How to Build a Garage Railing
So, you’re thinking of installing a handrail in your garage, or you’ve already bought on and are looking to learn how to properly install it?
Well, you’ve come to the right place! We here at Simplified Building have supplied thousands of railings and assisted customers with installation for many years. They don’t call us the “Railing Experts” for nothing (they don’t actually call us that, I just made that up but it’s true, we are experts).
In this article, we will discuss our step-by-step guide on how to build a railing for your garage that takes you all the way from planning to a completed installation.
Step 1: Deciding Railing Mounting Points
Step 2: Measure the Length and Angle of the Space
Step 3: Choose a DIY Railing or a Railing Kit
Step 4: Gather the Necessary Tools
Step 6: Attach Railing Flanges to Surfaces or Walls
Step 7: Attach Posts to Mounted Flanges
Step 8: Attach Handrail to Posts
Step 9: Completing Your Handrail
Planning Your Garage Railing
There are a few things you MUST consider before searching for your garage handrail.
Step 1: Deciding Railing Mounting Points
Do you want your railing to be wall-mounted, surface-mounted, or a combination of the two? This is important to decide before beginning the search for a handrail.
Tip #1: Wall-mounted handrails will save you space, but if you don’t want to mount it to a wall or have a wall to mount it to, then a surface-mounted handrail is the way to go.
Step 2: Measure the Length and Angle of the Space
This is where some basic measurements and a little math come into play. You can use the rise-and-run measure method where you measure the length and height of your steps and then use the Pythagorean theorem of a2 + b2 = c2. This will help you figure out the length of handrail you’ll need.
There are two other direct methods which would be using a tape measure where you grab a friend measure the length from the posts will be located. Or you can use that same buddy and use some string to measure it.
However, if you’re at a point where no buddy (pun intended) is around then you can use a stick at one end to hold and measure the length of handrail you need.
Tip #2: We recommend rounding up to the nearest half foot if you are custom ordering a railing. If you purchase a kit from our site, you can go round up to the nearest foot. Both will allow you to cut the pipe on-site to ensure the best fit for your garage steps.
Step 3: Choose a DIY Railing or a Railing Kit
Do you want to buy a handrail kit that comes with all the parts needed? Or do you want to go down the DIY path and find all the parts yourself?
Our kits give you everything you need including mounting hardware. If you choose to do it yourself, you’ll want to ensure you have everything you need. If you need a little assistance, our team of protect specialists are here to help you.
Tip #3: You can save time with a kit, or you can save a couple dollars and do it yourself.
The Tools You Need to Build a Garage Railing
Installing a handrail doesn’t require a wide range of tools to install, but here are some important ones to point out.
Step 4: Gather the Necessary Tools
At the very least, you will need:
- Standard drill
- Hex key
- Hammer
- Tape Measure
- Leveler
- Rubber mallet
Tip #4: If installing in concrete or cement, YOU NEED A HAMMER DRILL. Since most garages will have a concrete or cement floor, a hammer drill is a necessity. A standard drill will not be effective enough to drill the proper anchor holes into concrete or cement.
Step 5: Wear PPE!
We can’t stress it enough. PPE is crucial to a safe and successful handrail installation.
This means eye, hand, and feet protection. When drilling into concrete or if you need to cut a pipe down in length, you’ll want safety glasses/goggle so that particles won’t fly into your eyes. Gloves to protect your hands for obvious reasons. Lastly, steel-toe boots to protect your feet in case any pipes or fittings are accidentally dropped.
Step 6: Attaching Your Railing Flanges to Surfaces or Walls
Attaching a flange to the wall is simple, right? Well, yes, but there’s a lot more you need to think about before just drilling into the wall or ground.
Make sure you have the right anchors and mounting hardware. When attaching to the ground, we recommend sleeve anchors. For walls, we recommend Tapcon screws.
Plugging this again, our handrail kits come with all the mounting hardware you’ll need for this project!
Tip #5: Before drilling your anchor holes, make sure everything is inline.
Mark the drill holes on the ground or wall and ensure they are inline before drilling. Use a ruler, a flat box, or something that will tell you the anchor holes are inline.
Tip #6: Your surface flanges can be parallel or perpendicular to the direction of your handrail.
Some will say that having them perpendicular to the handrail is better, but just know that they can go in either direction. This decision may ultimately depend on the space available on your stairs.
If wall mounted, there’s only one way to install which is in the direction of the stair and flange so hopefully there’s no confusion there.
Tip #7: Make sure your anchor holes are deep enough.
This is critical to making sure your flanges are secured and stable for the handrail. Another key point here is to make sure the holes you’ve drilled are cleared out of any dirt/dust/debris of concrete so that your screws fit properly.
Step 7: Attach Posts to Mounted Flanges
This step is crucial to making sure that the posts are mounted at the right height that you need.
Tip #8: Cut the pipe if needed.
This applies to both the posts and the handrail, but you can cut the pipe if the height or length is greater than what you need.
Tip #9: Use a level.
While that may sound obvious, sometimes when you’re installing the posts you may think “well the flanges are flat so the posts will be flat”, that’s not always the case. Take the time to level the posts so they are perfectly upright.
Step 8: AttachYour Garage Railing to Posts
You’re almost done! But we need to make sure we don’t anything fall by the wayside as we near the ending of our handrail installation.
Tip #10: Do not fully tighten down all set screws yet.
You want to screw down the set screws to hold your handrail, posts, and flanges in place, but it’s important to not tighten down all set screws fully until you have given the handrail a test run. Which leads to the next tip.
Tip #11: Ensure your railing is the correct height, give it a test.
You followed the directions, and you ordered the right height and length, but things can still change. important to give your railing a test run before solidifying it. Check the height and length to ensure everything is where you want it to be.
Completing Your Garage Railing
We’re at the finish line! Just a few quick things to tighten up (pun intended) this handrail before we are officially completed!
Step 9: Tighten down all set screws
Now that you’ve given it a test run and solidified its the right height and length. Tighten all the set screws down to make sure every part of your handrail is stable.
Tip #12: Clean up the garage.
Now I don’t mean you have to do a full spring cleaning of your garage (or maybe I do if that’s something you’ve been putting off for a while). You will want to vacuum any dust or dirt and pick up any loose tools and screws.
Tip #13: Give yourself or your team a high-five and have a celebratory drink of choice!
This is self-explanatory.
In Review
I’m so proud of you for making it to the end with your newly constructed garage railing!
If you’re looking to start building now, you can purchase a handrail kit today! Or you can contact one of our project specialists to help you design a custom handrail.
Once you’ve installed your handrail, we’d love to see it! Send us pictures or tag @simplifiedbuilding on social media!
