Staircase Painters in Winchester

Spindles and balusters are the most time-consuming part of a staircase paint job. Turned or decorative spindles have profiles with crevices that trap old paint and dust.

Each one needs individual preparation and careful brushwork.

Hyde Victorian cottages on Middle Brook Street have original timber staircases with turned spindles. Old gloss paint builds up on newel posts and balusters over decades and obscures the profile.

Stripping back carefully before repainting preserves the detail. Painting over the build-up produces a clogged, aged appearance.

We use fine brushes sized for spindle profiles and work each one individually. Rushing this stage or using a wide brush produces runs in the crevices and an uneven finish that is visible from the hallway below.

Handrails and newel posts receive more physical contact than any other part of a staircase. The finish must be durable and applied correctly to resist the daily wear from hands and cleaning.

We sand handrails and newel posts to a smooth, even surface before priming. Old varnish and gloss are feathered back where they are sound and stripped where they are lifting.

A sound primer coat is essential on timber that has not been primed in many years.

Newel posts on Victorian staircases often have complex turned or moulded caps. These are worked with small brushes to maintain the profile without filling the detail.

Painted risers are common in period Winchester properties. Treads are usually varnished or left natural to handle foot traffic, but risers are painted as part of the staircase scheme.

We mask treads carefully before painting risers. Old riser paint is sanded back and primed before topcoat.

Gloss or hard-wearing satin is used on risers rather than emulsion, which is not durable enough for a surface that contacts shoes.

For wider staircase renovation work that includes stripping treads back to bare wood, we advise on the project at the site visit. Stripped tread work is a separate trade discipline that we can advise on.

For interior painting work in the hall and landing at the same time, we can plan the full project as a single visit.

The understairs area in Winchester period properties is often used for storage, with a cupboard door and painted interior walls. These surfaces are dark, awkward to reach, and rarely decorated to the same standard as the rest of the house.

We paint understairs cupboard interiors in a light colour to improve usability. Door faces and frames are finished to match the rest of the staircase woodwork.

Shelving within the space is painted where possible and masked where it cannot be removed.

Victorian and Edwardian staircases in Winchester are among the most distinctive features of the city’s housing stock. Hyde Street and Middle Brook Street cottages, Fulflood terraces on Clifton Road and Gordon Road, and Abbotts Barton Edwardian houses all have original timber staircases that deserve careful treatment.

The risk on these staircases is paint build-up over many decoration cycles. Each coat adds to the obscuring of spindle profile and joint detail.

We assess whether the existing paint can be overcoated or whether stripping is needed to restore the original character.

See our hallway painting page for the full decorating scope that usually accompanies a staircase project.