The Advantages of Aluminum Railing

The first advantage is that aluminum is much lighter than wrought iron. Aluminum is a material with a lower density than steel, and this translates to less weight per piece. When you're talking about the cumulative weight of an entire assembled railing section, the aluminum version is much lighter.

There are also some thermal properties of aluminum that make it appealing for a home with children. Aluminum is an outstanding thermal conductor. It absorbs heat swiftly, but also dissipates it just as quickly, while metals like iron and steel retain heat. You can tell if a railing is steel because, if the sun is shining on it, a steel railing will be hot to the touch. Because aluminum radiates heat quickly it will be comfortable, or possibly even cool to the touch. Aluminum has other advantages, including:

• Aluminum is stronger than wrought iron. One of the reasons you might try using aluminum over actual wrought iron is that aluminum is actually the stronger material. But because cheap aluminum can dent easily, you’ll want to find a high-quality, trustworthy railing manufacturer.
• Aluminum is the strongest railing material for its weight. Vinyl railings may be lighter than aluminum, but they’re far weaker. Vinyl also grows brittle in cold weather, making it easier to break. That’s not what you want from a material that should provide a safe, solid handhold.
• Aluminum is easier to find than wrought iron. Wrought iron was the metal that launched the industrial revolution, but it didn’t always perform consistently. It had a tendency toward flaws, and breaking around those flaws. It wasn’t stable thermally, and iron rails sometimes deformed in the summer sun, derailing trains. Wrought iron was quickly abandoned after people found a process that could make steel in large quantities, meaning that true wrought iron, though attractive, can actually be hard to come by.

For all these reasons, I suggest aluminum railings. The low weight of aluminum is a benefit for those installing it, and its strength is a definite plus in a home with children. You always want to choose a child-safe balcony or porch railing, ideally one that’s long-lasting so that you don’t need to check it constantly for maintenance issues.

An alternative to aluminum is steel wrought iron-look railings, which are common nowadays. These are another good option, and they have some advantages which make them worth considering.

Comparing Steel and Aluminum Railings That Look Like Wrought Iron

When you compare aluminum and steel railings made in the style of wrought iron, they look essentially the same. The only real difference between old school wrought iron and its modern equivalents are that wrought iron had a visible grain. Steel and aluminum railings have the same classic lines, but modern rustproofing and powder coating make for railings that won't rust like wrought iron tends to.

It's true that steel railings are stronger than aluminum. However, aluminum railings are still more than strong enough to stand up to your average household. And in the appearance department, what is available in a steel railing is also available in aluminum. That means that the ornamental features found in steel railings can be constructed just as easily in aluminum with less effort. And since aluminum usually comes in a wider variety of shades than steel, aluminum railings can please all parties.

One of the decorative aluminum railing lines I recommend is the Al¹³ PLUS residential aluminum railing from Fortress Building Products. It’s a system of pre-welded panels coated with a powder coating for great looks, fade resistance, and corrosion protection. It comes in several finishes, too, like black sand--a texture that looks like the grain of real wrought iron--and white. It is a fully-developed railing system that is easy to install and comes with an I-support block to help hold the rail in place. I’ve used this railing system on other homes, and I’ll continue to recommend it, because Fortress Building Products' attention to detail is unmatched, and comes through in all their products, from their fencing to their decking.