mosaic08 wrote:i do have a pretty handy father-in-law, however, this is going in a critical area where not having it installed could really hurt someone.... i'll have to think about it some more... thanks for your responses...
I am in the midst of doing a write up on this with help from a very well experienced installer we work with. Do note that there will be varying applications, in which you have to determine what would be good. To further help you in your decision making, if you have someone that is handy to do the work, by all means give it a shot. We like to stay on the side of caution, and try just one step. If the rug is not stable (and I mean it has to be on the stair very, very well) don't continue. I can give you some tips, but PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK. I won't take responsibility for tack holes in your stairs, poor installation or other.
I wish you the best of luck, and would recommend a couple of things. Most importantly, you're going to want a very strong electric staple gun which can be rented at a local home depot, and you want to make sure the installation is done very tight. You'll want to rent a carpet kicker to help keep pressure on the rug although it's not necessary, it does help to prevent tiring. However, using the kicker can really only be implemented if you are installing bottom to top. You also need some padding which will get cut for each step.
Machine made rugs are usually installed from the bottom step up. You can do the same for a hand knotted rug, but you may have a different area you want it to land. Like I said before, the landing area can be determined just by cutting the machine made rug. For a hand knotted carpet, you have to plan carefully where you want it to land, and decide accordingly where you will want to start the rug. You can always tuck the fringe behind the runner need be.
You will have to secure the rug very, very, well. You have to use a bunch of tacs - somewhere in the vicinity of 2 dozen under the lip, and 2 dozen into the corner where the step meets the rise. You may find some stair rods help to keep the rug in place, and you'll need it especially for this thicker type of Kerman rug. You can rent duo-fast staple guns at Home Depot, the box of staples you'll need 5418-D the staples are 9/16ths long and the crown is 3/16ths. They're the flat crowns without a peak. As for the types of To be sure the evidence of installation is not seen, you want to tack underneath the lip of the stair, and be sure to bury the stapler into the pile shifting the wool to the side so you staple the base of the rug as well as possible. If there are moldings, you can go directly into this, or below the molding into the top of the riser. Try it out on one step, see if it works. Tug at the rug, and if you see it releases quick, that's no good. Make sure it's in there, and if it doesn't work on the first step, don't continue. Installation of a stair runner relies heavily on a solid job with careful craftsmanship. If it is not done right, the whole process can really be a dangerous.
If you are planning to do this, do know the runner will probably not be very presentable after it has been used on the stairs.
Jacobsen's site is good for the install tips, but note that a regular staple gun will not be sufficient, and tackless strips are not needed for install - this is usually for wall to wall on stairs. You can follow these instructions for the most part including the part on the direction of the pile and the padding on each step to be used which can get tacked down as well.
Another great site for the install is this one here.