I never thought I’d be so excited to tell you that I installed spindles (aka balusters) in my upstairs hallway last month. It’s been a long time coming and I’m pretty stoked! You’d think with all my excitement I would have written a post sooner, but no, I’ve been totally distracted with the kitchen and guest bathroom projects. But anyway here it is all finished. Just wait until you hear about the ridiculously long road to get here…
It took me over a year to finish the project start to finish. And I use “finish” loosely because really the spindles still need to be painted, but whatever, they’re white and I’ve moved on. Yes, it’s really been a year! I took the carpet out last March and we lived with plywood and furry bottom spindles for many many months. 
I showed you how I installed the hardwood floors a few months ago, all except the part that was under the spindles. Let me also mention that I redid the stairs a few years back.
To clarify, there was nothing wrong with the spindles, the issue was the flooring under the spindles. The Bruce hardwood is 3/4″ and sits up above the wood the spindles are attached to. Let me tell you why it took so long to fix…
Plan A –
I was going to remove the spindles, replace the wood underneath and raise it up 3/4″ to be even with hardwood. So I ordered two pieces of stair nose molding from Home Depot online to match the Bruce Saddle Oak floor I had already purchased because they don’t sell the trim pieces in the store. When it arrived it was not the same profile as the online picture.
The pieces I received had no overhang at the bullnose end, the entire piece was flat at the bottom. When I returned it to the store they called Armstrong and confirmed that the profile I wanted (and what was pictured online) does not exist. Of course it doesn’t. 🙁
Plan B –
I thought I’d try the easy route next, so I ordered two pieces of this reducer molding. I planned to leave the spindles in place and blend the new height of hardwood with old height by using the reducers.
Yay! It will be so much easier to leave the spindles in place. All I have to do is stain the existing wood under the spindles to match the hardwood. I already had stain that matched perfectly, because I used it on the stair treads and landing when I refinished those. So I got to work staining the wood and patching the drywall underneath so I wouldn’t have to use any trim pieces.
The stain looked terrible and I hated the look of the reducers once they arrived. My friend Shari gave it the thumbs down too. So back they went to Home Depot.
Plan C –
What if I remove the spindles, raise the existing piece of wood to the new floor height, and re-stain it because it looked terrible when I tried to stain it in place. I was now confident I could reuse the bull nose pieces of wood that the spindles were already attached to. I had done the same thing for the top step and it looked great. Hubby was home for a snow day, so we sawed the spindles across the bottom, carefully preserving each one so they could be re-installed later.
Then we removed the precious bull nose so it could get a proper staining. 
We were out of stain, so hubby went to Lowe’s to pick up some more of the perfect matching color Rustoleum stain in American Walnut. The container had been updated since I purchased the last one. But the picture and name were the same. So I stained the bull nose. But guess what? The color was nowhere near the same!!! And this is when I started to lose my mind. I tried two other stains and none were a match, so it was back to the drawing board.
Plan D –
So it was back to replacing the bull nose with Bruce molding at the same height as the hardwood. I ordered a different bull nose molding from Home Depot online and waited anxiously while my kids navigated the upstairs hallway without any spindles. Good thing I didn’t take out the smaller section of spindles because there is a straight drop to down stairs on that side.
While I waited for the molding to arrive I painted the spindles to get them ready to re-install. But when it arrived it was the wrong color! But is was the profile shown in the original stair nose picture. Grrh! So back it went to the store. Guess what? I ended up ordering the same molding I had originally ordered because it was the best fit and I figured I’d make it work. So we went another week without spindles, but by now my kids were totally used to it. The 4th time is a charm!
The Install
All this work and I still didn’t get to the spindles yet! To install the Bruce bull nose I used a combination of wood lattice molding in different thicknesses to achieve the correct height. Some spots had two thin pieces, some two thicker, some spots had one of each. Sheesh!! I used liquid nails to glue everything in place and I think it looked great after it was installed.
The only problem… Remember those spindles we so carefully removed, then I sanded and painted? Yeah those. They were too short! Really??? Maybe the universe doesn’t want me to have spindles in my hallway. Sigh. Off to Lowe’s (again!) to buy 30 new spindles or as they call them, balusters. But I wasn’t happy about it. One good thing though is that round-trip from my house to Lowe’s is less than 4 miles. But still.
Once I had the hardwood flooring in place and bought new spindles, installing the spindles was a breeze.
- Drill holes for the dowels (or pins) that come with the spindles (try to do this BEFORE you install the wood because it makes a mess!)
- Re-drilled the holes in the underside of the handrail to make sure they are all the correct depth
- Trim the spindles to size and test fit each one
- Glue the dowel to the spindle and add wood glue to the holes
- Insert top end of spindle in handrail first then finagle the pin into its hole
- Use the side of a level (or any straightedge) to made sure the spindles are all in a straight line
- Let them dry overnight
I completed the long section one day, then went for the smaller, more dangerous section, the next day. 
The smaller section was slightly more annoying, because the run of hardwood didn’t end on a full piece here. No biggie. I cut a piece of the hardwood flooring to fit the gap between the last piece of hardwood and the stair nose trim. The pain in the butt part was that the stair nose trim was now teetering precariously over the edge of the second floor. Not only did this look terrible from below, but it was totally dangerous! The only solution was to add a support underneath it. I first tried a 1×2, but it wouldn’t hold the bull nose piece up, so I went with a 1×4. I used 4 deck screws to attach the 1×4 to the wall.
I got smart and drilled the holes outside then brought it in for one last dry fit. 
Because of the safety implications, I wanted to do more that just glue the molding in place, so I screwed it into the 1×4 through the dowel holes so you wouldn’t be able to see the screws. Score! It was now rock solid and things were finally working out. The spindles went in the same way and now it is finally finished. Yay!! What do you think?
You might notice a few other unfinished projects in this hallway… I still owe you a board and batten/ new door molding post. I also gave the upstairs hall closet a makeover while I had it emptied out. The only thing left is LIGHTING! You can see in most of those pictures that the lighting is terrible upstairs. I have a few ideas up my sleeve for lighting, so I’ll wait until then to take some serious “after” pictures.
And now I’m off to work on the bathroom… (Find those posts HERE)
Looks good. I still need to fix the one spindle that’s out on the long section, using tips u had given me, and do away with stray nails that idiot pre- owners used…u still have the original folding louvers on overhang window? That’s what we have too, but they don’t properly close- very cockeyed and wonky, but until I get the energy to do glass block, which I think is the best option- keeps pets and kids from falling and would let extra light in house.
unbelievable,, you did those all by yourself? I like the handrail color and design (it’s simple but elegant)
Wow!! I can definitely empathize with you on the process. And I’m so amazed by your sticking to the project and getting it done right!! I’m in the beginning and have already ordered and returned the first piece that should have fit. I carefully twisted out all my old spindles and installed hard wood beneath them, drilled the holes and when I went to reinstall the spindles they are TOO SHORT. It’s blowing my mind because I added 3/4 of an inch to the floor, the hand rail is still in place and by my reasoning each spindle should need to be 3/4 of an inch shorter to account for the new floor. But it’s not working. Thinking I may have to call in a professional. Anyway, thanks for sharing your struggles and your success story!!
This post is giving me courage. My husband and I just bought an old house, and the floors upstairs are in terrible shape (is the old plank pine sub flooring).
We were thinking we might as well cover the floor with hardwood, but the big sticking point was, what to do at the stairs and the spindles of the banister at the top of the stairs.
Despite all the stop and go, I’m emboldened by your article; maybe we can do it ourselves after all!
Yay! Thanks Jackie, it’s always nice to know that I haven’t written all this down for no reason. Lol. I’m glad it’s helped and I think you should go for it. The decision making takes longer than the work itself! You can do it!!
I want to change the carpet that wraps around the open side of the upstairs hallway to a fascia board. then I will just do a carpet tuck to meet the board
any idea how I do it. is it difficult?
thanks for any suggestions.
Having the carpet meet the board is no issue. Installing the board under existing spindles is a big pain in the butt!
Hello, great job. How do you get away with no expansion gap with hardwood that butts up against the baluster rail plate. I have the same layout but concerned about an expansion gap.
Hello – Looks great, I have a similar setup – I am looking to install hardwood floor throughout my 2nd floor – but not sure how to account for expansion when the hardwood goes up against the baluster plate – I see the hardwood you installed goes right up against the ballaster plate – how do you account for expansion?
Finishing a year long project would certainly make most people excited. It’s nice that you found the time to share all that you’ve learned with your readers.
Hey Liz,
Thanks for providing me with this information as we’re faced with the carpet removal and hardwood installation as well. My only question that remains is: Does the railing still have the same structural integrity after you cut the bottoms (that were fastened in the joists) and reinstalled the smaller pegs?
My carpenter doesn’t want the potential liability if someone broke through the spindles and perhaps fell down the stairs. He’d rather leave the spindles alone and build up a base around the spindles. He suggested cutting a piece of moulding with “teeth” on one side to fit between the spindles and a straight edge on the other side to meet up with the hardwoods. It may not look as nice if there are slight gaps between the spindles (especially on rounded sections) but we would be staring at them all day either.
Was there any reason why you didn’t choose this method?
Thoughts?
Hi Brian. I simply removed the spindles and replaced them. The spindles don’t hold the railing up (that is done by the post and the wall it is anchored to), they merely provide protection from falling under the banister.
I find carpenters/handymen/contractors get all kinds of crazy ideas in their heads and come up with all types of workarounds. Many of which are more work than just doing the correct thing to begin with. I wanted my staircase to look as originally intended, and was not interested in altering the look to suit my abilities. A carpenter suggesting that he cannot properly replace a spindle seems ridiculous to me. I would look for a carpenter that has the skill and desire to do the job correctly.
It is not difficult to make the spindles sound. Connect at the top (at the railing) and bottom (at the floor). If I can do it, he should be able to!
Good luck! Please let me know how it goes…
I’m sorry, just re-read… The spindles are NOT connected to joists. Not sure what you mean by this. And not sure which pegs you are referring to. There are pegs on the bottoms of the spindles, both the ones I took out and the ones I installed. If there is a difference in peg size it is inconsequential. But I don’t think that’s what you’re talking about.