Can staircase material be different from all other flooring?

2 years ago

last modified: 2 years ago

Hello, I have 3 different flooring in my house and was told the "rule" was no more than 3 so I am trying to find the best option for my staircase without breaking any rule that could detract any future buyers, when/if I decide to sell.

1) First floor: Travertine throughout

2) Staircase: (Ugly and old) carpet

3) Second floor: Gray LVP flooring in all bedrooms and (that Ugly and old) carpet on game-room and home theater.

I thought about replacing all the carpet (including stairs) with the same LVP that are in the bedrooms but that product is discontinued...so I just got quotes to replace the carpet for a better quality and lighter color one but am still undecided, especially about the staircase that I wanted to have a more elegant look .

I actually think carpet is good for the game-room and home theater to prevent too much noise the kids make but for the stairs, I would like something more elegant. Do you think it would be ok to have black wood steps? There are some black accents and walls in my house and the travertine on the entry way has some pattern with black granite so I thought maybe installing black steps on the stair could be coordinate well with the black accents and could possibly be more elegant than carpet. Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you!

Featured Answer

kelli_ga

2 years ago

Do you know what is under that carpet on the stairs?

Mine was particle board. It was difficult to figure out an alternative to carpet.

If it’s solid wood and you can paint it, a runner over it might be a good choice. Stairs are much easier to climb with a rug - even my dogs hesitated when climbing bare stairs.

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Comments (11)

ilikefriday
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I think black would look fabulous but it will also show every speck of dust and every foot step. I know from experience. Would you consider black stairs with a runner?
patissie thanked ilikefriday
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BeverlyFLADeziner
2 years ago
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dan1888
2 years ago
Want to upgrade? European oak stairs and to replace the lvp.
palimpsest
2 years ago
I would not put LVP next to marble
palimpsest
2 years ago
Those treads need to be filled in, they are probably 3/4" lower under the carpet than on the ends, anyway.
patissie thanked palimpsest
RedRyder
2 years ago
You can paint the treads black and risers white but you should have a runner for safety reasons. It gives you a chance to add something elegant that works with the other floors. Naked steps are dangerous.

I left the steps uncovered in my 1925 house and my dad skidded on them. Luckily he didn’t get hurt. Cover the steps, please.
patissie thanked RedRyder
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Patricia Colwell Consulting
2 years ago
We need to know what is under the carpet for sure. I think in this case carpet will be the easy answer for the bridge between the two very different flooring materials . I doubt very much those are actual good wood underneath but we need to know.
Jennifer Hogan
2 years ago
I have seen the "Rules" broken in many homes that I sold as a real estate agent, have broken the "Rules" in every home I have every lived in. What really matters is if the flow from one room to the next works. A buyer is unlikely to notice different flooring if the transitions work well.
kl23
2 years ago
I understand that naked steps can be dangerous, but cleaning carpeted steps can be dangerous for the cleaner (me). However, maybe I am cleaning them wrong. A hand held battery operated vacuum with a rolling brush is what I think would be safe, but I can't find one. But even then, the runner would have to be very low pile. So what is the safest runner?
kelli_ga
2 years ago
I have a flat woven runner which seems very safe to me, but the staples show. If you can find a low pile runner that can hide the staples, I think that would be enough.

I have a little ryobi handheld vac, but no rolling brush. I have never gotten rollers to work well on handhelds. I suppose you could fluff up the carpet by hand or rake it with a carpet brush or raking tool. It depends on what the runner needs. Mine does not need a brush, but again, the staples show. I’m just going to get a low pile runner next time, like the safavieh area rugs I get on sale online, if they will hide the staples. (I have dogs, so cheap rugs are disposable, but those rugs have cleaned up nicely.)