Balustrades Selection Guide

Melton Classics offers the industry’s largest selection of classic architectural balustrades in four low maintenance and maintenance free materials, and over 100 classically beautiful balustrade designs. Whether you are looking for a balcony balustrade, patio balustrade, or a roof balustrade, Melton Classics has the ideal balustrade system for your design, application and budget. In addition to our huge selection of classic balustrade designs, custom balustrade and matching existing balustrade is our specialty. 

Please call one of our Balustrade Specialists at 800-963-3060 now for a free consultation and quotation for your balustrade project.

This Balustrades Selection Guide has been provided as a service to assist you with gathering the necessary information to buy a balustrade system that will enhance your architectural design, work well with your building application, and add beauty and elegance to your building project for years to come. The Balustrade Specialists at Melton Classics have over 4 decades of combined experience with helping customers like you purchase a balustrade that will enhance their architectural design, and meet their application and budget needs. Please give us a call at your convenience at 800-963-3060 to discuss you needs, project application and for assistance with selecting the ideal balustrade for your needs. 

The Balustrades Selection Guide below provides information on our Melton Classics balustrades to help you choose which balustrade product best fits your needs.

Balustrades Selection Guide

Overview of Balustrade System Features

MarbleTex™ Polymer Stone Balustrades

This durable prefinished synthetic stone balustrade system has integral coloration throughout every component in the balustrade, and is available in white, one of our many premium colors, or we can custom match the color to your other architectural elements. MarbleTex Balustrades provide the look and feel of stone, but are roto-cast to greatly reduce system weight for balcony or roof top applications where weight is a concern. Custom balustrade designs and curved railings and curved stairs are available.

Architectural Urethane™ Polyurethane Balustrades

Architectural Urethane Balustrades are cast in durable high density polyurethane to provide the classic look and feel of painted wood with a density similar to white pine without the worries of rot, insects or splintering. One of our lightest weight and simple to install balustrade systems, Architectural Urethane Balustrades can be provided with radius railings and radius stairs. Custom balustrade designs are also available.

MeltonStone™ Cast Stone Balustrades

Hand cast in solid architectural cast stone to the exacting specifications of the Cast Stone Institute, MeltonStone Balustrades give the appearance and maturing characteristics of natural stone at much lower costs. MeltonStone provides the weight and feel of natural stone.

VinylClassic™ Vinyl Balustrades

Crafted from pure white vinyl and structurally enhanced with aluminum structural members, our VinylClassic Balustrades are our lightest weight and lowest cost balustrade system. VinylClassic vinyl balustrades are maintenance free, and are not recommended to be painted. Radius railings and custom designs are not available with this system.

How to Get Your Free Melton Classics Balustrade Consultation and Balustrade System Quotation

In order to prepare you a balustrade estimate, please provide us with a floor plan of the balustrade from your architectural drawings, or even a rough hand sketch of your balustrade layout with dimensions will be sufficient for a quotation. An accurate estimate and quotation for standard 4″ sphere code spacing will also require that you supply us with your balustrade selection and railing height requirements, as well. After you have reviewed our Balustrade Selection Assistance information, we would like to offer you a free consultation during which one of our experienced Balustrade Specialists will discuss your design goals, analyze your balustrade system requirements, and make product recommendations based on your needs. Please call one of our Architectural Balustrade Specialists at 800-963-3060, and they will be pleased to walk you through the balustrade selection process and provide you a competitively priced quotation for your Melton Classics Balustrade.

Balustrade System Building Code Compliance

All Melton Classics balustrade systems are engineered to meet the IBC structural testing codes for guard rails because your safety is our main consideration. We also design our balustrade systems so that they allow for compliance with building code safety requirements for baluster spacing and railing height. Baluster spacing building codes vary in different, jurisdictions although a 4″ sphere requirement is most common. That is, the balusters must be spaced so that you cannot pass a 4″ sphere or ball through the balustrade system. Melton Classics Balustrades allow for flexible baluster spacing so that, when spaced properly by the installer, compliance with these baluster spacing codes may be achieved or wider spacing is possible when appropriate.

The Balustrade Selection Guide above shows on center spacing guides for our most popular designs to assist you with ensuring code compliance with a 4″ sphere spacing code.

For applications where there is no human access to the area surrounded by the balustrade system such as false balustrades or false porches, some jurisdictions allow for baluster spacing to be widened beyond the 4″ sphere code spacing, if desired. However, spacing your balusters too far apart will negatively affect the esthetic appeal of the balustrade. Please feel free to call one of our experienced Melton Classics Balustrade Specialists for assistance in making a determination on baluster spacing for these atypical spacing applications. Based on the specific building codes in your area, there is also a railing height requirement usually measured from the floor/deck to the top of the handrail. The common rail height requirement for accessible areas is a balustrade railing height of either 36″+, or 42″+. However, depending on the type of application (commercial or residential), and the building codes in your area this height requirement may vary. For accurate building code information contact the building inspector in your area, or your structural engineer.

Balustrade System Weight Considerations

One of the most important considerations in the selection of a balustrade system is system weight. If your application is elevated such as a balcony balustrade, widow’s walk, parapet balustrade or roof balustrade where you need to limit the weight of the balustrade system, Melton Classics has engineered several of our balustrades so that they provide a substantial appearance at greatly reduced weight. The Balustrade Selection Guide above gives weight estimates per foot of balustrade (Includes one foot of both hand rail and foot rail, and enough balusters to meet a 4″ sphere baluster spacing code). Consult with your structural engineer to determine the appropriate weight balustrades system for your specific requirements.

Curved Railings and Stairs

Radius Balustrades, radius railings and radius stairs nothing adds beauty and elegance to your project better than a sweeping curved balustrade or radius stairway balustrade. Melton Classics has engineered our balustrades to provide the design professional the ability to create elegance and drama in their buildings with curved balustrades and stairs. For on plane flat radius railings, the radius and depth of the arc is all that is needed to provide a quotation. For helical railings, or radius stairs we ask for a template and the rise from ground level to the top of the porch, as well as, the run or distance from the vertical wall to the edge of the radius stairway. Contact your Melton Classics Balustrade Specialist at 800-963-3060 for information on how you can add excitement to your balustrade by adding an elegant curved balustrade railings to your home.

Balustrades Finishes and Colors

Melton Classics offers the design professional an unlimited palette of balustrade colors, textures and finishes from which to create the look, feel and hue they require. In addition to our standard white or premium colors, custom colored balustrades are available to allow complete coordination of your design elements. Call 800-963-3060 for information on how our Balustrade Specialists can assist you in coordinating the finish and color of your balustrades, columns and other exterior millwork elements.

Whether you desire the appearance and weight of stone balustrades, the look of painted wood balustrades, the feel and look of stone balustrade with reduced weight, or want the look of a classic balustrade at an amazingly affordable price, Melton Classics has the ideal balustrade for your design, application and budget.

 

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