how do you resurface your old stairway.can you buy a hardwood floor and add it on to your existing stairway?
Answers:
Taking up the carpet and nailing anything as thick as hardwood flooring (3/4"" thick) on the existing treads is trouble. First, you are creating a rise on the bottom step 3/4" higher than the other steps, which creates a tripping hazard and violates code. Second, you will have a top tread (landing tread) 3/4" higher than the surrounding floor, which you will have to deal with. If you don't lay hardwood on the landing tread, your rise at the top will be 3/4" shorter than all the others--again, a tripping hazard and code violation. Third, you will have to figure out how to case the nose (edge) of the stair treads in an attractive way.
You could strip the carpet and the treads from the stringers (those are the notched pieces of wood running at an angle that support the treads). Then you can attach new hardwood treads and risers to the existing stringers. I've done this ONCE, and never again. Stringers cut for carpet are never accurate enough to lay hardwood on, and the whole job took longer to make right than if I'd just tore the whole thing out and started from scratch (which is how I've done all the stairs I've built since) . Live and learn.
Other answers:
We have considered the same question and decided against resurfacing the stairway with hardwood flooring. Mainly the hardwood may eventually come loose. I have once or twice slipped on the stairs myself so hardwood as the name suggests is quite hard. If the stairway is so rotten then it should be properly replaced. We opted in the end for re-carpeting of the stairs although we still resurfaced the floors in the bedrooms with hardwood. Hope this is any help to you.
We have considered the same question and decided against resurfacing the stairway with hardwood flooring. Mainly the hardwood may eventually come loose. I have once or twice slipped on the stairs myself so hardwood as the name suggests is quite hard. If the stairway is so rotten then it should be properly replaced. We opted in the end for re-carpeting of the stairs although we still resurfaced the floors in the bedrooms with hardwood. Hope this is any help to you.