ᐅ How sensitive are painted stair treads?

Hello, we would like a fully white-painted (straight-run) stringer staircase and have already received proposals from the general contractor (GC) and staircase manufacturer.

The GC's standard includes a beech bolt staircase.
The staircase manufacturer’s suggestion is to use ash wood and then paint it completely white, noting that the steps may be prone to scratches.

I have an appointment with the GC in about two weeks and will discuss this topic further then, but what are your experiences? Is it so sensitive that it requires restoration every few years, or is it not that bad? The staircase would come from a reputable local staircase manufacturer with very good reviews, so it is definitely not low quality. Any kind of protective coating on the steps would probably affect the appearance negatively.

If the concerns are too high, we would probably switch to oak steps and leave them unpainted. Visually, however, we prefer a fully white-painted stringer staircase.

May I ask how much your stairs cost? We are also interested in white lacquered stringer stairs (in beech) and steps, as well as a handrail in oak…

I do not know the total costs (general contractor), but the additional price for a beech bolt staircase compared to a white ash stringer staircase is nearly 3,000.

I think you can see this very clearly. We have stringer, post, and mullions in white, and at first, we only hung our jackets on one post. After just a few weeks, small scratches became visible, so we decided against it. I would avoid fully white-painted treads.

Baranej schrieb:

I don’t know the total costs (general contractor), but the extra cost for a beech bolt staircase compared to an ash stringer staircase in white is just under 3,000.

Thank you! From my perspective, the additional cost of around 3,000 seems about right.

This is the design we have in mind... as mentioned, stringers and posts lacquered in white beech, with steps and handrail oiled oak.