Stair tread totally out of routed stair stringer (supposed to be @3/8" to 1/2" inside stringer.)
You can see riser just barely into stringer
From underneath, it's even more of a mess. Multiple wedges are barely in their stringer slot under their respective treads.
Note the nails that aren't even driven in all the way.
Whoever did this; we'll call him "handyman", tried to support treads with little blocks he nailed to stringers. They didn't do much supporting, believe me.
Some wedges had already fallen out completely.
Whenever you can see daylight between the tread and riser from underneath, you know the stair is in trouble. That indicates that the risers are starting to fall out of their slots in the stringer, leading to the movement in the staircase, signaled by all the squeaks and groans you hear as you ascend and descend the stair.
This is going to be about HOW TO
HIRE STAIR AND
RAIL PROFESSIONALS IN AND AROUND
PHILADELPHIA AND
SOUTH JERSEY. Normally, I post after pics of the work I've done. Today, I wanted to show you what the other "guy" did. Seeing this got me all jacked up. This is all too often the type of work folks get from unqualified contractors who say they can do
Stair and
Rail work. Ok, so as you can see, this is going to be a little different than my normal post. These are some photos from a recent stair and rail job I started in Exton PA. The contractor before me left the stair just as you see it. Except for the missing treads, (that was me disassembling what he did years before.) Note the wedges barely hanging in their grooves. Note the treads NOT EVEN IN THE STRINGERS AGAINST THE WALL. The homeowner called me out to see what was wrong with her stair that had increasingly loud squeaks and noises, and visible movement in the staircase as she and her family traversed the stairs each day. After removing the sheetrock off the backside of the stair, I was shocked by what you see. I was afraid to go up the stairs again after I saw this. SCARY!! You talk about nightmare in Exton. In the course of a year, I bid upwards of one hundred jobs, and I don't win all of them. What's frustrating about seeing this, is knowing that some of the jobs I don't win may be done by jokers with work quality like this.
Now, I don't know who hired this person to do this job, but after close to 30 years of being in and around construction, I'd be willing to bet that this was the CHEAPEST GUY the former homeowner could find. And guess what? This is the fantastic end-product that he got. Proving once again, that you get what you pay for. If your life and the lives of your family aren't really that important to you, then be sure to hire THE CHEAPEST GUY you can find for every job around your house and generally this is what you can expect. There's a reason that legitimate contractors charge the prices that they do. Mainly because doing a good job takes time, and expertise, and skill, that only comes from having been taught correctly how to do a certain job, and having many years experience doing that job always helps as well.
I'm calling this worker a "guy" because he certainly wasn't a stair professional. He was obviously a handyman who took on a job that was way out of his league. Unfortunaely, there are many guys out there who will tell a homeowner whatever he has to tell them just so he gets the job, because he really, really needs the money. It doesn't matter to him whether it turns out right or not, he just needs some work from somebody, because he has bills he has to pay and he's broke.
So, here's my big suggestion for today. Be sure to check out the "guy" you're going to hire to do any work in and around your house. DO NOT TRUST WHAT THEY SAY. The best con men are fantastic liars. That's why they're able to keep ripping people off year after year. Be sure to speak with last 3 customers and ask to come see at least one of those jobs, (and try to take someone with you that knows something about construction.) Most homeowners are too gullible and naive. It's really not their fault, they don't deal with contractors for a living, they only deal with contractors because they have to. And, the only reason they have to deal with a contractor, is because they have to update, or fix what the builder screwed up in their house when he hired THE CHEAPEST GUY to do work on your house as it was being built in the first place.
Alright, I'm done ranting.
I'll post pics of completed job once everything is done. I just had to post this right away.
If your stair is creaking and groaning, that means your stair is moving.
And if it's moving, that means that it's starting to come apart. Your stair should be as solid as your floor. If you need a highly trained, highly skilled, highly ethical
stair and
rail professional in Philadelphia, or South Jersey, to fix, repair, replace, remove, manufacture, or install your old or new stair or rail, give Ron Hartman a call at 215-694-5046, or send him an email at 45stairman@gmail.com.
