ᐅ Glass Railing Solutions: Concept Development

Dear builders,
yesterday the excavators arrived at our site, so the excitement is growing.
We are constructing a single-family house with 167 sqm (1,797 sq ft) over 1 1/2 floors with direct contracting. So far, there have been no issues during planning, with quotes, or in the execution discussions. One item still open is the railing solution for our interior concrete staircase, which is open to the kitchen side.
Since the overall style of the house will be modern, we are considering a solution with glass railings and handrails. A stainless steel handrail will be installed on the inner wall.
The open side facing the staircase will have a glass balustrade running parallel to the stairs.

Appointments with metal fabricators are currently hard to get, as they are all booked, and the selection is limited. The local glazier has already declined and referred us to a metalworker. Next week, I will expand the area of my inquiries.

Now to the main point of my thread:
- Could you share photos of your glass railing installations to complement our mainly Pinterest-based inspiration with real-life examples?
- Could you provide a ballpark figure for purchase and installation costs based on your experience?

To help with visualization, I am attaching the floor plans with my request.

Thank you very much in advance!

*When I say "we," I mean my wife and myself.

Since there has been no further input here, I’ll share a brief overview of our preferences.

Of course, our space is significantly shorter. We prefer an external stainless steel rail rather than point-fixed glass fittings. However, in the first image, the stainless steel rail mounted on the glass appears too prominent.

In the second image, the rail almost looks like plastic. It’s not a bad option, but I’m unsure if it would be a lasting solution.

Hopefully, this prompt will help to get some real-life photos.

Best regards

I also find the rail too bulky.

If we had an open staircase ourselves, we would extend the glass all the way up to the ceiling.

tomtom79 schrieb:
I also find the rail too bulky.

If we had an open staircase ourselves, I would have the glass go all the way up to the ceiling.

That would be solution 3, although I’m not sure how open it would still feel. It shouldn’t end up looking like an aquarium.

I have only seen this with straight staircases, and it looks very nice there.

What is the disadvantage of using glass without a track, just with a polished edge? Or as an upgrade, there is also the option with a white edge, which means without the greenish tint of the glass.

There is nothing fundamentally against that; we are still open to all possible outcomes. That’s why this topic exists.

tomtom79 schrieb:


What speaks against using the glass without a rail, just with a polished edge? Or as an upgrade, there is the option with a white edge to avoid the greenish tint of the glass.

Are you referring to the rail at the top? I imagine that would look really good. Normally, safety glass should also be resistant to chipping edges as long as I don’t drop heavy objects on it from above.