How Glass Balustrades Add Safety to your Staircases?

Mention a specific staircase and nine times out of ten it’s the balustrade that really takes your breath away. Sure a marble staircase looks fantastic, especially if it sweeps up and splits into two directions. But, it won’t look as impressive or be as safe without a balustrade.

That’s the thing with balustrades, they give you something to hold onto when you’re going up or down, effectively reducing the risk of you falling and injuring yourself.

Of course, there are many different balustrade options and glass balustrading may not be your first thought or choice. But, there are several reasons why glass balustrades can improve your safety.

Style

One of the biggest issues with stairs is that you need to apply caution, most accidents happen when people are rushing to get up or down them. However, if you add a contemporary glass balustrade to your stairs you’ll find people sow down to admire it, effectively reducing their risk of slipping on the stairs!

The fact that there are hundreds of potential styles to choose from means that you’ll still be admiring it for a long time after it’s been installed. Don’t forget you can have framed, semi-framed, or frameless, along with a variety of styles of glass. Clear may be the default but tempered and structural are becoming very popular options.

Durability

Glass doesn’t corrode like metal and doesn’t rot like wood. This means there is nothing that can actually go wrong with the glass balustrade, even if it has been in place for many years.

Rotten wooden balustrades and corroded metal ones are likely to give way if you fall against them, doing little to protect you. But, the glass balustrade will remain strong. That’s an important consideration when choosing a balustrade and looking at costs.

Strength

The majority of glass balustrades are solid pieces without gaps. The glass used is toughened and thick, ensuring it can‘t break easily.

The combination of these factors is actually a much stronger balustrade than the majority of wooden or metal ones.

It’s also worth noting that should part of a glass balustrade break, it won’t shatter like conventional glass. In fact, it should stay in location and still provide a degree of safety while you find a replacement piece.

That reduces the risk of being cut by the tiny shards of glass.

Transparent

You may think that a transparent material is a bad idea as it will reduce people’s ability to see it and may make the stairs feel unsafe because they appear to have no balustrade.

However, the transparency of glass actually allows you to see more of what is going on as you descend, or ascend the stairs. The result is more awareness and a decreased likelihood of accidents.

Little Maintenance

Your glass balustrade should only need a regular clean in order to stay in the very best condition. The same can’t be said of other styles of balustrade, keeping maintenance to a minimum means you’re more likely to stay on top of it which will help to maintain the safety of your balustrade.