Once your deck is done, you need railings for safety to prevent accidents by providing a barrier that stops people from accidentally falling off the deck, especially important for elevated decks. The railings also provide a place to lean on or rest items, and they can even be designed with built-in features like seating or planters to maximize the usability of the space.
There are quite a few different choices of the railings on the market, such as wooden railings, metal railings, glass railings, vinyl railings, and hybrid railings. You can choose one of them to meet your needs.
Glass railings provide an unobstructed view, glass railings are stylish and contemporary. They’re made from tempered glass panels and often held by metal posts or spigot system for added support.
Here are guild lines to show you how to measure and layout railings for your new deck as the following steps:
Where to measure?
If you have built your deck with a overhang style like Diagram 1, you need to move the perimeters inside about 3 1/2”.
If you just install fascia boards to the joists like Diagram 2, you need to move the perimeters inside about 2 1/2”.
If your deck has stairs, you can measure the length of the railing needed for the stairs as well. This can be a bit more complicated as it involves measuring the height of the stairs and the length along the angle (D).
After you get the Diagonal length (D) and the Height (H), you can calculate the angle (A) by using the (D) and (H).
You can also measure the diagonal length (D) and get the angle (A) with a protractor. The ideal angle of a stair is 37 degree, which does not happen all the time.
With the angle (A) and diagnose length, you can easily figure out the glass sizes.
Happy Deck Railing!
