Wood veneer for stairs?

bruciebounus

I'm redecorating the stairs in my house and have ripped up the carpet with a view to getting them back to wood- hoovering carpeted stairs with a shedding dog is a nightmare!

However, after sanding/paint stripping they are just not coming up nicely. I was wondering if there was some kind of thin wood/laminate veneer that can be applied to the stair treads (we would paint the risers). Have scoured the internet and cant find anything. Is there anything like this?

Was thinking about wood effect vinyl or lino, but heard this could crack if it was laid over the curve of the step? Any advice appreciated!

tony6403

Veneering would be a difficult and expensive job. Applying it to the nosings would be a real challenge. Any dents, scratches etc. after fitting may be unrepairable as it is so thin.
Laminate would certainly not bend over the nosings and so you would see the edges on every step.
Cushion floor or the like would seem to be a much better option.
Another option would be to stop your dog from going upstairs and buy a new carpet!

jennifernil

I think you either need to persevere with the sanding/stripping, or go back to carpet.

In what way are they not coming up nice? Can you post a picture?

jackyann

I would really advise against veneer on stairs. You could consider painting, but that will wear on the treads. You could paint them, with a strip of carpet down the middle. You don't say the age of your house, but a lot of stairs were made with the view that they would not be seen. Carpet, as long as it is laid properly is safer b/c of being non-slip.

Doozergirl

Not thin stuff, you'd have to properly clad the stairs in wood or laminate flooring, which can be done. You'd have to batten out the risers to eliminate your current nosing, as you put a new nosing on over the laminate to hide the joins.

I have a house where the previous owners had just nailed laminate to the treads. Not only was it the most ugly, pointless thing I've ever seen, it was downright dangerous! They put laminate on shelves too and up doors!? It looked like someone worked in a laminate factory and came home every night with a couple of rejected pieces and found somewhere to hammer it to. I swear that the house doubled in size once I'd got it all off.

bruciebounus

Thanks everyone. I didn't think it would work, but worth an ask!

I dont have a picture of the stairs, but it seems like there has been a carpet runner before, so the sides have been painted before, several times by the look of it.

The wood part of the stairs is stained and uneven. I think sand it thoroughly and paint. If all else fails i'll go back to carpet