Remodelaholic | Under $100 Carpeted Stair To Wooden Tread Makeover DIY

105K Shares

Under $100 Carpeted Stair To

Wooden Tread Makeover DIY

MY LATEST VIDEOS

Hey there! Do you have a staircase that could use some help? Sure, new carpet would be great, but, wow!, it’s not cheap. And carpet on stairs gets so many stains and wears out so quickly! Find the answer to your problems here with this tutorial from Tracie at Cleverly Inspired. Transforming your stairs from carpet to wood treads will be a project to be proud of and you’ll be so glad you did!

Change Your Stairs From Carpet To Wooden Treads With This Tutorial, By Cleverly Inspired Featured On @Remodelaholic

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read our full disclosure policy.

Carpeted Stair To Wooden Tread Makeover: Phase 1

For about a year I have been thinking about redoing our stairs. Should I?Can I? Would I dare? Rip up carpet??

1 DIY Carpet Stairs To Wooden Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Almost 7 years of wear….stains that can’t come up…

2 Update Your Stairs By Tearing Up The Carpet And Using The Wood Beneath, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

3 Tutorial For Going From Carpeted Stairs To Wooden Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

I just don’t know. It would be the largest project I have ever done. The hubs was completely behind me.” you can totally do that. It is just carpet. If the wood is bad we will deal with it. Go for it!”
So I did. And here is how it went down…. By the way, thanks for the support. It sure does make a girl feel good!!

Tools needed for ripping the carpet….

4 DIY Redo Of Carpeted Stairs, Tools For Pulling Up Carpet, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Needle nose pliers are your best friend for getting carpet off of steps….

5 How To Remove Carpet From Stairs, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Starting at the corners and pulling with all your might…

6 DIY Carpet Removal On Stairs, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

I pulled about 3 steps at a time, rolling the carpet as I went up the stairs. Then I used a sharp razor knife and cut the carpet and took it outside. Continuing on this way until I got to the top….

7 Best Way To Remove Carpet From Stairs, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

At the top, I cut the carpet with an extra sharp razor knife…leaving the carpet on the rounded part of the top thread where the upstairs hall starts. Pull up all the carpet pad….

8 How To Take Your Stairs From Carpeted To Wood, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

To take up all the carpet tack strips, just place a flat head screw driver under the strip—tap in with the hammer and gently pry it up. Keep moving the screwdriver until the tack strip comes up. Do this same technique with all the 3,567,987 million staples….

9 DIY Stairway Makeover, Carpet To Wood, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

10 DIY Tutorial For Changing Stairs From Carpet To Wood, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Ok, maybe not quite that many….but it sure felt like it! I saved them in a solo cup…then I sat with a nice glass of red wine and admired my hard work!!! Phase one complete! Money spent during phase one…ZERO—besides a little blood, sweat and tears….I joke,I joke….

Stay tuned!!!

Carpeted Stair To Wooden Tread Makeover Phase 2

So if you were here yesterday…you saw that I decided to take the carpet off my stairs….Phase One–Operation Stairs Makeover and here we continue…..

The project continues with a day of sanding and scraping up the paint and caulk that was on the stairs.

11 Tutorial For Stair Makeover, Carpeted To Wooden, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Plastic was hung up from every doorway to help the dust…which there was a bunch of …dust!!

12 Tools Needed For DIY Staircase Makeover, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

We used my Dad’s quarter sheet sander….and we got course (60) grade sand paper. I bought 2 packages.

13 How To Makeover Carpeted Stairs, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

We ended up using about one little quarter sheet per step…

After all the steps were sanded there was still some junk on some of the steps. So for the stubborn parts I used a stripper (you can find it at Home Depot or Amazon). This stuff is awesome!

14 How To Remove Paint From Wood, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Please follow the directions though…be careful please.

15 How To Prep Wooded Stairs For Painting, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

You basically brush it on, let it sit 20 minutes and take a metal scraper to it and the paint and gunk just shrivels right off!

16 Tutorial For Removing Carpet On Stairs And Painting Existing Wooden Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

17 How To Clean Paint From Wood, A DIY Staircase Makeover, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

18 Staircase Makeover, Carpet To Wood Tread DIY, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

So satisifying

19 How To Paint Wooden Stairs That Used To Be Carpeted, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

When you are finished getting all the gunk (for lack of a better word, sorry) You need to clean the steps gently with some mineral spirits to remove any residue from the sander and the epoxy remover. We decided instead of staining we wanted to paint the treads a deep chocolate color and the risers a semi-gloss white. We could have stained….but a couple of stairs really had paint built in…and we loved the color of the paint. It looks really rich…but also has a lot of character. Love that!

20 DIY Stair Makeover, How To Go From Carpet To Wood Tread, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Sneak peek at sample board…..so pretty!

Phase 2 we spent:

$3.94 for 2 drop cloths

$5.97 air-masks

$5.05 for 2 packs of 60 grit sandpaper

$2.68 small metal can for epoxy remover

$8.97 Epoxy and Paint remover

$2.00 for 2 chip brushes

$2.94 jar of sample paint

$31.55 spent….

Stay tuned for Phase 3!

21 Carpeted Stairs To Wooden Tread Makeover On A Budget, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

such a good guy….he vacuums more than me! Love you babe!

Carpeted Stair To Wooden Tread Makeover Phase 3

Here is where we started this project if you are just joining me….Phase 1 and Phase 2 of Operation Stairs Makeover…..

Putter has lost all patience with me by this point. Poor dog…if he could talk, he would be saying “could you please just put back the carpet and end this nonsense woman…” oh no….no carpet for you!
After stairs were all cleaned up good, I could start painting. I primed the risers with a white primer.

22 Cheap Staircase DIY, Carpet To Wood Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Then I painted the treads with the brown. We loved the color Behr Sweet Molasses, it is a true chocolate color–rich and warm and has lots of character. I bought a quart of eggshell finish.

23 Behr Sweet Molasses Used In Budget Stairway Makeover, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

24 Valspar Paint And Primer In One Used For Under $100 Makeover Of Carpeted Stairs, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Valspar Signature is a paint and primer in one. I chose Eggshell finish because I am going to be putting 3 coats of polyurethane on the steps and I didn’t want the paint to be so glossy the poly wouldn’t adhere. Perfect for this project. You can find it at Lowes. A quart was plenty for 2 coats on just the treads.

25 How To Change Stairs From Carpet To Wood For Less Than One Hundred Dollars, A DIY Tutorial, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

26 Purdy Paintbrushes For DIY Stair Makeover, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Purdy is really a great brush to use! You can find them at most home improvement stores including Lowes, Walmart and Amazon.

27 Stairway Makoever On A Tiny Budget, A DIY Tutorial, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

I didn’t bother taping since I have to paint all the white anyway. I painted a coat on…let it dry 2 hours (can said I could recoat after 2 hours) and then put on the 2nd coat. We were able to go up the stairs at night. I painted while the kids were at school so it really wasn’t an inconvenience at all.

28 How To Paint Wooden Stairs In Two Tone, A DIY Stair Makeover Tutorial, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

The next day I was able to cover the treads with some craft paper and tape the sides so that I could paint the trim white and the risers. Craft paper is sold in rolls near the paint supplies. I cut it to fit on the stairs.

29 Tutorial For Stairway Makeover, Carpet To Wooden Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

30 How To Paint Stairs In Two Tone Using Craft Paper, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

31 Frogtape For Painting Stair Risers And Treads, DIY Tutorial For Staircase Makeover, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Frog tape really seals nicely—when you go to take it off it has a nice clean edge.

I used a semi-gloss quart of Valspar Signature in White Umber (the color of my trim). I put 2 coats of white on and let dry overnight before taking the paper and tape off. Placing a fan at the bottom of the stairs helps the drying process.

Phase 3 Money Spent:

$30 for 2 quarts of custom mixed paint

$3 roll of Kraft paper

$6 Frog Tape (Walmart, Amazon)

Grand total Spent so far on Operation Stairs: $70.51

The Big Reveal

You’ve been so patient….so encouraging…so excited for me. Thanks! I am still in the middle of polyurethane all the coats on the treads….but you can see the final product.

A few of you have asked how many hours this project has taken me…well the first phase (clearing out the carpet and pulling all staples and tacks) took me 2.5 hours–mind you I did this by myself on a Friday. Phase 2 took Bill and I from about 11:30 on Saturday morning till about 4:30 (that includes prep work, sanding, and cleaning up all the dust!). And on Sunday I took about an hour and did all the scraping with the stripping remover stuff. Phase 3 was the painting process and that took about an hour per coat…then I would let it dry for 3 hours and a re coat. So I think you could accomplish this in one weekend (minus the polyurethane step…because that requires some dry time).
If you haven’t seen the first few post on these stairs you can read all about it here….Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3 …..

32 DIY Tutorial, Carpeted Stairs To Wooden Treads For Less Than $100, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Electric candles people…not to worry—wouldn’t advise real candles on newly lacquered stairs…just sayin

33 How To Update Your Staircase For Less Than $100, Carpet To Wooden, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Ta Da!

34 Budget DIY Makeover, Carpeted Stairs To Wooden Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

BOOYAH!

35 DIY Stair Makeover On A Tiny Budget, Carpeted Stairs To Wooden Treads, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

I am coating the stair treads with Minwax Fast-Drying Satin. I am doing every other step. I put one coat on, let it dry 4 hours; then placed another coat. I am doing 3 coats on just the treads. I placed a small piece of tape on the steps that I was allowed to step on (just a mental note for me!) I am using a foam brush. Place a fan at the bottom of stairs to aid in quick drying. It is about $11 for a can.

36 Minwax Polyurethane For Painting Stairs, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

I know they look dark here but I wanted to show how pretty they look at night with these electric candles on…

37 Budget Friendly Staircase Makover, Carpet To Wood, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

38 How To Change A Staircase From Carpeted To Wooden On The Cheap, A DIY Tutorial, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

He’s impressed….my biggest supporter 😉 We feel so satisfied knowing how much we saved and that fabulous feeling that comes from doing something with your own bare hands.

40 Get Rid Of Those Ugly Carpeted Stairs With This Tutorial, By Cleverly Inspired, Featured On @Remodelaholic

Goodbye worn out carpet….HELLO pretty wood stairs!

I would say they look like a million bucks—-but then again….I only used $81…and a bit of sweat—but that is always a good thing!!

Redo Stairs With This Tutorial For Changing From Carpet To Wood, By Cleverly Inspired Featured On @Remodelaholic

Video Tutorial is here….

Video Stair Remodel

——————————————————————————————————————————-

About Cassity

Cassity started Remodelaholic with her husband, Justin, to share their love for knocking out walls together. She is an interior designer, wife, and mother of two. She and Justin have remodeled three homes from top to bottom and are working on their fourth. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.

Comments

Lisa says:
August 23, 2016 at 12:02 pm
They look great ! I’m thinking on trying this at my house but my concern is with the steps being slippery. Any issues with that?
Joni T says:
September 5, 2016 at 10:12 pm
Hello! I am researching redoing my stairs also. My carpet is already off. My dilemma is do I need to buy new treads for the stairs. I’ve read a lot and several recommend to put those over the existing stairs. I really would prefer to stain or paint the existing ones but I don’t know if they would be enough support for the stairs. Was your wood just the box wood the house was built with?
Julia Bietsch says:
October 19, 2016 at 6:03 am
I love this. Just tore down wall under staircase, making doggy room. Then tearing out carpet on stairs..cant wait.
- Cass says:
  October 19, 2016 at 9:24 am
  What a fun project! Send us pictures when you’re done!
Phaedra Henderson says:
November 15, 2016 at 9:04 pm
Hi! I wanted to know how the stairs are holding up? We have 3 kids and 3 dogs with high traffic stairs but I’m so sick of our carpet and need a cheap alternative and no carpet and this looked perfect!! Just want to know if it holds up well?!?
Debbie says:
January 16, 2017 at 8:43 am
This is great, we are looking at buying a house that still has the carpet from the 70’s. Yikes, orange and greens in the main stairway that lead up to the house or down to the basement from the main entrance. So I would be doing some serious upgrading. Thankfully the cost of the house is less because of the upgrading it needs. Thanks for the picture play by play, it was helpful.
Vanessa says:
January 28, 2017 at 10:28 am
This looks amazing!! I’m so encouraged to try to do it myself .
Onebirdiema says:
February 9, 2017 at 7:19 am
Thanks so much! So rare to find “the whole show” in excellent detail in excellent English in one place! Now I know what will be necessary to budget for time and energy, not to mention money, and can move on further with Phase Zero — all that planning stuff!
Alice says:
February 17, 2017 at 9:27 am
I am a little confused. You say in the aricle you used 2 coats of Behr Sweet Mollases paint in eggshell on the treads and then right under that you have a picture of Valpars paint that you say used on the treads. Please clarify.
Thank you
Liz says:
March 6, 2018 at 3:42 pm
hi!!! How did you handle the TOP of the stairs where the carpet probably continues to the bedrooms/hallway? This is a FABULOUS tutorial and I’m gaining more confidence for this project!
- Laura says:
  June 26, 2018 at 1:46 pm
  I need the answer to this question too lol
BRin says:
August 19, 2018 at 11:01 pm
you’re so lucky! We ripped off our carpet prepared to do this and they screwed our stairs in so terribly, they’re all cockeyed with the screw heads sticking up at a diagonal! 🙄