Guide · For the trade
Stair runners for wood stairs: width, reveal, pad and what to tell the installer
Stair runners for wood stairs are specified at 27 inches wide on a 36-inch stair and 32 to 36 inches on a 42 to 48-inch stair, leaving 4 to 6 inches of finished tread showing on each side, over a 1/4 to 3/8 inch dense pad cut 2 inches narrower than the runner, fastened with stainless staples under the nosing and at the back of each tread. Wool Wilton, dense wool loop and solution-dyed nylon are the constructions that hold up; the hardwood under them is protected, quieter and far less slippery than it was bare.
This guide is for the designer putting a runner on a client's existing oak, maple or walnut stair, or on new wood treads the stair builder is finishing now. It covers why the runner goes on, the reveal math, the pad and fastening on a finished floor, the fibers that work, the finish schedule to coordinate with the contractor and the questions clients ask. The stair runner installation guide covers waterfall and Hollywood methods in detail; this one is about the wood.
Should you put a runner on wooden stairs?
Usually, yes. A finished wood tread is the most slippery surface in a house in socks and a hardwood stair is loud; a runner solves both and keeps the finish from wearing through at the nosings, which on a busy stair happens in five to eight years. The reasons not to are a stair that is the architecture, a floating or open-riser stair, or treads too narrow for a reveal. On a stair the client wants to show, the runner is the answer rather than wall-to-wall: 4 to 6 inches of wood reads as a finished edge on either side and the runner takes the wear.
The 27 rule for stairs: runner width and the reveal
The 27 rule is simply the standard runner width, 27 inches, on the standard 36-inch residential stair, which leaves 4 1/2 inches of tread on each side. Keep the reveal between 3 and 6 inches; under 3 reads as a mistake, over 6 looks like a hall rug that wandered. Measure the tread between the skirt boards, not the nominal stair width.
| Tread width between skirts | Runner width | Reveal each side | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32 to 34 in | 24 to 26 in | 4 in | Cut from broadloom and bound |
| 36 in | 27 in | 4 1/2 in | Woven runner lines, or cut and bound |
| 40 to 42 in | 32 in | 4 to 5 in | Woven runner lines, or cut and bound |
| 44 to 48 in | 36 in | 4 to 6 in | Woven runner lines, or cut and bound |
| Over 48 in | Custom, tread width minus 10 to 12 in | 5 to 6 in | Cut from 12 or 13 ft 2 in broadloom |
Woven runners come off the loom at 27, 32 and 36 inches with finished selvedges; any width between is cut from broadloom and bound.
What are the best stair runners for wood stairs?
The stair is the hardest floor in the house and the runner gets the wear a full-width carpet spreads across 36 inches, so the fiber and construction matter more here than anywhere. In order: a woven wool Wilton or wool-nylon Wilton from our stair runner collection, which has 59 styles from Kane Carpet and Couristan, most of them Wiltons in wool or wool blend; a dense wool loop or tight wool boucle; a solution-dyed nylon loop for a mudroom stair or a rental; a tight sisal or a wool-sisal blend for a coastal or casual house, with the caveats in the sisal stair runner guide. Pile height under 1/2 inch so the nosing stays crisp and never a plush cut pile, a shag or a polyester, which crush at the nosing within a year. The wool stair runners guide goes construction by construction.
Pad on a finished wood stair
Specify 1/4 to 3/8 inch dense felt or felt-and-rubber pad, 32 ounce or heavier, cut 1 inch narrower than the runner on each side so it never shows at the reveal, one piece per tread wrapped over the nosing or stopped just short of it depending on the installation method. Not the 7/16 inch 8 pound rebond that goes under a bedroom carpet; it is too soft and rounds the nosing. On a new or refinished floor specify natural felt rather than a rubber that can react with an uncured finish. The carpet pad for stairs guide has the full spec.
How to attach a runner to wood stairs without damaging the hardwood
This is what to write for the installer, not for the client. On a finished tread the runner is fastened with narrow-crown stainless or galvanized staples driven tight into the crotch of each step, where the tread meets the riser and under the nosing, where the holes are invisible; no tackless strip on a finished stair the client may one day want bare, because the strip's nails leave a row of holes across every tread. Waterfall installation, where the runner drops straight from nosing to tread, needs fewer fasteners and is the easier one to remove; Hollywood, where it is wrapped tight under each nosing, shows the stair profile and is what most designers want on a wood stair, at the cost of a staple line under each nosing. Stair rods are decorative and do not replace the staples; see the stair rods guide.
Coordinate the finish schedule
If the treads are being sanded and refinished, or are new, the finish has to cure before the runner goes down: 7 days minimum for a waterborne polyurethane, 14 to 30 days for an oil-modified finish, longer in a cold house. Figure about 20 inches of runner per step for a standard 7 1/2 inch riser and 10 1/2 inch tread, plus every landing at its full length and one step of waste.
Landings and the hall above
At a landing the runner either ends at the top riser with a bound edge or continues across the landing as a bound rug of the same material; on a wood floor the second is safer, with no bare step between two runners. The stair runner landing guide works through the layouts.
Questions designers ask
What are the best stair runners for wood stairs?
Woven wool Wilton or wool-nylon Wilton first, dense wool loop second, solution-dyed nylon loop for hard-use stairs and tight sisal or wool-sisal for a casual house. Pile under 1/2 inch, over a 1/4 to 3/8 inch dense pad. Avoid plush cut pile, polyester and shag on any stair.
Should you put a runner on wooden stairs?
Yes, for safety, noise and protecting the finish, unless the stair is itself the architecture. A 27-inch runner on a 36-inch stair leaves 4 1/2 inches of wood showing on each side, so the client keeps the look of the wood and loses the slipperiness.
How do you attach a runner to wood stairs?
Tell the installer: stainless staples at the crotch of each step and under the nosing, over a felt pad cut narrower than the runner, waterfall or Hollywood as drawn, no tackless strip on the finished treads.
What is the 27 rule for stairs?
A 27-inch runner on a 36-inch stair, which leaves a 4 1/2 inch reveal each side. Scale it to the stair: 32 inches on a 42-inch stair, 36 inches on a 48-inch stair, keeping the reveal between 3 and 6 inches.
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