gmicken

Good luck and please have someone help you with a phone. I also like to reuse old house parts and if I can't get them for free, I will buy what i need frome a place in Lancaster PA, They save alot of good things from the burn pile. I am building a dining room table from 200 year old roof boards. It has been a challenge, but its worth it. Good luck.

nealtw

If the stringers are cut into wall studs, walk away. If they are more like modern stairs removal will be easy enough. They will be well built and take a lot of abuse. You will have to remove paster above and below in order to get you sawsall in there. Remove the bottom riser or kick. Nail a block in front of each stringer so it can't slide when you cut it loose. It will have nails into each stud on both sides and will be attached to the rim joist at the top step. Once you have it loose add 2x4 to the studs under stringers.
Remove the blocks that are holding it in place and let it slide. Or more likely you will have to pull like mad. I would bet 150 to 200 lbs total.

1victorianfarmhouse

Not sure what happened to the post I made a while ago on this, but I've been known to fall asleep at the 'puter and not send something out. When I wake up, the computer is off and all is forgotten.

Basically, what happened with this issue was that when I started to work on trying to disassemble the staircase, there were two main problem areas. First, access to the underside of the staircase was extremely limited, as the basement stairs were below, and there were cabinets built in on the upper landing, making it extremely difficult to access the underside.

Above, the stair treads were full of hidden nails going in several directions, probably due to efforts to quiet creaks and squeaks. To get the treads off, I would have had to really rip them up.

So, after spending the better part of a day going nowhere, I decided it would be better to just bite the bullet and buy new treads and risers when the time comes.

I greatly appreciate all the insight and thoughts!

vince