What are the parts of a staircase called?
Tread, riser, nosing, string, newel, baluster, handrail, apron. What each part does, which ones are structural, and which ones are the usual source of a creak or a wobble.
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Time
- 8 min
- Read
- 5 min
- Safety
- caution
Short answer
You stand on the tread; the riser is the vertical face between treads; the nosing is the tread's front overhang. The strings are the sloping boards carrying the tread and riser ends. Newel posts at top and bottom anchor the balustrade, balusters or spindles fill between, and the handrail runs along the top. Newels and strings are structural. Nosings and spindles are what work loose.
Almost every stair complaint is easier to solve once the part has a name, because the name is what a supplier, a joiner and a search all understand. It also separates the parts you can work on from the ones that hold the flight together.
Safety
Step by step
- Tread — the part you stand on.The horizontal board. It is the part that wears, and in a domestic stair it is usually softwood under carpet or a hardwood if it was meant to be seen.
- Riser — the vertical face between two treads.Present on most stairs and absent on an open-plan flight. Where they exist, risers stiffen the flight considerably, and a loose riser is a common cause of a creak that seems to come from the tread.
- Nosing — the tread's front overhang.The projecting rounded front edge. It gives the foot more landing area, and it is the single most commonly loose part of a staircase, because every footfall works it.
- String — the sloping board at each side.It carries the ends of the treads and risers. A closed string is a straight sloping board that hides the tread ends; a cut string is stepped so the tread ends show from the side. Either way it is structural.
- Newel post — the anchor.The stout post at the bottom and top of a flight and at any turn. It is jointed into the string and it is what makes the whole balustrade rigid. It is not decorative and it is not removable.
- Balusters or spindles — the infill.The vertical members between string or tread and handrail. Their job is guarding: to stop anyone, and particularly a child, falling or climbing through. Two names for the same thing.
- Handrail — the thing you hold.It runs from newel to newel and it has to be graspable and firmly fixed. On a flight it is guarding as well as a handhold, which is why it is not simply screwed to the spindle tops.
- Landing, apron and the under-stair void.The landing is the flat area at a level or between flights. The apron lining is the board finishing the exposed edge of the landing floor. The void beneath is the storage space, and in many houses it is also where the meters and the stopcock live.
Tips
- When you ring a joiner, saying "the nosing on the fourth tread is loose" gets a useful answer. Saying "the stairs creak" gets a survey.
- Most creaks are movement between two parts rubbing — tread against riser, tread against string, or the wedges under the treads having dried and loosened. From underneath, if the flight is open below, they are usually visible.
- A stair that was carpeted from new often has unfinished, mismatched treads under it. That is normal and it is worth knowing before committing to stripping it back.
Common mistakes
- Cutting a newel post to make more room — It is the anchor for the balustrade and it is jointed into the string. Removing or shortening one leaves the handrail and spindles with nothing holding them, which is a fall risk rather than an appearance problem.
- Fixing loose spindles by nailing them to the handrail — It masks the movement without addressing it, and the fixing splits the spindle top. The looseness is usually at the base, or in the newel, and that is where it has to be dealt with.
- Assuming the under-stair void is just a cupboard — It is frequently the route for gas, water and electricity, and in a house with a single stair it is also a fire-safety space. What is stored there and how it is enclosed matters more than in an ordinary cupboard.
If it doesn't work
A creak that happens on the same step every time
Cause: Movement between a tread and a riser or string, usually from shrunken timber or a failed glue block — Fix: Locate it from underneath if you can. GuideHQ has a guide on stopping stairs creaking; the fix depends entirely on which two parts are moving, which is why naming them first matters.
A handrail that flexes when leaned on
Cause: A newel joint that has opened, or handrail fixings into the newel that have worked loose — Fix: Treat as urgent. It is guarding, and its job is precisely to take a load applied suddenly and sideways. Do not use the stairs without holding something else until it is dealt with.
A spindle that rattles
Cause: The base or top fixing has loosened, or the timber has shrunk in the housing — Fix: A single loose spindle is a small job. Several loose ones in a row usually means the newel or the handrail has moved, which is not.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between a baluster and a spindle?
In everyday use, nothing — both mean the vertical infill members. Strictly, a baluster is a shaped or turned one and a spindle is a plainer one, but suppliers and joiners use the words interchangeably.
What is a balustrade?
The whole assembly of newels, balusters and handrail that guards the open side of a stair or landing. It is the guarding, and it is what the safety requirements apply to.
What is a stair carriage?
A timber running under the centre of a wide flight to support the middle of the treads, used where the strings alone would leave the treads too flexible. You only see it from underneath.
What is a bullnose step?
The bottom step with one or both ends rounded and projecting past the newel, so it curves out into the hall. It is common in Victorian and Edwardian houses and it is built differently from the steps above it.