It typically takes just a few years before interior wooden staircases start to show signs of wear and tear. Trouble often starts on the horizontal treads, where constant foot traffic wears off the varnish topcoat, exposing bare wood. Next, the vertical risers often get battered and bruised from being repeatedly kicked. And though the handrail doesn't receive as much physical abuse as treads or risers, it doesn't take long before the railing is marred by caked-on dirt and smudged handprints.Fortunately, all of these signs of abuse can be easily repaired in one weekend. Here's how to get your staircase looking like new.Start by carefully examining each stair tread. You'll likely find varying degrees of wear. For example, the finish might be completely worn off the steps at the very top and bottom of the staircase, but be intact on the treads in between.If the stair-tread finish is intact with no bare wood showing, you can restore it to like-new condition with a good cleaning. Put on a pair of rubber gloves, then pour a capful of paint thinner (mineral spirits) onto the tread.

Dip a 0000-grade steel-wool pad into the thinner and lightly scrub the tread clean of stains and scuff marks. Thoroughly dry the tread with a white cotton cloth.If the varnish finish has worn off the tread, then you must refinish it. Start by using a random orbital sander and an 80-grit disc to sand the thread down to bare wood. The sander produces plenty of fine dust, so be sure it has a dust-collection canister or is attached to a wet/dry vacuum. Vacuum the tread clean of all sanding dust, then sand the surface again, only this time with a slightly finer 100-grit disc.If the rounded front edge of the tread, called the nosing, needs to be refinished, sand it down to bare wood using a sanding sponge or electric profile sander fitted with a 5/8-inch-radius convex pad.Between the horizontal treads are vertical risers, which don't get stepped on but do get beaten up. To clean them, start by scrubbing each riser with a steel-wool pad dipped in paint thinner. Dry the surface, then sand the riser smooth.

Instead of a random-orbit sander, use a quarter-sheet orbital finishing sander fitted with 100-grit sandpaper. An orbital sander is more compact and much easier to control than a random-orbit sander, especially on vertical surfaces.The best tool for refinishing a wooden handrail is a sanding sponge, which is a flexible sponge coated with abrasive grit. The soft sponge easily conforms to the rounded shape of the handrail. Start sanding at the top of the railing and work your way down, always sanding parallel with the wood grain, not across it.Sponge sanding takes quite a bit of time and effort, but it's very effective at removing smudges, rough spots, and blemishes. If you come across a particularly stubborn stain, remove it with steel wool dampened with paint thinner. Then sponge-sand the surface again.Once you've cleaned and sanded away all dirt, smudges, and stains, you can apply a fresh coat of varnish to the staircase.Begin by vacuuming the entire staircase clean of all sanding dust.

Then wipe down all surfaces with a damp‚not wet, white cotton rag or, better yet, a tack cloth.Next, use a 3-inch-wide foam brush to apply a light coat of polyurethane varnish to the treads, risers, and handrail. I prefer a foam brush to a typical paintbrush because it produces a smooth finish and has no bristles to come loose.Allow the polyurethane to dry completely, which can take anywhere from 2 to 8 hours or longer, depending on the air temperature and humidity. milagrow blackcat robotic vacuum cleaner reviewsThen, lightly hand-sand the surfaces with 180-grit sandpaper. miele vacuum cleaner s771 reviewWipe away the sanding dust and apply a second coat of polyurethane. vax vacuum cleaner u88p3b

Allow the finish to dry completely before using the staircase. Quietest dishwasher we’ve tested Very frugal water use Uses a little more energy than claimed The Miele G6410SC is the German brand’s top-of-the-range dishwasher. The freestanding versions come in white or stainless steel, though there’s also a semi-integrated version available – the Miele G410SCi – with four different colour fascia. They all share the same battleship quality build, weighing as much as some washing machines, a 5-year guarantee as standard, a 14-place capacity and some bold claims and features. We had the white freestanding model to test.Headlines include A+++ energy efficiency, 44dB standard wash noise and a 38dB silent programme and full sensor washing for perfect results using the minimum of resources. An auto-open door aids drying, while the in-door salt compartment, logical controls and flexible loading space make for a very easy and convenient machine to use as well. It’s nearly a thousand pounds, but you get what you pay for.

The Miele G6410SC is available in stainless steel and whiteThe first thing you notice about any dishwasher is the way the door opens and Miele has given the G6410SC the perfect balance. It requires a firm pull to unlatch and then glides down with almost no resistance.The two main baskets and shallow cutlery draw glide out on large rollers, aided by handles on each. No more grabbing a handful of spilt goo when adding some extra plates to your load. The upper basket is raised and lowered easily, allowing plates up to a maximum of 27cm on the low setting and 31cm on the high. That allows for plates a good 1cm larger than most of its competitors, such as the Samsung DW60H9970HS, and it’s considerably larger than the Whirlpool 6th Sense PowerDry ADP900IX and its 28.5cm maximum.You are properly spoilt for choice with loading options, too. Miele’s 3D cutlery tray can be lowered in the centre to offer space for larger kitchen utensils like a balloon whisk. Side trays can be moved side-to-side to give more cutlery storage or make room for larger cups and glasses beneath.

The cutlery tray at the top in this photo has an adjustable segment for larger items The main baskets offer a bewildering array of hinged spikes, moveable cup-racks, flip-down glass rails and a cup rack that can be set for normal or jumbo cups. Given that the outside dimensions of the SC6410SC are the same as every other freestanding dishwasher we have tested, Miele has done a cracking job of maximising internal space and flexibility. No one say Tardis – that would just be cheesy.The front controls are a combination of solid feeling buttons, bright LEDs that illuminate when programmes and options are selected and a crisp, clean and simple LCD display. Miele has kept the whole operation as straightforward as possible while offering a solid array of 9 programmes. The process, once the machine is loaded, is to turn-on, scroll through programme list, push the short wash or energy saving buttons if required, and press start. Related: Best Kitchen Gadgets Round-upThe Miele offers nine standard programs with its Sensor wash as the obvious default.

This uses an array of sensors to tailor the programme, including its temperature, energy use, water consumption and time taken, precisely to the load and even the atmospheric conditions in your kitchen.Larger, more awkward and dirtier loads will naturally take longer and use more resources, while the drying time is based on humidity in the machine and your kitchen. When the machine senses it’s most efficient drying would be to air dry into the room, it pops the door open automatically to let the steam escape. A small plastic bar stops the door from being opened early. This retaining bar is reset by simply closing and opening the door when the display indicates the wash is finished.We struggle to think why you would buy such a comprehensively equipped machine and then use a basic, non-sensor wash, but Miele includes a ‘Normal’ programme just in case you do. For really mucky kitchen washing, such as pots and pans, you can select a 75-degree C intensive wash. At the other end of the scale there is a Sensor wash Gentle for glasses and delicate items of crockery and a Quick Wash at 40 degrees C.See Also: Best Washing Machines You Can BuyThe control panel includes a decent selection of useful programmesThis Miele already claims to be one of the quietest dishwashers on the market but if you really need it to be whisper quiet you have the option of an extra quiet wash.

This takes nearly five hours, so ideal to have on overnight and benefit from cheaper rate electricity.If you are looking to use the absolute minimum of resources with normally soiled load, there is an Eco programme too. Uniquely the G6410SC also offers a SolarSave programme. Perhaps more aimed at the southern European market, this programme will take in any free hot water you may have, from a solar water collector for example, and wash in that temperature to reduce its own water heating costs to zero.The SC6410SC claims to be largely self-cleaning, but if there is a heavy build-up of grease and grime the Maintenance programme runs a hot wash designed to buff the inside of the dishwasher itself.Related: The Best Dishwashers You Can BuyThe semi-integrated G6410SCi version (above) features the control panel on the front with the area below free to mount your own door designWe are yet to test a dishwasher that has lived up to its noise level billing, until now. The G6410SC comes in below even the ‘Quiet Mark’ approved Servis DN61039SS at a staggeringly quiet 43dB during the main wash.