Stair sanding: price, process and durability

Sanding a staircase means that treads, nosings, and any stringers are sanded free of old lacquer, oil, or paint, after which the wood is treated anew. A staircase is priced per job and not per m2, because the majority of the work involves edge and hand sanding around nosings, corners, and stringers. You will receive a fixed price before the work begins.

Stair sanding often becomes relevant at the same time as the floor, because the two tasks share setup, masking, and vacuuming. Therefore, it is usually cheaper to have the staircase and floor done at the same time rather than separately.

• 175 kr/m2Including VAT and a standard finish, from 36 m2
• 24 hoursResponse with fixed price
• Workmanship guaranteeOn all work performed

Contents of this guide

1. What does it cost to sand a staircase?
2. Can all wooden stairs be sanded?
3. How does stair sanding work in practice?
4. Lacquered, oiled, or lye-treated stairs: which lasts longest?
5. How long does stair sanding take?
6. Can you sand the stairs yourself?
7. What about stairs in apartments and housing associations?
8. How to get a fixed price for your staircase

What does it cost to sand a staircase?

The price of stair sanding reflects the number of steps, edges, stringers and amount of hand sanding, so it needs a separate quotation. The standard floor rate of 175 kr per m2 including VAT from 36 m2 includes a standard floor finish and is not a per-square-metre rate for stairs.

The factors that truly influence the price of a staircase:

• Number of steps and landings. Each step is an independent surface with a nosing. More steps mean more hours.
• How much needs to be removed. A light sanding, where the lacquer is still intact, is faster than a full sanding down to raw wood. This is the same difference as between light sanding and full sanding on a floor, as described in the guide on light sanding, full sanding, or planing.
• Old paint. Painted stairs require multiple passes and often extra manual work in corners and on stringers.
• Stringers, handrails, and balusters. If these are included, the time spent increases significantly, as it is almost exclusively hand sanding.
• Treatment. Lacquer in multiple coats requires intermediate sanding between coats, which adds time.
• Access. Stairs in apartments and stairwells require more masking and dust management than a private house staircase with its own entrance.

If you combine stairs and flooring in the same job, you only pay once for setup and masking. See the price levels for the flooring part in the guide on what floor sanding costs, and then get a total fixed price for the entire job.

Can all wooden stairs be sanded?

Solid wood stairs in beech, oak, pine, or ash can be sanded multiple times, while veneered or laminated steps often only tolerate one light sanding - or none at all. The number of times depends on the thickness of the solid wood: Junckers' guide on sanding wooden floors states that a solid 14 mm floor can be sanded down to raw wood approximately 5 times, while a 20-22 mm floor tolerates 8-10 times. Solid stair treads are typically thicker than floorboards and therefore have plenty of wood for several full sandings. If the steps are covered with carpet or vinyl, the glue residue determines what can be done.

A quick check at home: look at the nosing of the step. If you can see the grain running all the way through the edge, the step is solid. If you see a thin strip of wood with a different colour underneath, it is laminate or veneer. If you are in doubt, send a few pictures, and we will assess it before anything is agreed upon. Cracks and knocked-out knots in solid steps can often be repaired, as we describe in the guide on repair of cracks and holes.

How does stair sanding work in practice?

Stair sanding is a fixed sequence of five steps, where the actual machine sanding is the shortest part. The time-consuming part is the edge and hand work, plus the drying time between coats: Junckers specifies for Floor Lacquer Plus 24 hours for light traffic and 72 hours for full curing, while a base treatment with Junckers Floor Oil is applied in two wet-on-wet coats and needs to dry for 16-24 hours before finishing.

1. Masking and dust management. The staircase is screened off, and the machines operate with dust extraction to keep the rest of the dwelling free of sanding dust.
2. Coarse sanding. Old lacquer, oil, or paint is removed from the tread surfaces, and deep scratches are sanded out.
3. Edge and hand sanding. Nosings, corners, stringers, and transitions are sanded with an edge sander and by hand. This is where the hours are spent.
4. Fine sanding and vacuuming. The surface is fine-sanded to uniform roughness and thoroughly vacuumed; otherwise, the treatment will be uneven.
5. Treatment. Lacquer, oil, or lye is applied, and with lacquer, intermediate sanding is performed between coats.

We always make a plan for how you can get up and down during the process. In single-story houses, it's rarely a problem, but in a townhouse or an apartment with a bedroom on the first floor, we agree on the sequence so you can use the stairs in the evening.

Lacquered, oiled, or lye-treated stairs: which lasts longest?

Lacquer is usually the right choice for a staircase because the lacquer film withstands shoes and heavy daily traffic better than an oiled surface, and because the staircase is one of the most heavily used surfaces in the house. Oil, on the other hand, requires ongoing after-treatment - Junckers recommends care oil 2-3 times annually for high traffic and approximately once a year for low traffic - but oil can be spot-repaired on individual worn steps without the entire staircase needing to be re-sanded. Lye gives a light, raw look and is always combined with subsequent oil or lacquer. There is no fixed number of years for when a staircase needs to be sanded again; it depends on the traffic, and the nosings of the bottom steps typically wear out first.

If you have a staircase that directly extends from an oiled floor, there's a strong argument for maintaining the same treatment throughout, so the appearance matches. If you're in doubt, you can read the pros and cons in the guide on lacquering or oiling a wooden floor and about the light appearance in the guide on lye treatment.

How long does stair sanding take?

Based on our experience, the actual sanding of a typical residential staircase usually takes one workday, while the treatment determines when the staircase can be used normally again. Junckers specifies for Floor Lacquer Plus 24 hours for light traffic and 72 hours for full curing, and for base treatment with Floor Oil, 16-24 hours of drying before finishing. If the stringers are included, the manual work is significantly extended.

Practically, this means you should expect a few days when the stairs can only be used with care: no shoes, no furniture dragged up, and no carpets laid back until the treatment is fully cured. The same precautions apply to floors, and the principles are described in the guide on maintenance of newly sanded floors.

Can you sand the stairs yourself?

A staircase can be sanded with an orbital sander and a hand sanding block, but it is a job where technique makes a visible difference. Stair nosings are curved or bevelled, so the angle and pressure of the abrasive matter. Once too much wood has been removed from a nosing, it cannot be put back.

The three classic mistakes are too coarse a grit on the nosings, insufficient vacuuming before treatment (which results in a rough, gritty surface), and too thinly applied lacquer on the tread surfaces, where wear is greatest. Additionally, stair sanding produces very fine wood dust in a closed stairwell, where there is rarely extraction. We use machines with dust extraction, work at a fixed price, and the job is covered by a workmanship guarantee. If you want to handle the maintenance yourself afterward, the manufacturers' instructions are freely available, for example, Junckers' care guide for oiled floors.

What about stairs in apartments and housing associations?

Stairs in apartments and common stairwells require more planning than a residential staircase, because access routes must be kept clear, and dust must not spread to neighbours. We regularly work in Aarhus Ø developments such as Isbjerget, Z-huset, Nicolinehus, Pakhusene, and Kanalhusene, where both internal apartment stairs and common areas place demands on masking and scheduling.

For owner-occupier and cooperative housing associations, we provide an overall estimate for several stairwells at once, so the association can address it in one meeting and get a single fixed price. If you live in an apartment and need both stairs and flooring done, there are practical considerations described in the guide on floor sanding in apartments, and associations can see the framework for larger projects under commercial tasks.

How to get a fixed price for your staircase

Send pictures of the staircase from the side and a close-up of a nosing, plus the number of steps. This allows us to assess whether the steps are solid, how much needs to be sanded, and whether the stringers should be included. You will receive a response within 24 hours and a fixed price before work begins. If the floor also needs attention, see floor sanding and floor treatment or contact us at 20 98 88 11.

Frequently asked questions