How to Stop Creaking Stairs

By Mark J. Donovan

Do you have stairs that creak and squeak? This is a sure sign that the stair treads are no longer securely fastened to the stair risers. This can happen over time due to the stair treads drying out or warping, the house settling, or just from a lot of use.

If your stairs are covered by carpet the only way to resolve the creaking stairs is to first remove the carpet. After removing the carpet, pre-drill a couple of pilot holes along the line of existing nails on the stair tread and then install some addition screws. You may also want to run a bead of glue over the screw threads before screwing it into the tread for extra support.

If your stair treads are meant to be exposed then if possible try applying glue and screws to the back side of the stair risers and treads, if you can get to them, e.g. via a basement or lower floor. If you cannot get to the backsides of the stair treads, then you can either remove the tread carefully and apply glue and new screws/nails, or add additional screws to the tread. If new screws are added, you will need to pre-drill the holes and then fill in the screw holes.