Do It Yourself Indoor Stair Edges Against a Wall

• 1

  Lay the skirt board against the wall along the length of the stairs. Tack it to the wall with finish nails.

• 2

  Draw a line on the wall above the top tread along the top of the skirt board. Make another mark on the wall for the bottom tread.

• 3

  Measure the height of the staircase's risers using a tape measure. Mark the height on a wooden stick. Insert a nail at this spot with the nail partially sticking out.

• 4

  Place the stick on the floor vertically and hold it against the skirt board. Hold the stick plumb and move the nail along the surface of the board. This will leave a level horizontal line. Repeat for every tread and the landing.

• 5

  Remove the skirt board and cut it at the lowest mark with a circular saw.

• 6

  Tack the board to the wall again. Ensure that it aligns with the marks on the wall.

• 7

  Remove the nail in the stick. Measure the depth of a tread and mark it on the stick. Hammer in a nail at this mark.

• 8

  Place the stick on the floor horizontally and hold it against the skirt board. Move the stick across the board. This will leave a level vertical line. Repeat for the rest of the treads and the landing.

• 9

  Remove the board from the wall. Take a piece of scrap tread and hold it against the horizontal line at the bottom of the skirt board. Trace the outline of the tread nosing onto the board. Repeat for every horizontal line.

Cutting

• 10

  Cut along every vertical line. Cut along every horizontal line.

• 11

  Cut along the nosing outlines with a coping saw.

• 12

  Fit the board in place at the edge of the stairs. Check for plumb at the top and bottom steps with a spirit level. Fasten into place with 4d nails at every nosing and at the bottom of every riser.