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Deck railing ideas/pics wanted

11K views 22 replies 9 participants last post by  Ken N Tx 
#1 ·
I mentioned in another thread about our landscape rehab that has morphed into a porch facelift. Does anyone have any picks of their deck railings they wouldn't mind sharing. We have an idea of what we want to do, but we've learned over time: one smartly placed piece of trim can make something go from ok to wow. Thanks in advance.:thanku:
 
#3 ·
Well, this is the perfect opportunity to show off my award winning deck. I used to build decks several years ago with a friend who is a home builder and some on the side myself, so I have built many different types of railings over the years. The style I like the best is the deck on my house. I designed and built the entire deck myself, which is approx. 700 sq. ft.

My wife and I entered a contest and won the Thompson's best deck contest for June of 2004. The judges liked it so much that it was featured in Backyard Solutions magazine and in a Jacksonville Times article online.

Here is the deck. If you need any details of the materials used, let me know. Basically, everything is cedar.



 
#6 ·
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Great deck and photos and I have a question or two (maybe more later). Would you disclose how the posts were fastened to the deck floor and how the rails were fastened to the posts. I have a deck with two 45° corners ( cropped 90s )and am paying particular attention to the rail post connection there. Thanks, Maybar
 
#4 ·
:congrats: Bravo, great job and very worthy of an award. Could you tell me what sizes/pieces make up one section of railing. Is it 2x4 for top & bottom rail, 2x2 spindle/balluster? It looks to me as if there may be another piece of material between the spindles and the top/bottom rails?:thanku:
 
#5 ·
Yes, the spindles are 2x2 cedar. The top and bottom railing is 4x4 cedar. The posts are 4x4 pressure treated wrapped with 2x6 rough cedar to give it that bulky apprearance. Everything was stained an off-white color to match the trim on the house. The floor was stained with Sikens deck stain (Natural Oak color).

The nice thing about the way the deck was stained is I only need to pressure wash the floor every couple years and re-stain and it looks brand new again. The railings don't need to get re-stained as often, maybe every 4 years.
 
#7 ·
All of the railing posts come through the deck floor. The decking is actually cut around the posts. The railing posts are also the deck support posts, although there are some posts that only support the railing and do not go thru to the ground.

The skirt of the deck (or outside beams) that support the joists are fastened by 3/8" carriage bolts through the 4x4 treated support posts.

The railings are fastened to the posts with 3 1/2" deck screws through the sides of the 4x4 cedar railings.

I hope this helps.
 
#8 ·
Here is a picture of the railing I built on our deck. It uses a smoked glass balusters instead of the wood 2X2 balusters. We wanted an uninterrupted view that the glass gave us. My only regrets is the density of the smoke. I wish I had gotten a light smoke glass instead of the mid smoke. My wife took picture just after she painted the post and deck and sent it to me when I was working away from home.
 

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#9 ·
Gt275, I used the same method for my railing on the deck I built on our other house. It makes for a really sturdy railing.
Here is a pic of a section of the current railing on our front porch. I want to raise the top rail and place it on top of the post at the left of the pic. This isn't a big porch, only two sections of rail and two handrails on the steps. There is a third section of railing, but phase 2 of this project will happen next year and that is making the porch the full width of the front of the house. So we will stain this third section for now, but it will disappear next year. I hope this helps anyone who needs a visual.:thanku:

 
#10 ·
Beautiful BigD, thanks for sharing. With a view like that, I would want to keep it unobstructed too.:fing32:
 
#12 ·
Wow guys, those are some great looking decks! :thThumbsU

We built our deck about 20 years ago along the back of our home overlooking the swimming pool. We wanted an open look with lots of seating for entertaining, so this is what we came up with:




 
#15 ·
The whole month of June is a challenge for the filter as the Japanese Lilacs come down like snow.

Thanks for the compliments! :)
 
#14 ·
JDF, we have always liked those railings that double as seating. Its looks great, with the pool and landscaping you have an oasis.
 
#22 ·
The posts are a vinyl sleeve on the outside. The center is a round heavy pipe welded to a flat flange on the bottom. After the steel center is set you slide a couple of bushings over the pipe then slide the sleeve on. The bushings line up with the railing to give something for the screws to grab. I'm not explaining this very well...:fing20:
 
#21 ·
:thanku: to all so far. I have decided that because it is a porch, I am going to go with something similar to GT275 & Deuces62 that is more of a panel between the posts. I hope to have a chance to get to Lowe's on Fri. to see what they have, The Depot didn't have much. We were considering something more along the line of a "deck" railing (horiz. top rail + vert. bottom rail + 2x2 ballusters), but maybe we'll save that for the back deck which needs new railings too...maybe next year?!!? I'll post pics when its done, which hopefully isn't that far off in the near future. Great looking decks guys, that for sharing.
 
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