Hallways, staircases and landings in West Hunsbury (NN4) are decorated by Dean, who works from Northampton a couple of miles to the north-east. He brings the stair platforms and staging tall stairwells need, keeps the stairs usable during the job and quotes free.
The tall stairwell problem on the bigger detached houses
West Hunsbury’s four- and five-bed detached houses, the kind listed in Fienesgate, Aviemore Gardens, Summerfields and Bramble End, often have an open stairwell rising straight from the entrance hall to a galleried landing. The wall above the stairs can run the full two storeys. It is the single hardest wall in the house to reach, and it is usually the reason owners call a decorator rather than do the hallway themselves.
A stepladder balanced on a tread is not safe here. We set up an adjustable stair platform that sits level across the steps, and on the tallest stairwells a small tower or staging boards spanning from landing to stairs. Setting up takes time, so on a big hallway it is worth doing the ceiling, the high wall and any coving in one visit. Smoke alarms, light pendants and the landing window reveal are all in that same high zone, and we work around them carefully rather than leaving unpainted patches behind fittings.
A house that keeps running while we work
Most homes here are owner-occupied family houses, and the stairs are the only route to the bedrooms. We plan the job so there is always a clear path up and down. The platform is positioned to leave a walkway, dust sheets are taped so they can’t slip underfoot, and woodwork on the treads and handrail is done in stages so one side is always dry.
Practical details help too. Detached houses on the estate usually have a driveway and often a double garage, so the van and the access kit can stay on the plot rather than in a narrow cul-de-sac. Inside, we start at the top of the house and work down to the front door, so the entrance is the last area to be finished and the first to be cleared.
Light, colour and the woodland edge
Plenty of West Hunsbury houses back onto mature trees, whether the woodland around Hunsbury Hill Country Park or the green spaces near Ladybridge Park and Wootton Brook. A stairwell window on a shaded or north-facing wall lets in cool, greenish light, and a white or grey that looked clean on a colour card can look cold and flat on a two-storey wall.
- Warmer off-whites and soft stone shades hold up better under shaded light.
- A slightly darker shade below a dado rail, or on the lower part of a long wall, hides the scuffs from bags and pushchairs that hallways collect.
- A scrubbable matt on the walls and a durable satin on spindles and handrails keeps the stairwell wipeable.
Before committing to a colour across such a large area, we suggest painting a sample on the actual stairwell wall and looking at it in the morning and late afternoon.
Balustrades, spindles and the landing gallery
A galleried landing means a long run of spindles and newel posts, and on houses from the 1980s and 1990s these are often softwood under several coats of yellowed gloss. Each spindle is sanded and primed before the top coats go on, and that hand work is often the slowest part of the whole job. Some owners keep a varnished hardwood handrail and paint only the spindles, which we can mask and protect.
You can read how we approach stairwells generally, including access equipment and timings, on our hallway, stairs and landing decorating page. For the other work we cover on the estate, visit the West Hunsbury area page.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
