Painting - Removing paint from stairs

I need paint removal help. I searched the threads, but didn't see any previous advice on related to my issue.

I want to sand and stain my stairs, however when I removed the carpet from the stairs, the pine stairs have white paint on them. What do I need to do to remove the paint without harming the wood in order to sand and stain? Any advice would be appreciated.

Try a heat gun and scraper, or a chemical paint stripper. Neither will hurt the wood if done correctly.

kyeag2001,
You say you have Pine stairs, pine is very soft, even after
heat or chemical you will have a white haze still in the wood, I don't recomend the heat gun because pine burns easily, semi-paste, methyl-chloride based strippers work well, if the paint is stubborn, put aluminum foil on top of the stripper so it has a little more work time, I find this also cuts down a little of the fumes. Read all directions first. Ventilate during this process.

just a foot note..maybe look into replacing the stair treads with some oak.you can stain and clear coat before you put them on.leave the risers white.if you can do yourself then awesome but at least get a bid from a carpenter to replace them with a nice oak,it will look better,neater and more professional.trust me stripping paint from wood so you can stain it is messy,labor intensive,and unless you have patience enough to sand the edges and the rounded edge well to have nice crisp lines it will not turn out how you see it in your head.also any white paint you dont get off like the paint in the cracks the nail holes any little nick will drive you nuts after you stain it and see white.get a bid for some oak treads!!or even get new pine!!