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Hello-
Need some input from the pros. I’m building a new deck and need a railing that won’t block what view we have. I’ve looked at cable rail and did a search here in breaktime, and cable rail looks nice, but it is beaucou expensive. I’m wondering if any of you have a clever suggestion for materials that would offer the same benefits for less money. I live outside Fairbanks, ALaska and codes are not an issue here.
Some ideas I have had are:
1) Designing my own cable system using swages and turnbuckles (figured that might be cheaper than buting a pre-assembled system).
2) Metal rods painted black, with plastic inserts in the deck posts to isolate the metal from the wood.
While we do get some rain, generally it’s pretty dry around here and corrosion/rot aren’t huge problems (I recently retroed a guys foundation, the original was untreated spruce pilings set 3′ into the ground, and only a few of them showed any rot!)
What do you all think?
Thanks, Olav Ormseth
Replies
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If cost is not an issue, use temp. safety glass. Did one once. Expensive and not a good option with dogs (wet noses) and kids (wet noses).
Luck
*Galvanized chicken wire (or something similar) is something I've been looking at using. Frame it in like window screen, maybe with a horizontal member if more than 4' off the ground.Mike
*This may help open up the view a little Olav.www.deckorators.com
*Interesting site, Dan - reminds me of a monkey cage that I once had that used lengths of emt conduit. Copper tubing might look nice in such an arrangement, but might be susceptible to getting bent or dented. Stainless steel rod might be nice, but not cheap. Is the 3 3/4" shown on the drawing at that site the maximum spacing that is allowed by code? (Seem to remember something about the width that wouldn't allow toddlers to get their head stuck in between.)
*Code is 4" max. Casey
*I've seen 5/8"s rebar painted black run horz. and 7/8"s run vertical I thought it looked good but then again I live out in the woods too. Just a thought, Dave
*If code does not apply and height not too high, you might consider a fishnet-type material (cheap and easy to replace, like the chickenwire solution.If safety is a more serious issue, consider plexiglass as a less expensive alternative to tempered glass. 1/4" "industrial" plexi would be plenty strong and costs about $3 sq. ft. around here in 4x8 sheets. You could cut them into 2x8 sheets - add some wood framing to create the 36" height you need. This gives you 16' of railing for $100 of plexi. 3/16th might work, too, for less $.-Randy
*Hmmm...here is a railing made from 3/16" galvy wire mesh...around $80 per 4x8 sheetps. ya don't have to like it, ok?
*Thanks for the replies...lots of options...I'm leaning towards using steel pipe, maybe 1.5-2" diam, painted black (or maybe galvy?), use a bracket (similar to a closet rod bracket) to attach lengths of pipe between posts...I think I could get away with running only two lines, one for the the top rail and one at mid-height...that would be pretty economical and might even look good too.-Olav
*Nathan, that galvanized mesh looks like the high class version of a livestock panel. They use a lot of stock panels around here for residential fencing, putting them on wood posts and rails.Stock panels are, er, rustic, but they look good (in my opinion), and cost less than twenty bucks per 54 inch by 16 foot panel.
*Nathan --- Where do you get that stuff? Is there a product name or manufacturer? I've been using hog panel like other folks suggest here, but the mesh is 6"x8", so I can't use it on jobs that get inspected. Jamie
*Olav, Have used steel pipe on the horizontal. Don't over span even if it is steel, people like to put there foot up on it. And think about one down low, to stop your feet before you go under. How high is this deck anyhow?I bored holes in the post, deeper in one side and then pull it back into the other post. Maybe had 3/4"-1" bearing on each end. Filled it with a urethane caulk before insertion. Had no splitting nor movement. No where near code anymore. And in a stupid society, a definite child hazard. Got the view. Looks kinda metropark.....or at least it used to. Best of luck.
*found it at McNichols, a nationwide architectural metals outlet, I believe..comes in all kinds of sizes, gauges and finishes.
*Calvin-Yeah, I'm worried about it being springy, don't know much off the top of my head about pipe that way...I'm thinking a post about every 5-6 ft., pipe at least 1 1/2 " diam- do you remember what you used in your installation?not familiar with the term "metropark"- is that the same as "uptown" or "shi-shi" (sp?)? Or just that it looks modern...-Olav
*Olav. It was rigid conduit and the post spacing was a little over 4'. The metropark term is the city's park system. I was referring to the scenic overlook type look. Get one of those 10 cent a view binoculars on a pole and you got it all. Codes are sometimes hard to figure. New ballparks are allowed to use a short horizontal rail system so it doesn't block the view of the game. These rails are so short, you feel you're going over everytime theres a homer. On the house, you need a top rail height of 42" if over a cpl feet off the ground. 42" is about eye level when you sit in a deck chair. You end up looking like a turkey trying to watch the world go by.
*I used galvanized livestock panels, set into a cedar post and rail frame, for my deck. The sub cut the panels to size and sent them out to be powder-coated a Hunter Green color before installation. It's pretty easy to see through, the dark green wire disappears against the foliage, and has held up well over the past 7 years.
*Another design option is to make a two-level deck, with the outer level being lower. From the view point, a typical guardrail does not have to block the view. I built a deck at my cabin this way, and nothing blocks the view of Mt. Lassen from the living room now.
*
Hello-
Need some input from the pros. I'm building a new deck and need a railing that won't block what view we have. I've looked at cable rail and did a search here in breaktime, and cable rail looks nice, but it is beaucou expensive. I'm wondering if any of you have a clever suggestion for materials that would offer the same benefits for less money. I live outside Fairbanks, ALaska and codes are not an issue here.
Some ideas I have had are:
1) Designing my own cable system using swages and turnbuckles (figured that might be cheaper than buting a pre-assembled system).
2) Metal rods painted black, with plastic inserts in the deck posts to isolate the metal from the wood.
While we do get some rain, generally it's pretty dry around here and corrosion/rot aren't huge problems (I recently retroed a guys foundation, the original was untreated spruce pilings set 3' into the ground, and only a few of them showed any rot!)
What do you all think?
Thanks, Olav Ormseth