Install trim between the stairs and the wall

[andreascarlsson]

A picture says more than a thousand words, so I'm attaching an image of how our staircase looks. It's now time to install trim where the staircase meets the wall, and I've been thinking about this for a while.

The problem is that on the right side, the gap between the wall and staircase is at its widest about 32 mm, while on the left and straight ahead it's only a few mm.

I would have been satisfied with a 25 mm quarter-round, but that's not possible since it's too wide on the right side, and having different trims doesn't feel right.

I've considered combining a regular baseboard that's 35 mm wide (or rather tall) and attaching a smaller quarter-round to it. But that might be a bit unnecessarily complicated.
So now I'm thinking about installing a 35 mm quarter-round instead. The downside to that is it's harder to bend (since the staircase isn't straight), and I have to steam it no matter what.

The question is: Is there a clever solution I've missed?

 

[Freilor]

You could always take an unfreshed list and lay it on the platten, and then fit a quarter round to create a pleasant transition against the wall. This way you eliminate the problem of varying distances between the staircase and the wall.

 

[verktygsgurun]

I once had a trim between the staircase and the wall. I put it there after I had renovated at home, wallpapered, sanded down my oak staircase, and oiled it. I thought it would look nice with a trim covering the gap. But it came off quite quickly because the staircase flexes a bit when you walk on it, and the trim creaked against the wall.

 

[andreascarlsson]

Freilor; If I understand you correctly, that's exactly what I've been thinking about. But I think it will be too much work - then I suddenly have two elements that need to be shaped to fit the curve of the stairs. If you look at the upper right corner of the image, you'll see that it will require quite strong forces to keep the trim in place.

Tool Guru; I've thought about that too, and I will only attach it to one element - wall or stairs. Wood is a living material, so you avoid weird stresses that change with the seasons as well.

Hmm... Maybe I should skip the quarter round and just go with a flat trim...?

 

[verktygsgurun]

Freilor; If I understand you correctly, that's exactly what I've been thinking about. But I think it will be too much work - then suddenly I have two elements that need to be shaped according to the curves of the stairs. If you look at the upper right corner of the image, you can see that it will require quite strong forces to keep the molding in place.

Tool guru; I've thought about that too, and will only attach it to one element - wall or stairs. Wood is indeed living, so you avoid weird stresses that change with the seasons too.

Hmm... Maybe I should skip the Quarter-round molding and just go with a flat molding...?

Mine was only attached to the stairs. Leave a couple of mm gap against the wall is my advice.

 

[Freilor]

There, I probably read like a rake Then I think you should do as VG says, only one on the splash but a minor gap to prevent squeaking complaints.