Large gap between stairs and wall

[Nickopolaidis]

Hi everyone, complete newbie to this forum but I’m hoping someone can advise me on a little problem I’m facing.

So after seven years of being in my new build I’m finally getting around to repaint the skirting boards but the stairs are proving a bit tricky. Ever since I’ve been here there have been these big cracks between the bottom of the plasterboard and the stair stringer that seeming we’re once glued together but have split - not at the original join but about 1cm or so up the plasterboard.

Removing the cracked areas has left me with a large gap between the bottom of the wall and the stringer that I’m not sure how to go about fixing. In some places only the visible part of the plasterboard remains meaning it looks less worse than it actually is.

And once fixed, how do I ensure it doesn’t crack again?

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

 

[KenGMac]

Nickopolaidis, good evening.

Can I suggest that you consider fitting some Quarter round timber molding, on to the top of the existing stringer, such molding is generally easily available in 15,mm or 20.mm

If you do not fancy the above? there are other moldings available, in differing designs.

Reason i suggest a timber molding is that any sort of a plaster patch repair will be very obvious, if you do opt for a molding and carefully choose the correct depth of timber molding, the timber will in effect mask any plaster infill needed.

Now for fixing the molding? can I suggest you consider [if possible] gluing and pinning the timber to the wall? why, because there is a good chance that the timber stringer will "move" but the plasterboard will not? can you see if there are any timber vertical studs, if so fix into them, they will be easy to find [if present] use a torch or, a thin blade in the gap above the stringer should locate them if indeed they are there??

Do you have access to the underside of the stair?

Ken

 

[foxhole]

Top of stairs often finished with a trim as mentioned by Ken .Stairs will alway move especially new builds.

 

[JohnD]

Sometimes you can use a trim to conceal non-power cables such as phone, aerial or LAN

I lean towards a non-permanent fixing, so you can reposition if the gap opens or closes up a bit

 

[Nige F]

Scotia is a useful trim