https://imgur.com/a/ulYCmT2
House was built in 1927. When we bought it 7 years ago, the newel post was tight. Now it’s getting wobbly. All the videos I’ve seen about performing this repair involve either screwing into the stringer or removing the cap and inserting threaded rod into the core - neither of which are options here because it’s not adjacent to the stringer and because the cap is integrated into the handrail. At some point, somebody toe-nailed a screw through the tread into the dowel below the post, but tightening that doesn’t seem to do anything. I can’t get to the underside of the post because it’s above the subfloor and the curved bottom riser is all one piece.
Thoughts?
It's a Wonderful Christmas Vacation!
Hi everyone. We are replacing an old newel post that had a wooden peg going into the stair tread. This was on the 1st tread going up the stairs. Well, the hole goes all the way through the tread so it's just a big hoe all the way to the floor. Normally I would have used a post fastener into the tread, but I don't have anything to drill the fastener into as it's just a big hole about 6 inches deep down to the sub floor. I thought about using some type of toggle bolts to pop into the hole to act as the fastener. I also thought about using a post fastener kit that is just essentially 4 L brackets. Any ideas or thoughts?
Hello all! The stairs here originally had old iron railings that I’m looking to upgrade. My question is what would be some options for mounting a newel post? Ideally I’d like to place it on top of the knee wall instead of in front as it may interfere with the front door. Can/should I mount it on top? Should I remove a section of the wall and mount to the floor? Thank you for any help in advance!
In the mad scramble to get house projects done before our son arrived, this one got back-burnered for a while. Well, he's starting to crawl so now it got moved up. We want to update the newel post on our railing to modernize it to fit with the rest of the updates we've done, but also make it work a little better with a baby gate. As you can see from the pictures, the temp solution is very stylish and classy.
Railing
Temp Solution
Rail & Post connection
Update Inspiration
(The little guy is Nitro, he says 'Hi')
The plan is to wrap it in MDF and paint it, and the railing and bottom plate, to match our cabinets. If there are any helpful tips or suggestions on any of that, I'm all ears. The part that I need help with is disassembling it. When we wrap the newel post we'll have to cut off some of the railing to make it fit. From what I've seen searching online is that there is usually some type of bolt/screw that connects the newel post with the railing on the underside of the railing. There's not one immediately visible (see pic) that I can see, so I assume it's under the decorative piece that's nailed onto the bottom. So, how do I get to that screw, removing the decorative piece but not damaging it so it's till useable? Or am I just going to have to remove it and find something close later?
Thanks!
So we're officially closing on a three-story 1894 brick home in the coming weeks.
It's pretty 'move-in ready,' though we have some immediate stuff to do. Outside, we're going to be paying for a repoint (and some repair work) right away.
Inside...meh. She wants to paint everything, tweak this, change that.
My wants are different. I'm like, 'hey, you know the murder room in the basement with the dirt floor? Yeah, I'm gonna need to put an extra-creaky door on there. Maybe pile some mannequin parts in the corner and install a remote-operated UV light that reveals a bunch of insane ramblings written all over the walls with invisible ink.'
...she's not amused.
But here's what we can both agree on...the foyer by the front door is just missing something. The staircase is cool as hell, but missing a focal point. And there's no light fixture.
Forgive the shitty real-estate listing pic, but here's the area in question: https://i.imgur.com/ib4ce0H.jpg
A hanging fixture would be cool but not easily feasible, as 1) it would have to hang from the second story ceiling (okay, actually, that would be epic) and 2) it would be a nightmare to wire.
Then, serendipitously, I see a house with a statue on the stairs. And I'm into it. And then I realize that they're supposed to be a light fixture, too. Which leads me into actually knowing what a 'newel post lamp' is. Lol.
Anyhow, my questions are then threefold:
-
How hard is it to wire one? I am unsure if the post is actually solid, but I'm assuming it is. Once you're at bare floor, it seems like a cinch...just drill down into the basement and run the wires into a box on the basement ceiling. But...how do you get through the post? If I'm going to take the post out, anyway, is there anything I can do to reinforce it so it's not oh-so-wobbly?
-
Is there anyone making decent, not-exorbitantly-expensive repops? And/or how should I source an original? Cool ones seems to fetch $500-1000, minimum, often as much as a few thousand dollars or more. I assume it would take some kind of collector of these to truly evaluate them.
-
Is it kosher to install this kind of piece where it originally wasn't? Obviously it's our house and we can do what we want (it's not technically a historic property), but we don't want to change the character of the house or falsify original features. To me, I feel like anything that fits with the vintage and location of the house is fair game.
Show me your newel post lamps. I have beads.
I've been trying to look up ways to tighten a loose newel post but haven't had much luck. Most videos show tightening the newel post to the stairs, but since mine is at the top of the stairs, it has to tighten to the floor.
I think it's currently attached to the floor with this: https://www.woodstairs.com/product/lj-3006-newel-mounting-plate/
Is it possible to tighten this without removing the entire newel post, handrails, and balusters? I was thinking of using some sort of thin filler material to fill in the gap between the steel plate and newel post, but I'm worried that it will only loosen it further with continued use. Any thoughts, tips, or methods on how to tighten this?
Thanks
Hi everyone, I have tried looking online for an answer to this but couldn't find anything.
Can anyone tell me if I can use a plain 4x4 as a newel post? I understand it will not be pretty but that's not what I'm shooting for here.
Thanks!
I'm pretty sure it's the newel post, but that usually implies the piece at the base of the stairs. I'm wondering if there is a word for the counterpart at the top of the stairs. As shown here.
Would appreciate any suggestions before I make a mess. I had initially planned to drill a hole at an angle the width of the top of a lag bolt, then a smaller pilot hole for the threads through the bottom of the post into the subfloor, run a lag through, and then fill the hole with a dowel - cut flush/stain.
House is about 40 years old. I looked around on the sides of the post to see if there was already a dowel plug I could drill out and tighten a bolt, but I don't know that exists on this.
Thanks!
It's Wobbly AF:
https://i.imgur.com/qnYJ65l.mp4
Bottom sides:
https://i.imgur.com/e4ASdwR.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/fD7i8OQ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zYY2Ohb.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/c9VJsal.jpg
Top (cap covers screw tightening to railing)
