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Home decoration

Stair carpet or none?

17 replies

SilkStalkings · 18/06/2015 20:10

Redecorating hall, stairs & landing and want to remove stair carpet which is tatty after only 6years. Have thought about skipping carpet altogether and painting the stairs but worried about noise.
We do not enjoy cleaning/hoovering so carpet runner is not a viable option.
So what I'm asking is recommendations for stair carpet types, pref ones that survive minimal hoovering please! If only Lino were an optionSmileGrin

OP posts:
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ChablisTyrant · 18/06/2015 23:45

You are right that runners are a pita for cleaning. Wood is noisy. Do you have kids running up and down? People going to bed late?

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LettuceLaughton · 18/06/2015 23:48

AFAIK you can have lino on stairs.

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Monica101 · 20/06/2015 12:44

I'd get a darkish carpet with a fleck in it, it won't need hoovering that much and it will be warm and sound proof.

Wood is so noisy on stairs, I know quickstep laminate which is a nice laminate brand do a system for fitting on stairs. I imagine it's not that cheap but it would look nice.

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PinkTardis · 20/06/2015 12:49

I painted our stairs ( took forever ) there's not to much noise but it's a nightmare to keep clean I'm constantly wiping them down sometimes twice a day so I would stick to a carpet with a coloured fleck

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EvaBee · 25/06/2015 14:34

I saw a beautifully designed house on the internet the other day and the owners had run out of money so instead of carpeting had painted where the runner was going to be (both sides were painted a lighter colour). It looked great.

I only think noise is a problem if people wear shoes in the house and are running up and down stairs.

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BlueKarou · 25/06/2015 14:44

Bare stairs are definitely noisy. Especially if they're on an adjoining wall and your neighbours are trying to sleep. Thus is my bitter voice of experience.

I would also worry about slipping on wooden stairs if socked but not shoed. Carpet seems the safest option to me. I might just be more accident-prone though.

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parabelle · 25/06/2015 20:31

Are you detached? If not, for the sake of your neighbours, put down some carpet.

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CheesyDibbles · 04/07/2015 12:46

Are stair runners harder to clean than a normal carpet? I had been thinking of having one fitted in a dark colour as our tatty cream one is a nightmare to clean. Had thought it might make things easier.

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CheesyDibbles · 04/07/2015 12:48

*our tatty cream stair carpet - not runner.

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mylifeisgood · 19/07/2015 14:14

Yes, to repeat the above question, are stair runners harder to clean than carpet?

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glowfrog · 19/07/2015 16:48

I'd worry about slipping on stairs with no carpeting...

Mind you, our carpet is a bit thin and I slipped down the stairs once - as did DH with our DD in his arms when she was barely 6 weeks. He was a hero and kept her in his arms and broke 3 of his ribs.

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MarkRuffaloCrumble · 19/07/2015 17:00

Glow, I've slipped downstairs twice (once like your DH, holding a newborn who survived unscathed, unlike my badly bruised bum!) plus DP and DD have both slipped down my stairs, all carpeted so not sure that bare stairs would be worse for this.

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VulcanWoman · 19/07/2015 17:07

A good quality carpet and underlay should last longer than 6 years, better sound proofing and better comfort too, I'd spend a bit extra it'll be worth it in the end.

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Outwith · 19/07/2015 17:20

I have painted wooden stairs, and (touchwood) no-one has slipped on them yet. I love them, but they show up every piece of dust / hair etc. Which has made me realise that carpets are probably hiding a lot of things Grin.

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SwedishEdith · 19/07/2015 17:29

With stair runners, I imagine you can see the dust at the edge of the runner more easily than carpet across the whole stair. I'd love wooden stairs but the slippage factor makes me nervous.

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ggirl · 19/07/2015 18:03

interesting ..I ws thinking of replacing carpet with a runner but definitely don't need any more cleaning , will stick with carpet

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StandByYourTesselators · 19/07/2015 21:56

I painted our stairs white when we couldn't afford carpet. Now I love them and wouldn't ever go back to carpet as it just looks so elegant.

I used white quick-drying satin wood paint from Wilko's. I put it on with a small sponge roller, which is so fast and meant I just needed to do a few corners and edges with a paint-brush. It's touch dry in 10-15 minutes, and only took 3 coats.

Not noisy at all, but I do have a 'no shoes on the stairs' rule.

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