A quick Sunday project is what we had hoped for. We had talked about it for years and finally decided it was time to remove that old beat up carpet gracing the cellar stairs. Work began at 10am after researching our methods and plenty of Sunday morning coffee. We covered the furniture, rolled back the carpet and gathered the tools.
Ripping up the old rug took less than twenty minutes, with us pulling off the entire runner from top to bottom in one fell swoop. Our excitement was palpable as we bagged up the mess quickly. On to the carpet strip and tacks.
Removing the tack strip was much more taxing. Tiny little nails sticking out of a thin strip of wood threatened me with piercing of the skin with each move so I had to proceed with caution. And the padding staples required a pair of pliers and a tight grip. After another hour of this back breaking and tedious work, success was ours.
Vacuuming the stairs, dusting off the furniture, and bagging up the mess completed the task. A quick two and a half hours from start to finish! We stood back and admired our beautiful new stairs and hard work.
Now if only I can be that quick picking out the just right carpet stair treads!
Throughout the month of March I will be participating in the Slice of Life Story Challenge with the community of writers over at Two Writing Teachers. Each day I will post a draft of a story detailing a small snippet from my life. This will be my sixth year participating, and each year I marvel at all the small moments I would have missed in my life if not for this challenge. I am grateful to Stacey Shubitz, Betsy Hubbard, Beth Moore, Kathleen Neagle Sokolowski, Melanie Meehan, and Amy Ellerman for hosting this wonderful event!
iblessings 
I can absolutely relate to the line, “ Removing the tack strips was much more taxing.” Luckily a builder friend let us borrow a handy dandy tool that worked like a charm. Of course we had already removed half of the tacks and staples by the time we borrowed it. Working on projects together is so satisfying isn’t it? I can’t help but wonder what your next project will be.
Probably putting down pretty slip resistant treads!
“Our excitement was palpable…” Loved that line! This slice gave me such satisfaction for the task to be completed, and I didn’t have to lift a finger. Thank you! Glad it went so well, and that your stairs look so fresh and clean!
Good job! I know how hard removing flooring is. It’s amazing what ridding a floor of old carpeting will do for a home’s aesthetics. The stairs look fantastic. Are you sure you want to cover them?
I know they look so pretty but little wet feet going up the stairs might cause falls. Living on a lake is tough 🤣
Wow! Beautiful stairs uncovered . . . fairly painlessly! If only all DIY projects worked this well and this quickly!
I know Fran. That’s why I had to write this post! Now back to Amazon today to compare carpet treads!
Beautiful stairs and piece of writing. I can feel the pricks of the carpet nails.
Nice. You might inspire me to fix those outside stairs …
Kevin
Bob Vilas website had excellent tips!