5 Easy Steps Of Fixing A Wobbly Newel Post
Some of the newel posts are composed of two parts: the newel base and a separate pegged newel post affixed into the base. Intermittently, general wear and tear can split the epoxy used to bond the post, which can make the post wobble. As soon as you find out that the stair post is wobbling, you need to fix this problem immediately. You can simply replace the post, but this can be a difficult & costly process and an easier and cheaper way is to simply repair it. If in case your newel post becomes loose, then you can easily tighten or repair them yourself by going through the below-mentioned steps carefully:
- First of all, drill into the uppermost part of a newel base within 70mm of the top of the base in order to make sure that the screw enters the newel post peg.
- The next step is to select a good-quality no 10 or no 12 countersink pilot drill bit so that you can easily drill a hole for the screw to go into. This, in turn, will stop the wood from breaking or cracking and permitting you to cover the screw head with an appropriate wood pellet. The pellet should complement & suit the newel post timber. In order to have a tidy & clean finish, it is best to keep your two holes in line.
- The screw that you are going to use should be approximately two-thirds the width of the newel post. This will make sure that the screw doesn’t extend beyond the other side of the post when installed. It is highly recommended to use a 5.0 x 70mm or 6.0 x 70mm screw in order to attach a 90mm wide newel post to a 90mm newel base.
- If possible, place or fix the screws in the side of the newel base that is slightly noticeable on the stairs. When you drill your hole, it should be deep enough to install your wood cover pellet.
- Tap the wood pellets into the hole that your screw installed or fixed into place. For an easier finish, you can mask around the swelling pellet and then sand it down gradually as long as it is as close to the newel base surface as possible. You can then rigorously match the finish using a small paintbrush.
The pellet may still be noticeable, to a small degree, however, this is one of the best ways of doing the job if you are not comfortable matching the finish of the newel base. The majority of the finishes change over time and you can always cover or hide around your pellets and give them a little sand later in order to match the finish. Sanding every side of the newel base will be a tricky task in order to put together into an existing finish compared to the heads of your two pellets.