Hi, I don't have glass balusters but I have raised children and this sounds like a cleaning nightmare to me, in addition to whatever other issues there might be. You will most likely have little fingerprints on that clear surface constantly. Just food for thought.

I would suggest stainless steel balusters instead. Not an inexpensive choice, but a much more headache free one.

I have no idea how difficult glass balusters would be to keep smudge-free with children. But I do have several sliding glass doors, and they are impossible to keep clean, although the dog is partially to blame for that., lol. Another option for you could be cable rail.

Net Zero House near Nantucket Sound · More Info

We are about to replace ours too...actually demolish a tight, winding, walled-in staircase and build a new one at one end of the living room. The rail will be new up the stairs and across the walk/loft. The kids are gone but now there are grandchildren and, at my age, I'm sick of cleaning! I'd like a wood handrail to match the wood mantle and metal cableing. My contractor assures me code provides that they are close together so child cannot fall through/get stuck. He's not met Sally! We argue about whether to have risers or not now. Hope this helps some.

The stainless wires are fine but you might consider the wide space to protect your kids, this photo was taken during installation phase.

It is a pain to maintain fingerprint free glass, but very easy to clean up, the look is fantastic, and it will be timeless. If this is a house you intend on living in for a long time, it is probably worth it to suffer through the first few years of smudges. I would definitely go with tempered glass. It is the hardier choice and looks beautiful.

I have glass balusters on my outside stairs and decks. What I do not have is children. This is the second home where we've used them and are well satisfied with both the look of them and the ease of cleaning. Luckily, they are unlike windows -- no need for gallons of cleaning liquid and rolls of paper towels -- or the expense of having someone come to clean them. Outdoors, I use the hose and the liquid for cleaning your windows that comes in the plastic bottle that you attach to your hose. Obviously, that won't work indoors. As for the balusters themselves -- I bought them at Lowe's. They were a special order but they are made specifically for this purpose. They're shaped to work for stairs and railings. I was rather surprised when they were approved by my county's planning department, but they work for code in at least Virginia and South Carolina.

We have glass stairs three stories high in our chalet. Love them. Our kids have been taught not to play on stairs and not to touch the glass. They know not to touch any glass including windows and French doors. Makes life much easier!!!

You don't need to have kids to figure out very quickly (with common sense) that having those with small children would be a nightmare! Tiny fingerprints would be everywhere, everyday, requiring constant clean-up. Ask yourself this question: do I want to be constantly wiping those off?

Response to the people who say small children always touch everything - your children can be taught not to touch the stairways as long as there are ample places in the house that are not off-bounds. If you were able to have a handrail opposite the glass so they can go up and down on the side opposite the glass it would help, but your drawing looks like it is not along a wall. I'm in agreement with eresmith09, you may have to give it a spritz when company is coming or it gets annoying, but that is just for 3-5 years, maybe less. We taught our son not to touch the stereo as soon as it was in reach - he was allowed to touch the books, etc, just not the stereo and he was very good about it. As I remember. He is 47 now and that was quite a few years ago. The secret is to have one or two things that are big Nos - and lots of things that are yes.

If you use a Stainless Steel rail system it is rather smudge free... Nothing is 100% maintenance free but Stainless has a tendency to be a lot less forgiving.... As for glass with a toddler all Glass here in Canada for a railing etc. should be tempered ... it's more of a shock to the child when it pops then anything but you will have a hard time cleaning it... a few tricks use. rain X or use Autosol glass cleaner they seem to prevent long term yuk situations... But most important pick what you want not what people are trying to sell you .... it's your house.

Cheers.

We had the same dilemma with our new house. Like Sonia said above, the kids won't reach the railing for a long time, and we have a tall flight of stairs.

We chose a horizontal anodized aluminum railing from greenoxen.com. I tried to post a picture but not having success from my phone. I believe you can find them on houzz.

The nice thing about this railing with kids is it gives them something solid to hold as soon as they are old enough to tackle stairs on their own.

Update: added photo, also remembered the designer thought we had enough glass and more on the stairs would overdo it. Aluminum is also more recyclable than glass.

Your children wont be children forever and wont always leave finger prints. Get what YOU like. It's your house not theirs.

I vote for glass over every other option. A visit to a good glass store will expose you to other types of glass besides clear. Take the opportunity to chose something unique and hide those cute hand prints!