Originally Posted by
Richard Wolf
Like Dan said, this is a difficult project and not for the faint of heart. If the stairs are built as poorly as you describe you would be better off tearing them out and restarting. But that also is not a project for someone with no experience.
You say the carpet took up 1" , that may be the case but a lot depends on you floor treatment which will be on the floor at the bottom and top of staircase. Code says no more than 3/8" difference from any two steps.
Isn't there a stair company near you, it may be cheaper to buy treads from them instead of shipping, treads are heavy.
Cove molding under the treads are a standard detail that should be included, quarter round on the tread/riser joint is not.
Once again, as Dan said, step back and make sure you understand how big a project you are about to undertake, lots of room for f*ckups on something like this.