Replacing rusted railings: repair or start again?
We are called out to a lot of tired railings. Sometimes the right answer is a repair and a repaint, and sometimes the honest answer is that the steel is finished. Here is how we judge it.
Surface rust versus section loss
Orange staining on the surface looks alarming but often means very little. What matters is section loss: whether the steel has actually thinned. Tap along the bars and posts, and check the areas where water sits, particularly the bottom rail, the base of posts and inside any hollow section.
If a screwdriver goes through the metal, or a hollow post crumbles at ground level, that element is past repair. Replacing a few bars in an otherwise sound run is straightforward; patching a run where every post foot has gone is throwing money away.
Where the rust starts
Three places, almost every time. At ground level, where a post was set into concrete that holds water against the steel. At the welds, where the original paint was thinnest. And inside hollow sections, where water got in through an open end and never got out.
Knowing this tells you whether a replacement will last. If the new railing repeats the same detail, it will fail the same way.
What a proper replacement looks like
Hot dip galvanised steel with drain holes at every low point, posts set with a detail that lets water run away rather than pool, continuous welds rather than stitch welds, and a powder coat over the galvanising for colour.
Done that way, a Dublin railing is a thirty year item rather than a five year one.
Matching an existing run
Where only part of a run has failed, we can fabricate matching sections so the repair is not obvious. On period properties we match the original bar diameter, spacing and head detail from the surviving lengths.
Send photographs of the worst areas, including the base of the posts, and we will tell you honestly whether it is worth repairing.
Want this priced for your own job? Send us your drawings or a photo and we will come back with a fixed price, usually within one working day.
Common questions
Need this done properly? Talk to the workshop.
Send us drawings, a sketch or a site photo. We come back with a fixed price and a firm lead time, usually within one working day.