Stair gates

[Ellaroo]

Would appreciate any advice on two things: Firstly at the top of my stairs I need a stairgate that can be pressure mounted (not using cups) as walls are practically falling down and if you try to drill into them they just crumble away (but that's another story! Have a very old house!). Secondly, at the bottom of the stairs there is a wall on one side and just round banister spindles on the other side. What has anyone else done in this situation? Can you get a stairgate that goes onto a spindle and is this strong enough? Thanks in advance.

We had same problem at the bottom of our stairs. Pressure fit gate won't work, esp. if bannister is a bit loose. If it isn't now, it probably would be after using a PF gate for a while.

We had to buy a fixed gate which also had to be width-adjustable 'cos our stairs are narrow (standard sized gates were too wide) - another thing you may have to bear in mind! It's a 'Babydan', priced £19.99 in the Littlewoods Index catalogue.

Don't worry about it not being fixed 'squarely' to the sides. The plastic bits that screw into the sides should sit just as well on rounded wood. Our gate is fixed onto rounded wood on both sides & is v sound. As long as it's screwed in as tightly as possible, nothing should wobble. May sound obvious, but allow plenty of time to follow instructions exactly with no distractions & make doubly sure everything is tightened properly. Try wobbling gate (just like a fretful toddler would) when fitted to put mind at rest - I did!

Good luck.

We resorted to having some gates made by a local joiner - very reasonable at £35 for 2, tailor made to suit the house.

The one at the bottom of the stairs is hinged onto a wooden batten that is screwed to the wall and is fastened with a small bolt which goes into a hole drilled into the bottom bannister rail.

The one at the top is a similar arrangement, but uses a handy doorframe to fasten the hinge to.

We had ours made up too and they just slide on and off the hinge when we need them. They are made of wood with stair spindles in them. R