How to Repair Stair Balustrade
“Balustrade” is the name given to the combination of balusters (banisters), posts and handrails that run up the side of a staircase. Over time, these components may become loose or damaged, but repairs are quite straightforward and may range from simply regluing a cracked baluster or repairing a short length of handrail, to replacing the entire assembly.
Baluster repairs
The most likely problem with a balustrade is a cracked or broken baluster. Often, it will be possible to prise a split apart with a wood chisel, squeeze in some adhesive and tape up the split, or clamp it with a small G-clamp, while the adhesive dries. Sometimes, a short dowel glued into a hole drilled across the split will help.
If the baluster is broken, it will be necessary to remove it and either fit a new one or glue together the original piece, which may be your only option if you cannot find a replacement of the same style. You will need to work out how to remove the old baluster. Sometimes, this simply involves pulling out a couple of nails top and bottom. On other occasions, you may need to remove the nosing on the end of a tread, or prise out spacers fitted between the balusters under the handrail and in the base rail, or even cut through the baluster.
You can fashion replacement square balusters yourself and build up broken moulding on a damaged turned baluster with wood filler. If you need to replace a complete turned baluster, you may be able to buy a new one of the same style, if the staircase is not too old, or a second-hand one from an architectural salvage yard, if it is. Failing that, you could approach a local woodturner to make a new one. Otherwise, the broken piece will have to be repaired.
Repairing a handrail
You can buy handrail moulding to repair a broken section, but you need a special type of bolt to hold the sections together. This passes through holes drilled into the ends of the new and old handrails, both cut square, and requires “pockets” to be cut out to accommodate the nuts of the bolt. Two additional holes need to be drilled for dowels that prevent the handrail from turning around the bolt. To position these correctly, drill the holes in one part, using a dowelling bit, and fit centre-points into the holes so that their positions can be transferred to the other part.
Replacing a balustrade
You can buy kits for replacing a complete balustrade, using the bottom portions of the existing newel posts. The first step is to remove the existing balustrade – handrail, balusters and the bottom rail. Cut through the old newel posts with a panel saw close to the base, making sure the cuts are square. Then drill a large hole in each stump of newel post to take the end of the new newel post and shape the stump to a gentle curve. The new newel post is glued into place with a dowel to tighten it. The new handrail must be cut to length with the correct angle at each end and secured with the brackets supplied.
The base rail must also be cut to the correct length and angles. Then each baluster can be cut to length, again with the ends at the correct angle, and slotted into the base rail and the underside of the handrail. The balusters are held in place with wooden spacers nailed to the base rail and the underside of the handrail. Special accessories are available to accommodate staircases that have 90-degree turns or half-landings.
Practical tips
To reinforce a straight break in a baluster, first drill a 10mm hole in the centre of one of the sound sections. Then make a right-angled cut through the baluster, using the thinnest saw blade you can find, such as a junior hacksaw, to remove a portion of the drilled baluster. Glue this to the other broken piece and leave for the adhesive to set. Continue the hole through the glued joint into sound timber. Finally, glue the whole baluster together with a 10mm dowel bridging the original break and the new saw cut. When buying a handrail, look for the type that has a grooved underside to hold the balusters firmly and in a straight line.