Handrails and balustrades for Wicklow's coastal properties
Salt air is unforgiving. A specification that lasts twenty years in Blessington can look tired in three on a clifftop terrace in Greystones, and the difference comes down to material and detailing rather than luck.
What salt actually does
Airborne chloride attacks the passive layer that protects stainless steel and accelerates corrosion at any break in a paint film or galvanised coating. It does not need direct spray. Anywhere within a kilometre or two of the sea, and higher exposed ground above it, should be treated as a marine environment.
The damage concentrates where water sits and where air does not circulate: under bottom rails, inside hollow sections, behind base plates and around fixings.
Material choices that work
Grade 316 stainless is the reliable option for exposed coastal handrail. It will still need washing down, because even 316 will tea stain if salt is left to build up, but it will not degrade structurally.
Hot dip galvanised mild steel is the other durable route, and it can be powder coated over the galvanising in a duplex system for colour. That combination outlasts either coating on its own by a wide margin and is often the best value on a large balustrade run.
Details that decide the lifespan
Drain holes at the low point of every hollow section, welds that are continuous rather than stitched, stainless or galvanised fixings, and isolation between dissimilar metals. None of these add much cost at fabrication and all of them add years.
Base plates are the classic failure point on coastal terraces, because water pools around them. Setting them proud on a bedding detail rather than tight to a wet surface makes a real difference.
Maintenance you should expect
Wash exposed stainless with fresh water a few times a year and more often if you are close to the shore. For duplex galvanised and painted systems, touch up any chip promptly before it spreads under the coating.
We fabricate for Wicklow coastal properties from the Naas Road workshop and will spell out the maintenance the chosen finish needs before you commit to it.
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.