Exterior Handrails Are a Great Design Opportunity

As the weather is warmer in the summer months, most of us will spend a lot more time outdoors. Cooking outside and hosting backyard parties for friends and family has become a summer ritual. With the extra time outside and guests coming and going, you will want to make sure that the exterior of your home is looking its best and safe for everyone who will spend time there.

Unless your home is perfectly ground level, you will need stairs in order to enter and exit your home. Handrails are often overlooked in the design of exterior stairs, but they should never be taken for granted. Handrails offer safety and stability to your exterior steps, and help to prevent falls from trips, slips, and missteps. Some homes may have more exterior stairs than others. Some homes may only have steps in the front of their home while others may have deck stairs or stairs leading from the back of the house to the yard, but every set of stairs without handrails can be dangerous and lead to a fall, especially at night. Building codes will determine how many steps you can have before needing a handrail, but if your housemates or guests include children or the elderly, taking safety precautions, like adding handrails, will help decrease the likelihood of accidental injury.

Some believe that adding exterior handrails will create an eyesore, but this is opposite to the truth. Handrails offer homeowners an often missed design opportunity. By adding handrails to your exterior steps, you are able to extend your personal style to the exterior of your home. Handrails are a beautiful addition and come in many materials and designs. Think of adding handrails as an opportunity to customize your exterior stairs. Adding handrails to the front steps of your home will enhance curb appeal. Adding them to the rear of your home will help transform and customize your yard.

So, before you plan your next barbecue party, plan the design of your new exterior handrails.

Article by Amber Burkhart

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