn't I have to cut several sides (both sides of the landing and the enclosed wall to the back of the curved step)?

Stairbuilder,

Your suggestion is similar to one of my ideas.

The first idea I had was to create a hexagon or octagon to form my own segmented bullnose that would eliminate any showing endgrain on the edge of the step and then fit in either flooring or oak tread material to fill the rest of the step. This could take a long time and the home owner may not be willing to cough up the dough for it.

The idea I'm leaning toward at the moment is to glue up some wider treads and cut a miter to the corner of the rectangular landing (i.e., a big "L" shaped piece).

Either way, I can cut the curve using a cardboard template and a jigsaw (or bandsaw) and route my own radius on the edge.

Comments?

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hrscammisa

From what I can see you need to find out the rise on that.Because if it is at 7 1/2" already when you add the new tread then what.So my 2 cents would be to use some 1/4 oak ply over the last tread and around the bottom riser.Not saying thats the only way but thats all I got.Took another look at it theres no bullnose on the tread above so it wont be to hard to match.

Teetorbilt

Personally, I'd do the curved step parallel with the existing flooring, the landing at a 45* to transition to the remaining steps. For the curved bullnose, oak steam bends quite well.

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hrscammisa

try to match the flooring first then use Teetorbuilt idea for the oak bullnose top and bottom treads

WNYcarpenter

I'll have to look into the idea of getting a custom bullnose made. I hadn't considered that option.

I'm not 100% sure I understand the part about cutting the board nearest the next tread to allow room for the bullnose. Wouldn't I have to cut several sides (both sides of the landing and the enclosed wall to the back of the curved step)?
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After looking again, my method would only work without the step back, or notch. I think Stairbuilder's method is likely the best option, rightly so!

WNYcarpenter

I just had another thought...you could make one solid template out ot plywood and have your mill make you a solid slab that'll fit right into place. Specify the grain direction, amount of overhang and width of the bullnose.

If you flush cut your template to the rough riser, make a note that you want the finished product 1 1/2" larger than the template.

bill r

How's about one of these babies:

http://www.luxuryhousingtrends.com/h...oor-inlays.htm
http://www.hardwoodinfo.com/display_article.asp?ID=262
http://www.arkansascommunities.com/N...woodfloors.htm

floor instal

I have done several of these things on curved and serpentine balconies. The floor looks like it is a No. 2 Or No.3 white oak. You will need to match the same grade of flooring with the nosing. What are they going to use om the straight step. They are usually 3.5 inches or 5.5 inches if you are using stock material. I dont know of anybody that makes nosings from anything but select grade. If that is what you are going to use on the rest of the steps you need to use that grade on the radius. If you can get me the deminsions of the landing and the deminsions of the other nosings I can help with the layout and production of the nosing. you can e-mail me at floorinstallation@cox.net or call me at 850-855-5876. It is not as hard as you think and can be pretty much done on site.

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hrscammisa

I think he was just doing the bottom one. That was my question also you cant lift the bottom with doing them all so thats why i thought to go with the 1/4 oak ply over the bottom tread and rise

ATH

Thanks, again, for all the interesting replys.

Some clarification:

1. We are providing an estimate for all the stairs and the landing, but not the railing and balusters. We will either do all treads and risers or none of them (should the homeowner faint at the price ).

2. The bottom step is shorter than the rest of them. Either the homeowner was bright enough to take that into account, or he lucked out by building the stairs before installing the flooring (I don't have my notes in front of me, so I don't recall the difference in height between the first and remaining stairs).

Comments:

If I understand each of your posts, some of you seem to be more concerned with the landing than the bottom step (I don't see how an inlay will help me at all with the curved bottom step). I think I can offer her a couple of solutions for the landing and I haven't been worried about that one at all (should I be? ).

Even if the bottom step is the same size as the others, I can't see using 1/4" plywood for a tread. Creating an overhang that would take the abuse a step takes would be difficult at best.

My main concern was trying to eliminate (or at least reduce) the amount of end grain on the curved bottom step. Most of your solutions don't seem to care much about that, so, I guess I shouldn't be worried about it either.

Re: steam bending

It seems to me that I need a 5/4 piece of oak at least 3" wide to overhang properly and provide enough material ontop of the step to secure it. Can you really bend that into a circle of roughly 48" diameter?

I suppose I could cut smaller strips (that would bend easily ... without even requiring steam), and laminate them together around a wooden form.

Thanks for the reminders about making sure I cut my stock larger than the template I plan in order to account for the riser and overhang. I like to think I would remember, but, who knows?

Thanks again. If we get the gig, I'll try my best to post pictures of the final product.

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send_it_all

Your idea about several miters to eliminate end grain is good. If I got this job I would make a cardboard tmplate of the circle. Then use some oak 1x3 for the nosing and some 1x6 planks for the tread area. Glue up the 1x6s in the shop, big enough to cap the whole circular bottom landing. Figure out miters for the nosing that will give you about the proper curveature and glue those up. Cut the ends of the glued up planks to the shape of the inside (non bulnosed) part of the 1x3s. Glue the nosing to the planks and then bulnose it using a circle cutting attachment on a router to create a perfectly circular bulnose. I would allow it to overhang the riser by about an inch to detract from the (hpefully) slight difference in curve from the hubby's atempt at a circle. Then bring it in in one piece and glue it down and have it finished on site after any cutting and nailing that would be done. If i knew how to post a drawing I would. I feel confident that I could do the bottom landing in a day and a half maybe. Hpe this helps

hrscammisa

if you are doing all the stairs then the hight wont matter.The 1/4" ply was juat idea if were not doing all of them.Send it all would be my choice.Great idea on that one

tcleve4911

Are we talking prefinished flooring???

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ATH

I don't know about the rest of the thread, but the only area that I am considering flooring of any kind is the rectangular landing.

I am basing my estimate on using unfinished oak treads for the curved bottom stair, all regular stairs above the landing, and for the nosing detail around the edges of the landing.

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woodmagman

Why are they requesting Oak, the flooring is maple or birch and a low grade at that. The newal post is fir or hemlock. With a lesser grade floor like that carpet may be an option. Cost seems to be paramount in this.

ATH

I don't know why they requested oak. Saw it in a neighbor's house? Sounds more durable? Your guess is as good as mine. We asked if they would prefer maple to match the floor and they said "no."

As for carpet, perhaps we haven't spoken with the same type of homeowners.

Hardwood stairs goes along with hardwood floors and nearly every customer wants hardwood floors along with an open floor plan, recessed lights, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, a big-screen TV (even if the room is too small for it), etc.

It's what they want. If they get sticker shock and resort to carpet, they'll be calling someone else to do the job.

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lawndart

FUN FUN FUN!!!! I hope you're getting quite a bit of money for this project. Maple, and Oak clash big time IMO.