Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Oak Handrail and Box Newels Medford NJ

                                                                      Front staircase
                                                         View from the left of the staircase

               Dark stained treads, rails, and box newels with white risers and satin black balusters
                                                           A beautiful combination!
                                                2nd floor looking toward the front door
                                                  Goes very well with the hardwood!
                                                  Hallway and landing on the second floor
                                                        Kitchen view of the back stair
       Stair leading down to the basement, front stair on the right, back stair in the kitchen on the left
                                           Living room view of the first and second floor
                                                                  Basement staircase
                                                  Basement leading to the living room
                                                                   2nd floor landing
                                                                       2nd floor view


We took apart the old rails and posts and totally transformed the look of this staircase by installing these new Box Newels and Oak Handrail that they had stained to match the treads and hardwood in this home in Medford NJ. The satin black iron balusters also give it a nice touch, The combination of white risers and dark treads, posts, and balusters turned out really well! If you home is outdated and in desperate need of a fantastic centerpiece like this beautiful stair, give Ron Hartman a call now to schedule your FREE consultation($250 value). So whether you are looking to freshen up your home by replacing you old stair and rail with a nice new Oak Handrail and beautiful Box Newels in Medford NJ (or the surrounding areas Evesham, Mt Laurel, Moorestown, Voorhees, just to name a few) or are looking for something a little different, give us a call now!

Monday, February 2, 2015

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.    

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

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

Thursday, January 22, 2015

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

Monday, January 19, 2015

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