Whether for safety reasons or to make your stairs appear more luxurious, installing a carpet on stairs is very hazardous. And the process becomes more problematic when you need to install carpets on stairs with bullnoses.
Professionals charge a lot of money for these types of jobs. So, if you want to save money, you can install a carpet on the stairs yourself with a bullnose.
So a question can appear in your mind: how to install carpet on stairs with bullnose? Well, as I said before, it is a hazardous job and you need proper concentration while doing it. First, you need to install a quarter inch short and attach a pad to the stair.
Then cover the area perfectly with duct tape by measuring the stairs. After that, you need to cut the carpet a little bit bigger than you measured before and attach it to the stairs. Complete these tasks perfectly to install the carpet on the stairs with bullnose.
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How to install carpet on stairs with bullnose
Now let’s see how you can install carpet on stairs with bullnose easily.
Installing a quarter inch short to tuck the carpet in
- First, you need to grab a quarter-inch piece of wood that is attached with some nails.
- Place it at the end of a staircase that you will be working on now.
- Leave some space in the end so that it looks like the carpet is dropping down after installing the carpet.
- Then grab a stair tool and place it on a nail that is attached to the quarter-inch short.
- Use a hammer to hammer on the stair tool so that the nails sink into the stairs.
- Be careful not to damage the upper stair step bullnose while hammering with the hammer.
- Use this method to nail all the nails on the stairs.
- Then take a quarter-inch piece of wood and cut it according to the size of any side of the staircase that you are working on now.
- Cut the quarter-inch end at 30 degrees, where the bullnose of the staircase begins.
- Take another piece of a quarter-inch piece of wood and attach it to the other side of the staircase.
Attaching a pad to the stair step
- Take a pad and trim it a little bit bigger than the stair step that you are working on now.
- Place the pad on the stair step that you are working on now.
- Keep a little extra pad on both sides of a stair step.
- Use a staple gun to staple the pad to the stair step.
- Hold the edge of the pad tightly where the bullnose of the stair-step is.
- Use the staple gun again and staple the edge of the pad underneath the bullnose of the stair steps so that it can attach perfectly.
- Cut both sides of the pad using a knife where the quarter inch is.
- You need to cut the corner of the pad at the same angle as you cut the quarter-inch corner short.
- Cut the pad in the curved bottom area of the bullnose perfectly.
Attaching duct taps on the edge of the bullnose
- Take duct tape.
- Measure the size of the stair step.
- Cut a piece of duct tape the same size as the stairs.
- Place the duck tape piece on the bullnose of the staircase that you are working on now.
- Attack it ideally on the pad edge that is already attached to the bullnose area of the stair step.
- Take another piece of duct tape the same size as the previous one and attach it underneath the bullnose.
Measuring the stair step
- Take a meter tape and place it on the stair step you are working on now.
- Take the measure of the length and thickness of the bullnose attached to one stair-step at a time.
- Measure the width of the stair steps as precisely as possible.
Cutting the carpet
- Take a large carpet.
- Place it on the ground.
- Use the measuring tape and place it on the carpet.
- Mark the carpet by measuring it with the measuring tape one inch more extensive than the width of the stair step.
- Again, mark the carpet by measuring it with the measuring tape two inches bigger than the combined size of the length and the thickness of the stair step.
- Place four large scales on the carpet’s mark locations so that you can cut the carpet as precisely as possible.
- Then they cut the carpet perfectly with a knife.
Placing and attaching the carpet on the stairs
- You must keep the carpet’s long side as stretched as possible.
- Place the carpet on the stair steps.
- Use your hand to cover the underneath area of the bullnose of the stairs.
- There must be extra carpet as you cut the carpet bigger than the stairs.
- Don’t cut the extra pieces at that moment.
- Use your thumbs to push the carpet underneath the bullnose.
- Use a staple gun to staple underneath the bullnose so that the carpet can be attached perfectly to the stairs.
- You can use the stair tool to perfectly place the carpet underneath the step bullnose. Do the same task on every step you want to attach the carpet to.
- Cut the extra inches of carpet that are not needed after covering the carpet on all areas of the stairs perfectly.
- You can use a knife to cut the extra carpet pieces.
- After the cutting is complete, use the staple gun to attach the carpet to the stair steps.
- Then take your stair tool and place it on the opposite side of the bullnose.
- Use a hammer and hammer the stair tool so that the carpet can get under the stair steps.
- Then staple the area with a staple gun again.
- Do the same process for all the stair steps you will work on.
- Cut all the extra carpet areas that are hanging around the stairs.
FAQs
Still have some questions? Check out the section below for commonly asked questions.
Can you install carpet on stairs without tack strips?
Yes, carpet can be installed without tack strips.
- First, you need to grab some low-tension rods.
- Then you need to attach them to the base of every stair step.
- Cut the carpet to the exact size of the stair step.
- Place it on the stairs.
- Attach the carpet to the stairs.
- Use the low tension rod to tighten the carpet around the stairs as tightly as possible.
- Use some glue on the top and underneath of the carpet so that they don’t get out from under the stairs easily.
What staples to use for carpet on stairs?
It is recommended to use 1/2-inch staples on the carpets so that they can attach perfectly to the stairs. The stairs are usually made of wood. As a result, if you want to penetrate the wood perfectly and attach a carpet to it, you need some staples that can enter at least 3/16 inches and up to 1/4 inches. And the 1/2-inch staples are perfect for these kinds of jobs.
How do you finish the carpet on top of the stairs?
To finish the carpet on top of the stairs, you need to install a floor that is made of hardwood underneath the carpet. Also, you can hold some carpet tread and fill that area with some more hardwood. Wrapping the carpet on the top of the stairs so that it can come across the final riser is also a method to finish the carpet on the top of the stairs.
Conclusion
Carpeting the floor area provides perfect comfort and safety for you. As the stairs are made of wood, they can be very slippery. And to decrease the slippery effect of the stairs, carpets are installed on the stairs. If you want to increase the appearance of your floor as well, you can attach a bullnose as well. To save money on professionals, you can attach the carpet to the stairs.
So a question can come to your mind: how to install carpet on stairs with bullnose? Well, this process is hazardous, but it won’t take much time. While installing the carpet, you need proper concentration or there could be bubbles everywhere. This process requires some accessories.
You shouldn’t buy cheap accessories, or the carpet could fall off the stairs. You need to nail the carpet perfectly to the stairs. After the installation is complete, cut all the extra carpet pieces. Perform the job as faultlessly and precisely as possible so that you won’t need the help of a professional and that it won’t cost a lot of money.