Historic Fraternity House Reproduction Staircase Philadelphia

                                                  New stair with bullnose starting step

                             New balusters bolted into the new treads for maximum rigidity

                                                New handrail "over the posts"

                                                       Posts "dropped all the way through" 

                                                                  Upper stair

                                                                  Up to 3rd floor

                                                            Down to 2nd floor

                                                From top looking down to 1st floor

                                                       1st and 2nd floor hallways

Decorative stair bracket

                                                                    Removing the old

                                                                       Rail before

                                                             Existing stair horses

Here's an Historic Fraternity House that was in dire need of a makeover, so we gave them a brand new Reproduction Staircase in Philadelphia. I don't know how many frat houses you've been in, but some of them look like they've been....really, really well used, shall we say. This stair, like many old stairs, was pulling away from the wall, and many treads were moving significantly when you stepped on them. The handrail was very loose and was compromised severely by the rather small balusters that weren't attached very well originally, and. many of them were missing altogether. Most of the posts were broken as well making for a very scary, loose, handrail. There had been many repairs made to the stair over the years, and none done very well, and they finally decided to bite the bullet and do it right from top to bottom. And, they wanted to duplicate everything, as much as possible. So, I took some samples of the handrail, balusters and posts, and moldings, and took them to my wood turner, and he created new drawings from the existing pieces, and proceeded to make them exactly as they were originally, but we increased the size of the balusters and we used maple instead of poplar to make them much stronger than before, (and less likely to get "accidentally" broken), like so many of the originals. It took the turner a few weeks to reproduce everything, and for the local stair shop to duplicate the treads, risers, and handrail. We then removed everything but the existing stair horses, because they were really solid, and rebuilt the stairs in place with all new oak hardwood. It took about a week to rebuild all the stairs, and about 2 weeks to install the handrail, posts, balusters and moldings. It sounds like the Alumni are thrilled with the end result. They just had their 75th anniversary party, and I'm confident my stair will be still going strong for their 150th anniversary party in about 75 years or so. So, if you want to greatly increase the value of your property, and maintain the Historic significance of your Fraternity House, sorority house, your church, your townhouse, or your MainLine mansion, be sure to give Ron Hartman a call @ 215-694-5046 to schedule your FREE consultation ($250 value), and to learn all about the options you have for your Reproduction Staircase project in Philadelphia, MainLine, Ardmore, Radnor, and surrounding areas.....Ron's email is 45stairman@gmail.com.    

Wood Stair and Handrail Installer Huntingdon Valley PA

                                                          All oak stair and handrail

                                            Left hand open circular stair with oak balusters

                                                             Upstairs landing rail

                                    Rake rail down to volute sitting on bullnose starting step

                                                                  Level radius rail

                                                                  Beautiful stain job

 

 Volute post surrounded with with new oak balusters

Here's another fine example of what your local professional Wood Stair and Handrail Installer in Huntingdon Valley PA, can do for your home. The existing stair was in fairly good condition, so homeowner decided to save it and have it refinished. The existing iron rail was something out of 1974 when house was built. If I find a before photo I'll be sure to post it here, it was hideous. She chose a simple yet elegant design, which I think fits the space perfectly. And, I think the natural finish goes well with the floors that were also refinished. We had to template the existing staircase to be able to copy the radius of the stair exactly, so that our rail would fit exactly, so that when we installed the posts and balusters everything fit, well, you guessed it...exactly. Two days to install, in and out, another happy homeowner. If your circular stair handrail is loose as a goose, and you're afraid to let folks walk up or down without cautioning them not to use your rail, (because it would be safer) then maybe it's time you called Ron, your local professional Wood Stair and Rail Installer in Huntingdon Valley PA, and schedule your FREE consultation ($250 value), and take advantage of his 25 years of experience.

Ron's cell 215-694-5046
email 45stairman@gmail.com

Wood Handrail Installer Lafayette Hill PA

 

How do you decide on your Wood Handrail Installer in the Lafayette Hill PA area? What exactly do you look for? Well for one you would expect that they would have a long track record of consistent quality (say, around 25 years... Ok, 24yrs 10 months 3 weeks and 2 days, but who's keeping track?). You'd look for a long line of dozens of happy customers year in and year out (last year, 38 to be exact, but who's counting?). You would want them to be able to handle any and all issues that will arise when you replace your stair and or rail, regardless of your stair layout, or your home's dimensions. Whether you have a scissor stair, L shape, straight run, winder treads, circular, spiral, or flared stair (to name a few), you want someone who has dealt with all these kinds of stairs. Someone who prides themselves on their ability to cater to your wishes when it comes to constructing the dream stair you envision. We install every stair and rail as if it were our own, because it is. Once I'm done and I know everything is perfect and the artwork is complete, the customer buys it off of me and him and his family get to enjoy it for decades to come, blah blah blah blah blah.... whatever! Be sure to select someone who takes pride in their work and takes their job very seriously, but themselves not so much. And therefore, since I meet the above requirements, I nominate myself as your Wood Handrail Installer of choice for Lafayette Hill PA, Wyndmoor, Gladwynne, Jenkintown, so give Ron a call for your FREE consultation ($250 value).    

Email 45stairman@gmail.com
Ron's Cell 215-694-5046

New Circular Handrail Cherry Hill NJ

Refinished oak treads matching the new oak handrail

White balusters to match the painted risers and stringers

 Upstairs level radius rail

New painted balusters

Customer gets their dramatic entrance back better than original

 Existing treads sanded down and re-stained

Radius rake rail descending down to volute

BEFORE: Existing volute with lots of damage

 BEFORE: Maybe the dog got hungry... Very chewed up

 BEFORE: Old rake height 4" too low for today's code standards

 BEFORE: Level rail low as well, by 2"

BEFORE: More than 4" between balusters, another code violation

This customer wanted a New Circular Handrail for their newly purchased home in Cherry Hill NJ. The existing rail was badly damaged and looked like a dog may have chewed on it in addition to it being very loose. The original smaller balusters and posts contributed to the decline of the rigidity of the rail over time. The rail heights were too low and the spaces between balusters were too wide by today's code standards. Rake must be 34" high, level rails must be 36", and you cannot have a space bigger than 4" anywhere in the balustrade system. Given all these factors the homeowner decided to replace the rail, post, and balusters in addition to repairing and reinforcing the stair from underneath. Because it's an existing circular stair, we had to template the stair to be able to manufacture the rail and have it match the stair radius exactly. Ironically, I have a good working relationship with the stair company that built the original stair and they were able to match the rail to the stair perfectly. We took out the old and installed the new posts and rail, followed by the re-finisher who sanded down the treads and re-stained them as well as the rail and posts. Once he was done, I came back in and installed the balusters, and we were done. Start to finish, my work took about 4 days. So if your old circular handrail is falling apart or you fear your children falling down it, give Ron Hartman a call to schedule your FREE consultation ($250 value) so we can give you your New Circular Handrail whether you live in Cherry Hill NJ, Haddonfield, Moorestown, Mount Laurel, or any other surrounding towns.

Email 45stairman@gmail.com
Ron's Cell 215-694-5046

Custom Handrail With Iron Panels Penn Valley PA

                                                    New oak rail with natural finish

 

Continuous rail from top to bottom

 

Single knuckle, double knuckle, alternating iron baluster pattern

 

New hardwood floors matching the post and rail 

 Rebecca iron panels in mirror image pattern

 View from upper hallway

 Down the hallway

 Family room overlook

 Iron panels separated by alternating baluster design

 Rebecca panels in satin black

BEFORE: Typical 70's painted version of the Brady Bunch stair

We recently transformed this foyer in Penn Valley PA with this Custom Handrail With Iron Panels. The felonious Brady Bunch rail did not meet the 4" sphere rule in multiple places, not to mention the 40 year old design that had to go. The new iron balusters and panels are in keeping with the contemporary styling of the house. These elegant panels allow for the look and feel of a fully custom fabricated iron railing. The old rail was removed, and new rail was installed in about a week. I installed the posts, handrail, and nosing and drilled all the holes for the iron. Next the floor guy installed the floors, then put a natural finish on both the floor and rail. Once he was done, I came back and installed the iron balusters and panels to complete the job. So if you want to change the channel on your 70's sitcom rail and happen to live in Penn Valley PA, or in any other town in the Delaware Valley,  you too can have a Custom Handrail with Iron Panels (or wood balusters if you prefer), by calling Ron and scheduling your FREE consultation ($250 value).

Email 45stairman@gmail.com
Ron's Cell 215-694-5046