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Stair carpet rod holders have a habit of miraculously disappearing! You remove your stair carpet runner bars to have your stair runner cleaned or replaced and amazingly there is always at least one missing when you come to put them back in place…
Likewise, it always seems to be the antique stair rod brackets that are missing when you find a complete set of old brass stair rods in your loft.
Don’t despair! You can buy stair rod brackets (in pairs) without the carpet rods and they come in a variety of sizes and finishes.
Measuring up for replacement stair carpet rod holders
Cylindrical stair rods
Antique stair rods tend to be different in size from those made today. So, make sure you buy the correct replacement brackets that best match up with your old stair rods.
• Measure the diameter of all your stair rods and check they are the same.
• If you have any old rod brackets left, check they are all working OK before deciding how many replacements you need.
• Check whether you have rods for a runner carpet or whether they are simply stair bars which are designed to go from one stringboard (wood side of staircase) right across the staircase to the other stringboard and are for fitted carpets. See Fitting Stair Rods to understand the difference and choose the correct carpet rod holders for your particular stairrods: Runner brackets, Front Fix brackets or Side Fix brackets.
• Stair rod brackets are made today in 3 main sizes: 12.5mm, 16mm and 19mm. Choose the closest to the diameter of your rod. Antique stair rods tend to be slightly different in size to modern stair rods and sometimes you will have to choose a bracket size slightly larger than the diameter of your rods.
• Request foam inserts if the bracket size is slightly too large for your antique stair rods. These stop the rods from rattling and moving in the brackets when installed.
• Choose a finish that most closely matches the finish of your rods. Most antique stair rods are made of brass but have tarnished and got damaged with time. If you like this antique brass look then it would be best to choose either an antique brass or antique bronze finish for your brackets. If you plan to polish up your brass rods, then the polished brass finish will probably look the best.
Triangular stair rods
• Traditional triangular rods we find are normally slimmer than the stair rod brackets made today. The only triangular brackets we have found are those supplied by Stairrods (UK) for their Royale and Tudor stair rods, which are solid brass and come in two styles: Runner brackets and Front Fix.
• If you have any old rod brackets left, check they are all working OK before deciding how many replacements you need.
• Measure the front face of your stair rod, i.e. the side that will face outwards and be visible. You will normally find this side has a different and better finish than the other two faces, which face inwards towards the stairs and are not visible.
• The triangular stair carpet rod holders available today are suitable for rods with an outward face that measures up to around 2.2cm and they have chamfered corners.
• If your rods are more slender, then request foam inserts when ordering – these will prevent your antique rods from rattling and moving in the new brackets.
• Choose a finish that most closely matches the finish of your rods. Most antique stair rods are made of brass but have tarnished and got damaged with time. If you like this antique brass look then it would be best to choose either an antique brass finish for your brackets. If you plan to polish up your brass rods, then the polished brass finish will probably look the best.
Final tip
It can be worth buying some spare stair carpet rod holders just in case your existing old brackets fall apart when you come to install them – it can happen! And if you are really unlucky and have lost one of the antique brass stair rods, then we can help too.