Where Do You Find Cable Railings Used?

Once in a while I have a customer who contacts me and they say “I found your cable railings online and I love them”! They follow up with “I have never seen a railing like this in my area, where can I find examples of your work”?

Since we manufacture and ship our railings all over the country . . .  our work can be found everywhere. With that being said there are certain areas in particular where cable railings are more popular than other areas.

Our cable railings are great at maintaining your view.  A view to beautiful scenery can be a lake view in Salt Lake City Utah, a mountain view in Denver Colorado, an ocean view in the British Virgin Islands or a rooftop view in downtown Boston MA.  These are the places where cable railings are typically found.

Waterfront properties especially are popular places to find cable railings since the cabling and hardware originated from marine products and sail boats.  The stainless steel wire rope and stainless steel cable fittings evoke a nautical feeling that most waterfront property owners really enjoy.

Using cable as the infill for your railing will give it a very “sleek” and “modern” look.  For this reason we have also found many interior applications.  Interior staircases and interior guard rails have become increasing popular places to use cable railings.  Since we do not have to face the elements with an interior railing we can get a little more creative with the railings design.

Want to see a project in person?  Just let me know and I can search our database to see if we have done a railing near you.

-        Jason   

Bringing the Mediterranean style to your home.

The Mediterranean Style developed in the 1800s conjures up images of a villa overlooking rolling hills or the beautiful coastal views of the Mediterranean sea. It is a formal yet welcoming style with an old world charm and a comfortable ambiance.  Colors are warm and alluring and textures abound. Arching windows and doorways add a bit of seductiveness to the otherwise rectangular exterior lines. Interiors are spacious and grounded with heavy architectural elements such as wrought iron railings and grills, heavy stone, marble and large beams or columns.   Although this style was most typically built in warm climates, where spacious rooms lend itself to the indoor-outdoor lifestyles, it can also add warmth and charm to any home just by adding a few decorative touches.

Color and Texture

Color and texture are hallmarks of this style. Start with color, Mediterranean colors tend to echo the sky and the sea but often include warm terra cotta and yellow.  Use color washing techniques to create the look of naturally aged walls and bring in the feel of a sun drenched Italian villa.

Furnishings

Unlike days gone by, where home accessory purchases were limited to the big box retail outlets, the internet allows us to find products created by artisans and craftsman giving you a much wider choice of high quality products. Whether it’s that unique terra cotta pot or that mosaic tile back splash or some wrought iron accents like an iron balcony railing or wrought iron table, the internet can be a great place to find those unique items. Use sturdy furniture that sits low to the floor. Top it off with colorful pillows and sheer white or neutral color curtains and you will find yourself coming home to a little slice of Tuscany.

Top Rail Selection

When choosing the right top rail for your railing project there are many factors you should consider. You will notice that when you look at our company’s website many of our railings are shown with a wood top rail. Many of our customers prefer wood top rail and here is why you might want to consider a wood top rail for your application as well.

Wood is the easiest material to install since it’s the easiest to cut, drill and miter. This means that any person with basic carpentry skills could install one of our railing systems with ease. Since the top rail is the only section of the railing that you will constantly put your hands on, it is typically softer and smoother to the touch than metal. Wood will also not fluctuate in temperature the way metal does while metal rails can get very cold in the winter time and overly hot in the summer time.

A metal top rail is of course the lowest maintenance selection. But there are many different species of wood these days that are considered little to no maintenance. We typically recommend IPE (Brazilian Walnut) for your outdoor application. IPE pronounced (ee-pay) is a very strong wood that is considered to be part of the “iron wood” family. IPE is so dense and heavy that if you toss a piece of it into a lake it will immediately sink. You can decide to oil IPE once or twice a year or you can always decide to just let it age naturally and it will turn a light grey in color. Plus the combination of materials (wood, powder coated metal, and stainless) just looks great!

Whichever top rail material you choose for your railing applications please make sure it’s a strong one. A cable railing has force factors involved that most railings do not. Therefore it is imperative that the top rail be very sturdy since it’s a key component of the entire railing design.

- Jason

Fascia Mount Vs Surface Mount

I always get customers asking me about how to attach their railing to their application. There are many different ways to attach your railing although the most popular methods are mounting to the “Fascia” or mounting to the “Surface”. Fascia mounting is also sometimes referred to as a “side mount” or “joist mount”, while surface mounting is occasionally referred to as a “deck mount”, “floor mount”, or even a “top mount”.

There are many advantages and disadvantages to both…

I find that most of our customers prefer to fascia mount their railings and here is why. When you are tight on space the fascia mount will be located on the outside of your deck or stair which will allow you to get a few more inches of room. Most people spend time sitting on their deck looking out at their view and with the fascia mount, the attachment of the post is hidden behind the backside of your deck. This means that the hardware will not be seen either. When your railing is indoors this can be beneficial because it will not collect dust, and you won’t be stubbing your toe in the middle of the night. This also means less to sweep or vacuum around. The same applies for outdoors, there will be less to rake or shovel snow around. Overall fascia mounting is generally considered a stronger attachment method.

There are disadvantages to fascia mounting that you should also consider. Installation is a bit tougher. Typically it becomes a two man job. One person will need to hold the post in place while the other person marks the holes to be drilled. Metal railings can be heavy and if you have lots of linear footage your arms will get tired. Another consideration is the overhang also referred to as a bull nose (typically about ¾” to 1”). If you have one of these on the edge of your deck you will now need to accommodate it. Your options are to purchase a post that has a z shaped bend (like the Keuka Style), purchase our metal spacers (or make your own from wood) and you can always notch out the overhang in each post location.

 I find that the biggest advantage to surface mounting is how much easier it makes your installation. Thanks to gravity the posts will stand up easily by themselves which means your project can now be a one man installation job. No overhang to avoid here. Just put it down, line it up and screw it in place. Also, it is one of the most common methods to attach posts to concrete or tile.

Surface mounting has a few disadvantages to consider. Surface mounting typically is considered a weaker attachment method in wood unless it was planned for properly by installing wood blocking under the decking. Think of it as if you have a giant lever and as you lean against your railing which would pull out the screws unless they are embedded in at least 3 inches of wood.  of material to lag bolt into.

Hopefully you will find this informative for your attachment method decision. If you still can’t decide which way to go you can always do a combination of both!

- Jason

Starbuck Safeway railing photos

Here are a couple of photos of the first Safeway store cable railing installation. 

Keuka Studios railings in Starbucks

We are thrilled to have been selected as the primary vendor for railings for the new Starbucks-Safeway Kiosks!