How to Install Interior Banisters

Place the newel post in its position at the bottom of the stairs. The newel post is the large post at the banister’s end that supports the entire thing.

Install several bolts through the bottom stair tread or the floor into the newel post’s bottom. Depending on the banister style, the newel post may be resting on either the bottom stair’s tread or directly on the floor. In the latter case, tighten the bolts from the basement.

Tightening the bolts makes the newel post strong and rigid.

Attach the top post to the stair tread, wall or adjoining banister. Which one the top post attaches to depends on the particular stairway’s layout. If the stairway continues to a balcony, the banister that goes up the stairs probably attaches to a horizontal banister that runs along the balcony’s edge.

Install the handrail, bottom rail and spindles between the top post and the newel post. There are several ways of doing this, depending on the banister’s style. If the rails attach to the posts with a mortise and tenon, they need attaching before the upper post is tightened by sliding the tenons into the mortises, and then permanently installing the upper posts. If the posts are hollow and the rails are attached with bolts, tighten the bolt heads inside the posts and then install the removable panel on the posts.