continuous rail along top or have posts stick out and use caps

anna_2006

15 years ago

The deck is being built as I write this and a decision is needed regarding this matter.

Should the top railing just be made of long continuous pieces of wood or should the 4 by 4 posts (which will be every 6 feet)stick up a bit and be covered by some sort of cast iron or plastic cap?

Is it just a matter of what style one likes or is one better than the other?

The guy building the deck recommends one continuous level rail because he says that rain/snow/etc get into the cuts if I have the posts stick up. A worker at the lumber yard seems to think that shorter 6' pieces with caps will be sturdier and if capped then no need to worry about the elements. Sometimes I think that my builder is trying to finish this sooner (he underestimated the time to build the deck and is now very behind)and would prefer less cutting and fitting with posts that stick out and caps.

So could you advise me which is better and why.

Thanks

Featured Answer

slippery_biscuit

15 years ago

Five years ago I used Ipe for rails, and cut grooves in them to hold tempered glass. The rails reached from post to post, and I cut the post flush with the rail so the cap was continuos. Looks great... clean lines. And the squirrels can really get up to speed when the dogs go after them.

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Comments (10)

theporchguy
15 years ago
anna 2006,

Something sounds fishy here. Every six feet there is a 4x4 post. Thats sounds good. Install the railing in between the posts and cap the top, that sounds better. Continuous rail????????

The PorchGuy

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aidan_m
15 years ago
Do you mean a horizontal railing? That is an aesthetic preference- as long as it meets code requirements: 4" maximum gaps, 36" minimum height, 200 lb force side impact resistance.
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anna_2006
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for answering back. By continuous rail I meant that the 4X4 would be cut evenly at the top so that they do not stick up. As a result, the railing on top will be all one level and the builder can use longer runs of wood. This is in comparison to having the 4X4s sticking up and having to cap them.

I'm glad to know that it is only an aesthetic choice.
riles_j
15 years ago
That is totally an aesthetic preference thing. I would select the railing style that you thinks looks the best.

Riles
Penelope
15 years ago
We have one continuous rail and it looks fine. It's easy to push the snow off, and it's a clean look. But then I saw some neat solar-powered post lights and realized they won't work for us since we don't have the projecting posts. I don't know that I would have chosen differently, but it's a little option to keep in mind.
deckman22
15 years ago
I think it's more what kind of look you want, either way can be made strong. I do perfer the continuous top cap, both for the look & ease of building.

Al
builtbymac
15 years ago
Post caps cost $10-$30 ea ($70-100 ea. for lighted). What's written in the contract? Who eats the extra charge if you go with post caps?
And usually, it's easier to make the handrail system stronger by using a continuous cap rail. I'm not sure what your lumberyard guy was talking about. Common sense would dictate that a single continuous piece of wood (cap rail) would distribute side pressure better than individual 6' lengths of handrail.

With wood railing systems, I usually use a continuous cap rail over the tops of the posts... but design choices are specified in the contract before I begin building.

As to lovesummer's thought of wanting post caps on a cont. cap rail system, you can always add shorty posts on top of the continuous cap rail and fit the post caps on those. Align the shorty posts with the handrail posts and it will look like the post is coming up through the continuous cap rail.

Mac
dooer
15 years ago
I'm all with Mac on this. Continuous cap is much stronger.

Mark
ichearts
15 years ago
Last year we went through the same decision..should we put posts and caps or just keep the railing straight all the way around. We opted for straight all around and also had the builder put a 6 inch piece of wood vs a 4 inch for the top rail...great to lean on...put drinks on and no posts with caps to get in the way...Neighbor has wooden caps and they have all but rotted away and fall off...Hope this helps..

continuous rail along top or have posts stick out and use caps

slippery_biscuit

Comments (10)

theporchguy

aidan_m

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anna_2006
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riles_j

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builtbymac

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continuous rail along top or have posts stick out and use caps

Comments (10)

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anna_2006Original Author

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anna_2006
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