oakbydesign
01423 593 794
So, are you in need of either a new or replacement staircase?
Is the whole terminology for the parts that make it up an absolute minefield!?
Well, we hope that our easy-to-understand guide to staircase components below will help.
However, if you have any questions or queries at all, then please do not hesitate to contact us, and you can do so by either calling us at the showroom on 01423 593794 or email us at contact@oakbydesign.co.uk.
You may hear this word a lot when choosing a new staircase, and the word balustrade is actually a collective word for a collection of staircase components of a completed staircase.
Depending on your design, the balustrade can be produced from wood, metal, glass or a combination of these.
Here are the individual parts and descriptions:
The handrail runs along the top of the spindles or glass units, depending on the design, and is used to aid the climbing and descending of the stairs. Handrails can also be wall-mounted.
Spindles are vertical supports that can be wooden or metal and with regards to design, they can be very decorative or contemporary.
Instead of spindles, you could also opt for glass or wooden panels.
The spindles and panels sit between the handrail and base rail.
The base rail sits along a landing and also on top of the string.
Base rails come with either a groove so that the spindles can fit into the track or they can be solid so that if you are going to have glass panels, the brackets to secure them can be fitted to them.
Also, if you have metal spindles, these can be directly screwed into the base rail.
Staircases usually have two strings on either side, and these house the treads and risers. These are the main staircase components.
The first type of string is a’straight string’ also known as the ‘closed string’.
These are fitted against the wall and may actually be the skirting board, which goes all the way up the stairs.
The second string is a cut string, which is shaped and mainly used when the strings are open to view.
The newel post is a structural staircase component, and when you are at the end of the staircase or if there is a change in direction, a newel post will be installed.
These vertical posts are usually longer than your spindles and handrail and help bear the weight of the rest of the staircase.
On top of the newel post can be a newel cap, which is sometimes known as a finial.
The newel cap has a decorative finish and can be a simple flat cap or have a more shaped look by having spikes or balls, for example.
An unusually named staircase component is an apron lining. It is used when you have a gallery or the landing of the stairs is exposed.
This covers the gap between the ceiling and floor and is usually produced from the same material as the stairs to give it a cohesive look.
The riser is the vertical space between one step and the next.
These can be either open or closed and are produced from the same material as the rest of the staircase.
The look of the riser is very important, as this is one of the most visually appealing components of the staircase when you look straight at it.
Along with the riser, the treads are an integral part and the most recognised of the staircase components.
This is the horizontal platform on which a person will step.
The top tread of a staircase, before you step onto the landing, is called a landing nosing; this tread is not as deep as all the others.
The majority of treads are straight; however, when you are turning a corner by 90 or 180 degrees, these become a kite.
A kite is a triangular-shaped tread, and if you have multiples of these, they produce a spiral staircase.
An extended bullnose is a feature on the treads.
The tread extends out slightly and is rounded, giving it a softened appearance.
When it comes to landings on a staircase, there are three types.
The first is the main top landing, which is on the top floor. Not really a staircase component.
You can also have a ¼ landing, which will allow a turn of 90 degrees either to the left or right so you can go up subsequent flights.
The final landing is a ½ landing, which is like the ¼ landing but makes a 180-degree turn.
Telephone: 01423 593 794
Locksley Park
Blind Lane
Tockwith
YORK YO26 7QJ
Opening Times:
Mon to Fri - 9.00am to 5.00pm
Bank Holidays - Closed
Christmas 2025- TBC
Oak By Design is the trading name of:
Oak By Design Ltd.
Reg Number: 04384416
VAT Number: 664 8012 33
Left us a star review
My company has ordered 2 porches with Joanne from oak by design, and have more planned in the future. They've been brilliant from start to finnish. Great communication right through. And the quality of the product is exceptional. Do not hesitate to order.
Working with Oak By Design on our project was a pleasure and we were delighted with the results. Joanne was extremely helpful, quick to answer any questions and generally a great person to deal with! The quality and finish of the products - RSJ covers and Oak Windows & Doors were superb and look great. Would highly recommend working with Oak By Design and would not hesitate to use their services again for future projects!
Excellent customer service. Very friendly. Explained in detail. Product is beautiful. Would recommend. Company sent photos of finished product prior to dispatch to confirm our happiness with their work.
My wife and I recently purchased an oak porch from Oak By Design. We are delighted with the porch and it has been much admired. We did get some help assembling it but everything fitted together perfectly.
I could not recommend Oak By Design more highly. Joanne and the team worked tirelessly to resolve an issue that was the result of my mistake when I ordered the porch. Great customer service.
Having lived with our porch for over 2 years I can honestly say it’s the best addition to our house we ever made. Not only does it look fantastic the quality is outstanding. I love that it keeps the mud out of the hall and provides a seating area to remove muddy boots.
Exceptional service and beautiful flooring. Absolutely delighted with every aspect. Went above and beyond great customer service to meet our needs and timescales.
Great company, always on the end of the phone to talk through design, measurements, fitting. The Oak is very high standard, looks amazing.
Thank you Jo for your assistance and detailed guide every step of the way with my new porch. Very pleased with the finished product, I would highly recommend Jack and his team for installation
Posting on behalf of my Mother in Law, Shirley Abbott "Having planned to shop around, Oak By Design was my first stop. I had no need to look any further. Joanne patiently and professionally guiding me through the confusion of choosing the right flooring. The service and support from the staff was exceptional, efficient and helpful. And - my floor looks amazing!"
We decided to get an oak porch to make our home more attractive and we are so glad we did as it really is beautiful ! Joanne and the Team have been professional, friendly and just a pleasure to deal with ! Thank you so much !!
From the start of our enquiry, the service provided was excellent. Joanne was a great help and the oak porch structure looks fantastic on our new build. It completely changed the look of the house. Very quick delivery could not recommend enough.
Really delighted with the new porch by Oak by Design. It adds a super feature to my converted barn. Thanks to Joanne and the team.
What can I say, Oak By Design have been the most fantastic company to deal with. Joanne was so helpful, friendly and professional. She really seemed to care about our project, which made such a difference. We had 4 oak RSJ covers made and 2 fireplace mantles. The finish is outstanding. Everyone believes they are solid beams, which was just what we wanted. The care and attention this company will give you is 2nd to none and I would highly recommend them. Pictures will follow when we complete our project, thanks again Oak By Design. x
We purchased some engineered oak flooring and oak covers from Oak By Design and couldn't be happier with the finish and quality. They are spot on. Joanne was extremely helpful throughout the whole process and provided plenty of advice when necessary. Thank you
I firstly used oak by design a couple of years ago for an open oak porch. They were extremely helpful and everything was delivered on time to the highest quality. The porch went together with the oak dowels provided and looked great when it was all slated in. They have also supplied me with a oak beam for a fireplace natural random finish and it looks good.
Great service from start to finish, Joanne was great help. Designs were spot on and so happy with the porch. 10/10. Fully recommend.
From start to finish Oak By Design have been incredible, nothing was too much trouble. Our new Oak doors are beautifully made and have really been the icing on the cake to finish our house renovations off. We have also had a fabulous outdoor oak structure with heating and we are very much looking forward to making the most of it in the months ahead. Thank you to the whole team I would throughly recommend.
As the owner of a local joinery business, Robert Davis Joinery, I have had the pleasure of using Oak by Design on several occasions over the last 8 years. They have produced bespoke interior products for me including Oak doors and timber moldings. The staff in the office and the workshop are always very helpful and friendly and the standard of the workmanship and materials are always of a very high quality.
We worked with the team who designed a wonderful porch for our house near Harrogate. It has been an amazing addition. Simple but effective - excellent craftsmanship using authentic materials. We are absolutely delighted with the transformation and everyone who sees the porch says how great it looks. Thanks to all the team at Oak By Design.
Excellent quality workmanship and materials. Very easy and friendly to deal with on the phone. Everything done on time and no problems at all. Will definitely use again next time I need an oak porch or any other oak structures.
Oak by design provided our engineered oak flooring. From our initial meeting and supply of samples to the final delivery we have been provided with excellent service. Carl has been in touch throughout the process and provided updates about the lead time and expected delivery dates. We are delighted with the flooring. Very happy to recommend Oak by design.
From the moment we visited the Oak Design showroom, we knew that we were dealing with a top quality local company. Richard the owner, showed us around his design works with real pride of his product and service offering. Jamie as sales executive has discussed and agreed the options & design with costs to us and we have now implemented the first phase of our home improvement, with more work to follow. We are highly delighted with the finished product and would strongly recommend Oak Design to other interested clients. I also suggest that you pay them a personal visit at the Home Building & Renovation exhibition in Harrogate, as well as their wonderful showroom of Oak Solutions in Tockwith to get a personal guided tour.
Superb! Fantastic! I can’t recommend enough. If you want gorgeous oak use this company. Oak by design made a porch for us and we couldn’t be more happier with it! It’s beautiful! The quality is first rate. Throughout the build Jo kept us informed as to the process of having the oak cut to size and installed. Jo and the team even sent us a lovely oak chopping board! Jack and his team who built it are fabulous! They go the extra mile. We have decided to use oak by design for a kitchen extension project in the future. Thank you oak by design for giving me a gorgeous porch! Charlie x
On behalf of Shears PHG Our customer was looking at having an oak porch built for their property in the West Midlands we got in contact with Joanne at Oak by Design and she was really helpful, always friendly on the phone and polite nothing was too much trouble. Joanne kept us up to date through every stage and our customer is really pleased with the results of the Porch it looks great and we wouldn’t hesitate to use them again in the future
Fantastic service and quality of product. I couldn’t be happier with my Oak porch, which was designed to my specification with the minimum of fuss. Joanne was so helpful and nothing was too much trouble. Incredibly well engineered and looks fantastic. Thank you so much.
We were delighted with our new porch. Right from our initial contact with Joanne at ObD, through the design and the installation by Jack and his team the service has been excellent. We would have no hesitation in recommending ObD and Jack to anyone thinking of a high quality oak porch. Thank you to all involved.
A great company to deal with. Professional from start to finish and always there to assist with any queries. Highly recommended.
Found Oak by Design searching for a new front porch to replace a canopy and knew immediately that this was company for the job and I was not disappointed. I already knew what I wanted and Richard, very patiently, developed my basic requirements, with a number of iterations, into a full detailed design. As I live outside their site working area I decided go for supply only and to install the porch myself. It was delivered as promised and it looked great even on the pallet! It took me a while to fit but it was very satisfying and the result is fantastic. The quality of the aged oak and carpentry of the timbers is excellent. I’m delighted with the porch supplied by Oak by Design - it looks superb.
Fantastic service from start to finish, I would have no hesitation in recommending this company or using them again. Very professional and helpful. Joanne was great in assisting us with choosing both styles and colours of the beams and cladding.
Great personal service to ensure we got what we needed specific to our personal requirements. Quality is outstanding and there was a helping hand there all the way. The porch we ended up with was not cheap but having looked at others the quality of the Oak by design product shines through. Very pleased with the result and the complements from both neighbours and our builders keep coming.
I was sourcing an oak RSJ cover (circa 5m length) for my extension and found Oak by Design on the internet. All of the reviews I could were glowing and so I contacted them......And I'm so glad that I did. Joanne Fisher answered my initial call and she looked after my order from beginning to end - in terms of ensuring that I got exactly what I wanted she/they provided a superb service - everything on time - delivery in to the Peak District to suit when I wanted. The quality of the the RSJ cover is fantastic thick solid oak that matches my oak floor - looks amazing. If you want anything oak I can thoroughly recommend Oak By Design.
My client was looking for ways in which to make his conversion (of an early seventies house into a period family farmhouse) “stand out from the crowd”. whilst maintaining a commercial eye on his expenditure, as the house was being converted for resale profit. Making the choice to meet with Richard and explore possibilities for incorporating some Real solid Oak features into his plans proved to be the making of the project. By taking lots of advice from Richard on both the size and structure of the components we were able to incorporate three key features. The beautiful and bold roof trusses and purlins for the open plan kitchen are simply a joy to behold. The stunning full height gable window which is directly glazed into the large framework can be appreciated from both the the kerbside and of course from within the cosy snug on the ground floor or the amazing first floor main bedroom where we incorporated some additional exposed roof beams just purely for effect. All in all it is fair to say that these significant choices certainly created the wow factor my client was looking for. Having managed to pre sell the property well before completion it in itself demonstrates the benefits of keeping these sorts of real oak features as part of a modern build. I have no hesitation whatsoever is saying that if anyone is looking to get advice and is serious about investing in quality oak products they should have no need to look further than Oak by Design. Thanks again Richard for all your help , guidance and continued support which is a credit to you and the craftsmen you employ.
This is the second time that we have used Oak By Design for oak products and once again we weren’t disappointed. We recently ordered some internal oak doors and from the very start they were a pleasure to deal with. Joanne especially was extremely helpful and friendly, nothing was too much trouble. We were kept updated about the progress of our order. Unfortunately we needed to delay acceptance of the doors for a few weeks and Oak By Design happily agreed to store them in their workshop until we were ready for them. The quality of the doors is very high, they are very well made and finished, far better than any oak doors that you will buy “ off the shelf. “ They are all installed now and look fantastic. I would highly recommend Oak By Design and we will certainly use them again in the future if we require any more oak products. A huge thank you to Joanne and the whole team for a great service and a great product.
Great company. Awesome flooring, we are very, very happy with the outcome. And great price which is always a bonus. Staff knowledgable & efficient.
A first rate service from start to finish. We've used this company in the past for our floor - 40 foot of solid oak! 2 beams and 2 RSJ covers. This time a beam for our new kitchen inglenook and another RSJ cover. More than impressed with the products which more than met our spec. A very friendly and helpful team who I'd recommend to anyone.
I wish I could give more starts!! We looked at many companies before finally choosing Oak by Design. We are so glad we chose them. They were excellent from start to finish. They worked with us to find a workable design that was to our liking. Our door looks amazing (despite the building site that still surrounds it!). Their customer service is of the highest standard, Joanne could not do enough to help us. I would not hesitate to recommend them.
Amazing customer service from beginning to end . My builder was in awe at the quality of the oak porch components. Call them and ask for Joanne - what she doesn’t know isn’t worth knowing! It’s not every day you invest in a “proper” porch so do it right. You’ll definitely be delighted!
Very impressed with Oak By Design. Customer service is fantastic and they were very patient in helping me ensure what I needed was the right size. Photos sent of oak cover before it was sent to me and end product was great. It was also not the most expensive either. Would definitely recommend.
I first used Oak by Design in 2021 for a oak porch, I used them again 2023 for an oak pergola. Both times my clients have been Delighted with the finished product. Both times the product was delivered when stated, everything i needed was on the delivery. Oak by design listened to what I required for both jobs. The quality of the oak is excellent, all joints fit correctly & if I had a problem I only had to ring and speak to them. R Brown Carpentry always recommends Oak by Design when asked about oak structures.
Oak by Design have made 2 oak framed rooms for us, sunroom at the front and and "moonroom" (photo) at the back which encompasses a shower room, work area and storage. They have been helpful at every stage and the outcome is simply brilliant. They make the whole house feel roomier and brighter and are beautiful places to be. GE North Yorkshire
We ordered two bespoke doors and two bespoke porches for our house build from Joanne at OByD. We were specifically delighted with Joanne's attention to detail (and patience! lol) making the overall customer experience excellent. The product was equally fantastic, the product quality was truly beyond our expectations. Joanne is super helpful and knowledgeable, and kept my spirits up throughout our project. We would 100% recommend OByD, and specifically Joanne, for all your standard and bespoke oak requirements. H&D
Found this company by accident whilst passing through Harrogate, but well worth a visit.Great products choice with helpful friendly service. The wooden flooring and beams look great in situ and we are very pleased with the transformed room. Would recommend and use again.
Great service by a friendly professional team, a pleasure to work with. The end result of our oak glazed leisure spa and outdoor kitchen looks fantastic. Great job
