DIY Staircase Makeover With DIY LED Lighting // Renovation

FREE GUIDE. Download and start using my EASY 4-step process to create your BEST-SELLING CNC projects, today! www.andybirdbuilds.com/free-g...
Our stairs were in desperate need of some renovation. We replaced the old, worn carpet stair treads with new Ash, hardwood treads Then we kicked it up a notch with completely DIY dusk to dawn automatic LED lighting.
Subscribe
rb.gy/vt2lpa
Social Media
Instagram - rb.gy/lkhhf3
Facebook - rb.gy/yeuahv
Check out my website
www.andybirdbuilds.com/
Ordering supplies below supports my channel!
Tools and Supplies:
Photocell - amzn.to/3dzY64D
LED's - amzn.to/3yZoyOR
Wire - amzn.to/2H868Wm
Sprayer - amzn.to/3nVhT3b
Epoxy - amzn.to/2Iz3jLe
Tinted CA Glue - amzn.to/3k7gQL5
Sand Paper - amzn.to/3k7gQL5
Support Andy Bird Builds Channel
Visit: www.andybirdbuilds.com/
Get The Tools & Gear I Use: www.andybirdbuilds.com/tools-...
Get CNC Files To Make Cool Stuff: bit.ly/3jJfRpO
Tools To Help You Make Money With Your CNC
Get Andy Bird Builds Bits - www.andybirdbuilds.com/cncbit...
Join The CNC Inner Circle - www.andybirdbuilds.com/shop/c...
Take My Online Course - www.andybirdbuilds.com/hobby-...
Grab your project files here - www.andybirdbuilds.com/shop?c...
Interested in getting started in CNC, but don't know where to start?
Download my FREE guide to help you get started - www.andybirdbuilds.com/free-g...
Don't know what machine to start with? This was my first CNC and I have zero regrets! shop.carbide3d.com/andybirdbuilds
A great way to support Andy Bird Builds is to purchase through affiliate links, you get what you need and I may get a kickback!
#andybirdbuilds #leds #woodworking

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Do you like LED lights? Check this project out kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJvbm6BtgamNaK8

[@mattclements1348]

I saw the ky emblem, I'm from across the river Cincinnati, great areas to live

[@anatolyantonov9512]

LEDs are cringe, fluorescent lights are based

[@stevenchadwick8898]

@@mattclements1348 is your dad going for you and I y

[@CCCC-tq8yo]

where

[@yekaesh]

The only thing I would recommend is putting the LED’s in an enclosed channel that has a frosted cover so when you’re standing at the bottom of the stairs the lights look seamless rather than individual dots

[@zureao]

Right! Also, inside of some aluminum beams to better transfer heat and increase the LEDs lifespan.

[@edgarcmtz]

Yeah they’re called diffusers and are super important IMO

[@TheoneandonlyEETFUK]

Nice

[@cameronrandell9475]

I was just about to comment the same thing. Aluminium channeling with frosted diffuser makes it look a lot better

[@xxteep]

@@zureao led lights don’t really produce much heat at all.. that’s kinda the whole point of them.. not a horrible idea tho

[@TheNotoriousNemo]

I dont even have a second floor, but ima put stairs somewhere!! :D

[@Lexibeez8907]

😂

[@paulp5487]

😂😂😂

[@ThelordismyShepherd-d5605]

Amen I am with you!!!!

[@notta3d]

hahaha!

[@kittyeaton4009]

Lol

[@4000mack]

The fact that you said "what I would do different...." Honesty about a project you did for your home it's what people really need to hear. Not the, I did it perfect the first time "production." Thanks man, I learned something.

[@npursuit]

I agree.

[@mikepoint4983]

Mad respect to carpenters , I’m a mechanic and there is no way I could do anything like that watching you take a piece of wood and give it life is truly AMAZING . Keep up the great work .

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Wow, thank you

[@JuanCruz-hd4ls]

Feel like I have say that piece of wood had life already. But what he did with that piece of wood was amazing

[@glennbengtson5379]

No need to be sad for that, im sure you have your magics with mechanic stuff instead

[@MowTheLawnWithMe]

I wish I had have checked to see if I had a wood shop, saws, or any materials for that matter before I ripped out my carpet. I've told the kids that the staples are there to keep them from slipping.

[@kingxray8719]

Lmao, I used to do that to I would search up how-to videos then do them along with the video.

[@lenaely6146]

😹😹

[@npursuit]

Lol

[@marklawrence343]

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha funny

[@shaineanderson8669]

Lol

[@DaddyBear3000]

Looks brilliant. All I would say is that for anyone else thinking of doing this, get the aluminium channel and diffuser for the LED strips. It acts as a heat sink, extending the life of the LED’s, stops the strips from falling down over time and the diffuser spreads the light really nicely.

[@kathyusa-iowa5137]

Will that also help if you ever need to replace the LED strip? Sounds like it would.

[@jonanderson5137]

I do these installs, Karl is spot on.

[@codyjewell1460]

Just a tip for future projects or anyone trying this. You can buy diffuser rails for pretty cheap online that you put the lights in and has a plastic cover to make it so you can't see the individual LED's in the reflection of the flooring or when standing below them.

[@rizwanwali4223]

Great input!

[@poppyshoessp]

Thank you!

[@Dont370]

Nice carpentry work. As electricians what we do is we just use 16 or 18-4 wire because if one wire breaks, you can use another one in the cable. We also only pull it out from the right hand corner right under the bullnose of the steps. Once we hook up the LED strips we push the rest of the wire in through the little hole that it comes out of. The way you guys did it is probably a lot nicer. But it does take a lot of work.

[@kyleroudabush6757]

I would probably put the LEDs in a diffuser, that way you will have better light spread

[@R_Forde]

I wonder how well the led "neon' would work?

[@synapticbit]

I was wondering about this very thing. Looking up the steps allows you to see the individual leds of higher steps... with a diffuser, it won’t be quite so raw... right?

[@kyleroudabush6757]

@@synapticbit correct, the best part is with a diffuser you can also switch out strips of leds easier without making it permanently attached.

[@daddydaughteroff-gridadven9958]

What is a diffuser?

[@ChristianLappinOFFICIAL]

@@daddydaughteroff-gridadven9958 something like this www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072VZSQ3P basic aluminum channel which you could adjust the channel for. Also available in different angles so if you wanted lights down not out the channel would do that.

[@ostaz007]

So thats what the stairway to heaven looks like !!

[@northeasthardytropicals541]

Nice 👍🏼

[@uranumbnuts]

Just a tip, you can use frosted acrylic strips, over top of the lights to help diffuse the lights and limit led hotspots. Nice work on the stairs though, they look great!

[@JoseFloresEC]

shoulda gone for rgb too, instead of just white imo

[@jamesofallthings3684]

​@@JoseFloresECOf course Jose wants obnoxious lights on his stairs instead of something classy.

[@zacharybartels6856]

My experience with those LED strips is that the clip-on power connectors on the end eventually corrode just a tiny bit, causing dimming and a little flickering (usually after about 18 months or so). Opening the clip and reconnecting generally fixes it, but the way you've glued everything down will probably make this difficult to address.

[@psode27]

Sounds like I'll be using a little dielectric grease!

[@davelevee7385]

Love seeing the CNC at work in the background!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

I was wondering if someone would catch that😀

[@npursuit]

I saw that and went OH HE HAS A SHOP SHOP and made me question if this was going to be truly DIY.

[@davelevee7385]

I love watching stair carpet getting torn up ☺️

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

I agree, demo is so much fun!

[@dirtydan603]

I used to do this type of stuff a lot at work building booths/exhibits for tradeshows. For anyone wanting to do this, just know the adhesive strip on the LEDs is not strong enough. We would paint the dado white to reflect light which would also help the adhesive stick better. But still need to use silicone or glue to hold them in.

[@secretwoodproject]

After watching this my only feedback that I am qualified to give is...Great Job! I love the look.

[@ClintChance]

Makes me wish I had stairs in my home. This turned out beautifuly! I'm sure the spousal approval factor was near 💯. Nice work !

[@FLWVideosYT]

That is impressive! Looks incredible

[@TronApostle]

I used to watch ur pogo vids last year! Covid made me stop playing :/ but you were my favorite due to how informative and straight to the point you were!

[@anthonysotillio5965]

I have LEDs in my house too but I rather not hear the ghosts more clearly by taking away the carpet

[@clawskitt-3841]

I used to watch you play Pokémon go too until I got addicted to Pokémon shuffle game instead haha

[@vnybjerg]

FLW Videos it looks like an entrace to a stripclub

[@Clayton178]

This is gotta be the tackiest staircase build ever. He could have used white ceramic or anything! But he uses LEDS. That's like putting a big spoiler on a car...🤦‍♂️

[@MellowMediaDesign]

A really cool trick for dealing with the seems is to work your way bottom to top, riser then tred, etc. And on the bottom of the riser put a really small chamfer to create a reveal that is consistent. Looks super sharp, only downside is you cant paint the risers as easily as you did. When i did my house I prepainted outside and then caulked and touched up the nail holes.

[@clevername4781]

Nice. Never even crossed my mind

[@merrittorius]

Really cool guys. That Ash being repurposed is a beautiful thing. The gap in the seams would be closed up by using a tread template or gauge. Im not an expert but building one to get the angles correct helped me on my staircase immeasurably. Great work.

[@mattypants]

Looks great! I'm all about any project that tears out carpet, worst thing in the world to have in your home.

[@dalondabaker2121]

Mee too..carpet is played out and nasty

[@mattypants]

@@dalondabaker2121 I absolutely agree with you! We flip houses as a family side business, laminate flooring has become my best friend. I highly recommend it, especially in place of nasty carpet. Tile is great also, just takes some skill and special equipment. Everyone breathes so much better in our primary residence since we ditched any signs of carpeting.

[@vietnamese_jesus6377]

Amen brother ! Fuck them carpet

[@hbahena24]

Watch out for cheap laminate flooring it’ll kill you with fumes

[@Briluvr]

Carpet is very comfortable and keeps a house quiet. There are some very luxurious carpets out there that have a great texture. I have all wood floors in my house, which looks great and has a beautiful glow, but carpet is the most comfortable to me.

[@davidloveii6969]

That looks great!! Ridiculously cheap home upgrade.

[@abhimanyuchauhan5339]

DIY ...and then he brings his friend for help ...greatttt..👏🏼

[@supreme84x]

I hope to do this one day. I would add a smart controller for a few things. 1. A noise sensors, for when my dog barks, it would make the lights turn red like star trek "red alert". I'd also want it connected to my door, for when the doorbell rings it flashes yellow, or when I get a phone call it would flash blue. Those sort of things.

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

🤣🤣🤣 This would be awesome. You should do it!

[@MrHandpipeman1]

Love this idea... as a guy who has done way too many treads and risers I would however suggest cuting a slight bevel on contact edges and using a tread jig for tight fitment.

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thanks Chris, that makes sense.👍

[@mehmetrumidemir1534]

Imagine walking on these strairs but they are carpeted with white soft material😮‍💨😮‍💨 strair way to heaven!!!

[@KP4life353]

Excellent job. And thanks for going back and saying what you would do differently.

[@JoshMakesStuff]

Fantastic project Andy, they look really great.

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thank you so much. That means alot!

[@philipdileo3750]

That’s a great idea, looks wonderful ! Hell, I want it in my house. But let’s be honest it’s no DIY weekend project.

[@kaypee65]

I'm redoing stairs in my house and needed to add stair skirts before I did the treads and risers. It's like 9456 steps, so definitely not a weekend project!

[@nathan7627]

@@kaypee65 jesus is house a skyscraper? jesus lol

[@kaypee65]

@@nathan7627 I swear, every time I do something a new item lands on the list. Today's item is that my tread covers aren't quite deep enough so now I have to go and buy quarter round. Which will of course have to be measured, cut, placed, and painted. I feel like I'm never going to finish.

[@gaylemcgee2221]

The grain in the ash wood steps is so beautiful! Awesome job guys!

[@asepos]

Very nice. I’ve been looking for good ideas for redoing my lower stairs coming up into my newly renovated kitchen I did this summer. This is perfect!

[@chriswykes2319]

Absolutely stunning.

[@drollmichael]

This video showed up just in time. I'm about to redo our stairs, might have to add the lights now.

[@dilligaf2386]

Putting the tred in first will keep it in place as well. Looks cool

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thats what I was thinking. Thank you!

[@joeg.1119]

Gr8t work those LEDs look amazing... 👍👍👍👍

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thanks 👍

[@KNACPUREROCK]

I’m building the stairs right now, then I need to buy a matching house!!!

[@Peter_Riis_DK]

The LED strips is a stellar idea.

[@stevenshook3348]

....till they burn out/malfunction. My neighbor did this exact project to his stairs about 5 or 6 years ago and two of the treads now have no lighting because their LED strips no longer function.

[@Peter_Riis_DK]

​@@stevenshook3348 That's a problem. Nevertheless its still a very good idea to light the stairs like this.

[@stainsinunderwear1877]

My biggest takeaway is the jointer jig for the table saw. What a game changer that is!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Yes, it sure is!

[@dylangarrett7327]

The staircase of the future

[@CoffeyCustomBuilds]

You absolutely KILLED THIS! Looks so good dude.

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

I appreciate that bro!👊

[@stef-dog2055]

Wow great work. Underrated channel. I’m so used to clicking on these and seeing people take the easy way out most of the time. But your attention to detail is there. Great job.

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thank you for watching!

[@goodintentions1302]

Ripping out the old carpet is so satisfying!

[@hattrick8152]

Awesome look love it

[@waterboy540]

Now ill be able to see all the dust bunnies and dog hair collected at the corner of those treads

[@eskriu]

Welcome to reality

[@Helmuesi911]

I did lightning on my stairs.. I never turn them on because of that. Dust accumulates so quickly.

[@ks77157]

Love them ❤️

[@MrDSmith]

This is AWESOME!! I have 16 steps about to get this same treatment thanks to this great video 💡🛠📐👷‍♂️

[@npastran90]

I’m glad you mentioned it treads first then risers on top so you can blind nail

[@sujalaggrawal5481]

It would have looked more awesome if they used RGB lights. But this also looks awesome.

[@3ddiy]

Looks great man! Love the walk through with the LED’s

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

My wife said, I didn't do my toe nails!🤣 I said it was dark and no one would see them!

[@AsianInvasions]

Creaky stairs, though. Great idea!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thanks!

[@leightonsullivan3552]

Shabby sheik mixed with techno 😎

[@Stevethelightingguy]

Buy a high quality LED tape for permanent installs and size the transformer 40% larger than the actual power draw. It keeps them from overheating.

[@reggie7250]

Speaking as a stage production guy, I love this!!!

[@_BLacKWaTeR_]

Pretty awesome man

[@JamesMadeKY]

Super cool way to “elevate” a rather boring part of a home. By the way, that ash looks great!!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

I see what you did there! Thanks!

[@jonmunday8963]

You definately just earned yourself a sub with this video!! Idk how I stumbled upon this but I'm glad I did because I'm about 2 to 3 months away from doing our floors and I wanted to do something special with the stairs to surprise my wife and I didn't know WHAT to do, but I do now, and I thank you very very much for sharing🙏🙏However I am a little on the upset side because you just made my wife happier in 10 minutes and 37 seconds then I have in 5 years🤣🤣🤣🤣 But don't worry I'll still subscribe, you better watch it tho buddy cause I got my eye on you 👁😂🤺

[@Trendsetta68]

Beautiful !!!!!

[@charliesharp6450]

Y’all don’t know what diy means. This is craftsmanship!!!! Good job dude

[@veracity91]

imagine having 5 kids each taking on a skill in the trades and maksing a whole family unit building houses with no outside help. man that would be the dream family Kid #1 - Electrician Kid #2 - Metal work and Welder Kid #3 - Carpenter Kid #4 - Stone Mason & Concreter Kid #5 - computer programming Parents - Accountants & Managers :)

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

#goals

[@sugarcubes7320]

I'm supposed to be sleeping but this is more interesting

[@curtwilliams2606]

Now that’s What I call a staircase. Can’t wait til I get a house 🙂

[@AldentheBlue]

I was pretty satisfied with the beginning where they remove the bane of all existence. Otherwise known as carpet. But that is a hell of a makeover.

[@independentinstallations8419]

Using a quality polyurethane adhesive to attach your treads and risers will ensure a solid and quiet stairway free of pops and squeaks that result from using mechanical fasteners in wood with the season changes. We still shoot a few small brads in risers just too hold them still as adhesive sets up but the difference in the long run can be both heard and felt as you walk up them. You'll also cut way down on having holes to fill just be careful not to get adhesive on any wood that will be getting stained. Nice project though

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thanks for the tip

[@jonathanworkman5184]

That turned out really well! It didn’t look too difficult to do either! Will need to remember that for the next time I have a house with stairs.

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thanks! It wasn't too difficult but took way longer than I expected. But, so do all my other projects😂

[@wildncrazylife3570]

Excellent job.

[@RealBlueLady]

I think the lights look great the way they are!

[@doyoueatrocks]

Just doing diligence on my first house and I will do those maybe before I tackle the bathroom. Cheers

[@matachendra5490]

Wow when across this vid and made me amazed! Those hard work really payed of, so beautiful!

[@sealoftheliving4998]

This reminds me of Tom and Jerry. When Tom pull the carpet along with the Piano and slam to Tom 😁😁😁😄😄😄😃😃

[@reneefuller8595]

I want these stairs!!!

[@vettebecker1]

This is a very cool project, great job

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thanks for watching!

[@SBN-er4tq]

Nice one! I have been thinking about this project for sometime and now after watching your video I get real motivation! :) your LED staircase looks absolutely fab!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@andrecomanigault]

I dont know why your video showed up on my feed.. but it had me a little interested.. Awesome job.. I am now a subscriber 😂

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thats fantastic!

[@joeleone6276]

This looks great, and simpler to install than I imagined. I would have tried to add a diffuser as well. I see many others have commented the same. That being said, it's still great!

[@shonda1love]

Your WORK IS FABULOUS!!!

[@bungumsays]

In lighting, it's a no-no to see the individual leds. They should be diffused

[@SaltyStones]

Ok

[@cookiesontoast9981]

Well.. To you it's a "no no" This guy obviously doesn't care and is happy with what he's got.

[@tintshady2049]

@@cookiesontoast9981 he's also happy caulking the giant gaps on the sides of the risers and steps instead of taking the time to cut them to fit flush...so what's your point?

[@cookiesontoast9981]

@@tintshady2049 My point is that not everyone is obsessed with getting DIY house things perfect.. These things bother you but to the majority of people no one will notice.

[@dembrowi_n_c.5111]

@@cookiesontoast9981 as a perfectionist when it comes to DIY projects you're unfortunately right. People are oblivious to true craftsmanship.

[@Moose1776]

One thing i would of done differently is to wire the LEDs in a way that you can replace them easily in the future if they go out. The way you did it, the stair has to get ripped out to access the wires. I think one of those white tubes for wires would of worked well running along the stairs

[@adassociates8235]

This is a pro job, not easy, impossible job for any typical home owners😅😇

[@brittanycosta2660]

I am probably the only person that prefers the carpet lol 🙃

[@trulyhappy8855]

Really interesting way to do it, leaving the old treads on. Saves some time as long as it doesn’t make it too tall! I also like the plywood riser trick, never would have thought of that. You have yourself a new sub my friend!

[@simoncoe3187]

Bottom step too tall and top step too short, may fail building regs in some places

[@NikolaR99]

I love how everything is way easier to do in Usa than it is in Europe. This is almost imposible to to in my house due to the stairs beeing made out of concrete. You can't find a house in Europe with the insides made out of wood like in this house. But, the video is still very intresting and entertaining to watch, even though it has no use for me :)

[@bobgoldman4404]

You can't find a house in Europe with the insides made out of wood like in this house. you`re shure about this one ? Because thats just wrong.

[@germanjesus]

I gotta say you did an amazing job

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Thank you for the kind words!

[@sdfasgagfafgvav]

One thing I would add at the end would be some diffuser paper over the LED strips so that you don't see individual lights from the bottom of the stairs. It looks great, but that added touch is what separates cheap looking LED lights from seamless high end stair lighting. That being said this looks amazing!

[@skipast75]

I did something similar and used an outdoor dusk-dawn plug. Now they turn on automatically when the sun goes down and turn off when the sun comes up.

[@makingcookingfixing]

Pretty cool project! Always something I wanted to do, however, I don't have access behind the stairs for the wiring, I've never figured out how to do the wiring from the side we see of the stairs without seeing the wires..

[@toufikticherafi4880]

Omg it look cool in the end

[@getrekt427]

Now something for my bunk bed stairs

[@nirmal6632]

Another one on the long list of things to do that won't get done 😂

[@fuupdaass275]

I would've made a way to remove bad sections when those cheap leds go out

[@MasteringHow-To]

That’s gorgeous. Wow

[@randomrebuilds]

Perfect timing as I'm about to do my stairs! Thanks!

[@stuartweatherburn8809]

Rather than doing the risers first or treads first as you alluded to at the end of the video, I would start at the bottom firstly with a riser and then tread then move to the next step and again install riser and then tread and so on and so forth to the top, thus being able to keep the joins tighter than the other methods!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

That makes sense. Thank you!

[@MrWeddingPhotography]

Nice job. From my experience, it won’t be long before the sticky backing of the led strip gives and they fall down unless you secured with an alternative method.

[@MrWeddingPhotography]

@BlueLine Racing must have missed that

@@MrWeddingPhotography 4:36

[@flyingwhiteindian]

@BlueLine Racing I think he says that before he realised they were self backing. But yes, additional glue would be wise to supplement the self backing

[@wilburosgoodwormsley]

Thats why they suggested hot glue but have fun replacing them!

[@jeromy2886]

Man they do look sooo good

[@kennethblackburn8756]

Randomly ran across this. But I saw the door sign. Shout outs from Kentucky. Great work!

[@AndyBirdBuilds]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@hemitj]

Awesome project! How did you run the wires from the power, controller to each individual step?

[@bobbyhood214]

I'm interested in this also. Trying to determine if they were wired in sequence or to each step from a controller

[@redakumaproduction]

Step 1.. have 10 000$ in tools ventilation etc..🤣 thats said..amazing vidéo Thanks alot for the share !!great stair !!

[@adrianmacias4229]

That looks so cool, I will look into doing it on my basement stairs.

[@alexissmith5693]

Hell yeah great job guys👏 I love home projects. Especially diy.