Learn the fastest, easiest way for how to paint basement stairs. Only 4 basic supplies needed. Bonus: You can WALK UP them while the paint is drying.
As we were painting the basement ceiling and the basement floor, we naturally wanted to paint the basement stairs, too. Painting my way up the stairs seemed awkward and painting my way down the stairs would mean that I would be trapped downstairs until the paint dries.
Uhhh, no! Didn’t have time for that.
How to paint stairs and not get trapped downstairs while the paint dries.
Ken thought it a ridiculous idea, and I’m sure it’s not how the professionals do it, but neither of those reasons was a deterrent for me.
Here is a before shot. The stairs were covered in the grungiest blue carpet, which was pulled up to reveal basic wooden stairs that needed a good scrubbing.
Supplies
- 1-1/2″ blue painters tape
- Paintbrush or roller
- Paint
- TSP cleaner
Clean the stairs thoroughly.
Run a strip of thick blue painters tape down the center.
Paint only one side of the stairs. Starting at the top and painting downwards worked well for me.
Remove tape, asap, and let paint dry, making sure to only walk up and down the stairs on the unpainted side (which goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway!!)
Paint the other side of the stairs, overlapping the brush or roller onto the already painted side.
Let that side dry, making sure to only step on the previously painted side.
See the $1200 Basement Project Completed with an Open Floor Plan
Do the professionals paint their way up the stairs or down? Do they get trapped?
I’m still curious as to how they do it, and by no means is this project a professional one, but at least I was able to get on with the rest of my tasks for the day.
Hoping this tip helps if you’re considering painting your stairs!
~Amy
More flooring ideas you might like:
Anne@DesignDreams says
LOL – great tip!!! Wonder how many people have gotten stuck doing a similar project??
xo
Cheryl in Wisconsin says
Now everything looks so fresh!
When I did my basement steps I just did every other one, in two stages. Which reminds me, they need another round. Not fun!
Feral Turtle says
A great post Amy. I really love how bright and clean the white looks. I do wonder how the pros do it?
Sharleen says
PERFECT. !!! Love this Amy.
chris aka monkey says
i saw the title to this post and started giggling i could see you hopping up and down the stairs…i guess every other one would work for me i have long legs xx
Tuula @ The Thrifty Rebel says
Love the makeover Amy! Your stairs look so fresh and new. Great job!
Danni@SiloHillFarm says
I never once thought about that as a problem! Of course, I have never painted stairs either! Looks lovely, all nice and bright!
Sherry says
I knew you were smart! And now I’ll never doubt you again! This information is brilliant! I have to rip carpet off of our stairs… (have no idea what’s underneath) and paint them. I’m so glad you posted this.
linda says
mine had black mastix glue under them. Impossible to sand off.
Doreen@househoneys says
You’re brilliant Amy! Truly! I never painted stairs, bu aside from painting every other one, who knew this could be done?! Great idea!
Christina says
Brilliant! 🙂 And truly the easiest solution I never would have thought of, so thank you! 🙂
Caroline says
Very smart idea. I have to paint my basement stairs soon and I will definitely be using this trick. Thanks!
Linda says
We did fine except we used enamel paint that takes a long time to dry and the dog need to come up the stairs and so he did with his big foot prints on the side. How do i paint that in a good way
Amy says
Hi Linda,
Please accept my apology for my delayed response to your issue. Ken and I have been away from the blog while rehabbing our townhouse rental to get it on the market as soon as possible. We were either working our full time jobs, sleeping or at the townhouse working and I was not checking my emails.
To address your issue, which hopefully you’ve been able to fix by now, but in case you haven’t: From what it sounds like, you just need to do a touch up where his paws left a mark. Can you dab the paint on with a foam paint brush. That is what I typically use for touch ups after I paint something because I often seem to have imperfections like this myself. If you are trying to keep your dog away, is it possible to put blue painters tape across the doorway temporarily, kind of like a gate?
As I said, hopefully you’ve already found a solution, but if not, I hope these ideas will help.
Let me know if you have any other questions, and once again, I truly apologize for how long it took to get back to you.
Amy
Ash says
Thanks for this, I am about to have to do this and had to Google for suggestions! I also am going to have to figure out, as one of your commenters mentioned, how to keep my big (lovable, but often frustrating) klutz of a dog from trying to follow me the wrong way down the wet paint!