Exterior Handrails for Steps
Stair Railings are an integral part of the entrance for every home. Not only do stair railings give a look of elegance and safety to a home, but they are also required by most insurance providers and county building codes. Keeping your home stylish and up to code is easy with a metal handrail built by Louisville Iron Works.
What Type of Material are Handrails?
The materials used to build handrails can vary depending on if you ask a homeowner or the artisan that built the rail. When you ask a homeowner what type of material their rail is made of, the most common answers are metal, iron, steel and wrought iron. Technically, none of these answers are wrong. There just needs to be a little clarification of what each term means.
Metal is the family that all previously mentioned materials fall under. At the top of the hierarchy in that family is iron. Atomic number 26 on the periodic table. Iron ore is extracted from the earth and used to produce steel. Molten iron is mixed with small amounts of carbon and steel is formed. Steel is known as an alloy. Wrought Iron is iron that has been heated and worked with tools.
For the TL:DR crowd, our handrails are crafted from iron, steel and wrought iron. These materials are able to stand the test of time and hold up to the weather when properly sand blasted and powder coated.
How are handrails mounted?
Exterior metal handrails can be designed and built based on the mounting method. The first mounting method is known as the grounding method. The grounding method allows the legs of a rail to be installed onto the material the stairs are made of. For example, concrete stairs would have the rail legs mounted directly to the concrete. The second style of mounting a handrail would be mounting the handrail to the stair material and attaching the end of the rail to the wall. The latter method is known as the hybrid style of rail.
