Porch railing

Which composite? They are not all the same. As for railing that lasts, there's always metal. Composite isn't cheap and there are several price levels with metal, some of which may the same or cheaper than composite.

I don't know the architecture of your house but metal comes in many styles with many options.

Keith Nuttle wrote in news:psep6m$1djl$ snipped-for-privacy@gioia.aioe.org:

I've got a few of the solid Trex composite railings. They sag easily. One of my stair railings is about 6' and has at least a 1" sag in the middle. They're still pretty close to the same color (it fades like vinyl siding does) and in good shape after about 8 years.

Puckdropper

On 11/13/2018 11:34 AM, Puckdropper wrote: ...

Yeah, in midsummer KS sun, it's about like a wet noodle and retains "set" when cools.

Also will burn to the touch in direct sun to point of blistering tender skin...

If it's supported with balusters every 6" (or whatever the code is), it should be good? I need to replace my deck's decking next year and I don't want to waste money on wood again. I'd love to extend the deck, too, but not sure I'm up for that.

Been sliding down the banister nekkid again, huh? ;-)

The whole thing can sag; it would need at least one intermediate support over the 6-ft span from what I've observed in town here. If weather not so extreme as SW KS and the like, "maybe" it'd be ok.

The particular case I saw was a toddler...but that too, could be a problem, granted... :)

I live in NW GA (Atlanta), so the maximum temperature isn't likely worse that what you see. Just more days above ~90F (and more humidity, which is irrelevant in this case).

snipped-for-privacy@notreal.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

If you support that bottom rail or better yet build it out of a material that can support itself, you'll be ok. When that bottom rail starts sagging the whole thing will sag.

There are some Trex sleeves (I haven't looked recently, they may not be available any more) that let you keep the look of composite but have wood inside there for strength.

Puckdropper

OP: I have talked to a contractor and found that that railing must be able to support 200 pounds outward pressure. There are 12 foot lengths (10.5' longest run) of a vinyl made that meet the requirement. It is reinforced by a metal "bar", and will be supported by blocks sitting on the porch floor.

He is getting me a quote. I am sure that it can not be more than what it was going to cost to get it stripped, primed and painted.

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Not even close -- data I just looked up showed Atlanta mean at 30 days/yr, we were 73.

Extreme temp's not even close, either, either high or low.

That's pretty benign, comparatively, other than the humidity that's a killer (spent almost 30 yr in Oak Ridge, TN which is closer albeit somewhat colder as comparison to Atlanta. The humid-a-dee-doo I never did adjust to...

That's surprising.

That's not. It's rarely 100F here. The all-time record is 106, IIRC. Hell, we had that in Vermont. The low part, well, we do get a week with the lows in the high-teens.

Yeah but even the humidity isn't all that bad in Atlanta. We lived just 70mi SW (down I85) from here, in Auburn AL and the difference, even in that short distance was amazing. It was far more humid. Really oppressive nights.

Anything east of Mississippi is much less extreme and generally far quieter than High Plains.

Oh, yes, there are even worse places by far, but in comparison to what I was used to and think is oppressive, it's more than I care to deal with... :) Used to have to consult in Aiken and Houston and DC area some so indeed there's worse, by far. Tulsa area ain't far off because it is closer to our temperatures and far enough east to have more water...

What I missed most were two things --

There is very little wind here, other than storms, of course. A little wind plays hell on the trees, particularly if the ground is wet. They just aren't hardened to it and it'll pull them right out of the ground.

Ditto that. The thing that really got me about Vermont wasn't the cold or even the snow (though that was a RPITA), rather the gray Winters. From November to May (or June), unless the temperature was

You need to paint ALL sides of the the lumber, if you don't, moisture will continue to be absorbed into the wood and any paint will fail.

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That's true for almost everywhere east of the Mississippi.

I used to chuckle over the headlines after a mild (by W KS) t-storm of wind gusts in the 50 mph range or so and despite 30 yr in VA/TN never ceased to be amazed at just what widespread damage so little actual weather could cause simply because it was so rare the weak stuff was so rarely ever culled.

Same was true for their power lines; lackadaisical maintenance and simply not built to withstand anything that we get routinely led to very high power outage rates with the most trivial of storms.

OTH, E TN was prime country for SLCs (scary-looking clouds) that just never (or very rarely) did more than look threatening. In the 30-yr there, was only one hail event that did any damage and it wasn't of real intensity as to what we are used to on annual basis in one or another storm. Not every where every year, of course, but bound to be a number around the area every year; like always some years more, others less overall.

Do you you live in an area that gets snow? (If you mentioned it, sorry, I missed it.) If you do, how do you remove the snow, assuming that's an issue?

My deck is 6' off the ground. I used to lift the snow over the railing, then I got smart/lazy/old (not necessarily in that order) and modified one section to do this:

I just took advantage of the mod this morning. If there's a big enough pile, I'll run the snowblower through it to open a path along the front of the deck.

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It was right there...he's in Hotlanta...not _much_ snow.

The facility to be able to not have to go over or around is useful where is snow, however, "trudat!".

Yep, "over" sucks, especially when it's wet and heavy (like yesterday's snow).

"Around" in my case means I'm shoveling onto a landing and then down

If I ever replace the railing or build another deck in a snowy area, snow removal will be part of the design criteria. At a minimum, I'll use a gate of some type that only opens a bottom section of the railing. The ~9" gap I use now is more than enough and I still have a railing to keep me from going over the edge if I lose concentration.

DerbyDad03 wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:

I do the same thing for my ice rink. When you get a wet snow--and sometimes the weight of the snow pushes the ice down and makes it wet-- it's almost impossible to lift the shovel.

On my deck, though, I didn't run the railing all the way to the bottom. It just seems to work out better with that 4-6 inch gap.

Puckdropper

Unfortunately no. We live east of Raleigh where 1" of snow is a regional catastrophy.

I was born in northern Indiana and miss the snow, expecially the squeeky variety. I would gladly trade 1 90 Degree 90% day for two zero days, if possible. Then there is the grandson factor, that has to be considered