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    Home » Blog

    How to Repurpose Exterior Iron Stair Railings

    by Jennifer Fancher 8 Comments Published: 4/14/20 Updated: 3/11/22 This post may contain affiliate links.

    31 shares
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    Once a month, a group of us get together for a fun thrifty flip transformation. I hope you’ll love them as much as I do! Today I'm sharing how to repurpose exterior iron stair railings for our front porch!

    Have you ever tackled a project and thought something wasn't quite finished? That there was something missing?

    That was how we felt after we limewashed our Meadow Brook Home.

    It was so much better than the before, but it wasn't quite right.

    For starters, the 80s red brick pavers needed repair.

    And then the front porch didn't have any....oomph.

    When one of our family members took down some old iron stair rails and asked us if we could do anything with them, we said sure!

    But to be honest, we had no idea if they would work.

    We had to do some finagling, but they are up! Here's how we did it!

    Table of Contents

    • How to Repurpose Exterior Iron Stair Railings
        • UPDATE! See our Brick Patio Reveal!
      • Clark and Aldine / How to Make a Sustainable Natural Firewood Stack
      • Deeply Southern Home / Ikea Kallax Hack - How to Add Sliding Doors to Any Bookshelf
      • Noting Grace / How to Repurpose Exterior Iron Stair Railings
      • White Arrows Home / Painted TV Trays Made New Again

    How to Repurpose
    Exterior Iron Stair Railings

    (Some affiliate links are provided below. Full disclosure here.)

    Materials Used:

    Iron Stair Railings
    Level
    Masonry Screws and Drill Bit
    Concrete
    Concrete Mixing Tub
    Impact Driver
    Scrap wood for frame
    Trowel or dry wall knife for concrete


    To begin, first we started with checking how level these were.

    We immediately saw our problem.

    The ground was too high for the rails to be level, so we had to dig down a few inches until we found just the right spot.

    This is such an important step, so take your time.

    But you may have to dig a little, test for level, dig a little more, and maybe add back some dirt, test for level again. Rinse. Repeat.

    Just be patient and get this first step right.

    Once we were certain our rails were level, we built these wooden forms to pour the concrete.

    We had scrap wood on hand - in fact our scraps were made of MDF from a previous project.

    form box for concrete iron rails

    So as you can see that we had to dig down about 4 inches.

    We didn't nail the wood form frame together, since the dirt held it in place.

    plastic concrete tub, concrete and dry wall knife

    Now it's concrete time!

    Follow the directions on the bag for mixing. We used a mixing tub and a dry wall knife to mix it all together.

    mixing concrete in a plastic concrete tub

    Once it's fully incorporated, you are ready to pour your concrete.

    We set the rails in place and then screwed them into the porch bricks to help keep it steady.

    new iron stair railings on brick front porch

    Only work on one at a time, but once it was in place, we poured the concrete.

    concrete poured around iron rails

    We wanted a secure footing, so we poured about 4 inches of concrete into each form.

    poured concrete around porch rails

    As you can see, it wasn't centered or perfect, but it was level and lined up with the porch for a good sight line - and that's what matters!

    But Jen, what's a sight line?

    sight line of porch railing

    See how parallel the iron railing is to the steps?

    That's your sight line! Make sure it lines up.

    final installation of porch rails

    The concrete was dry in just a few hours and we had these beautiful rails.

    However, we didn't remove the wood forms until the next day.

    You want to make sure the concrete is fully cured.

    So while we almost passed on this project, I'm so glad we gave it a try!

    Stay tuned for later this week, when we share our brick patio reveal. Be sure to sign up for my newsletter so you don't miss the next post!

    UPDATE! See our Brick Patio Reveal!

    But now it's time for some more inspiration!

    A group of bloggers get together once a month to share a fun and easy DIY for you to try! Check out these fun posts!

    Clark and Aldine / How to Make a Sustainable Natural Firewood Stack

    Deeply Southern Home / Ikea Kallax Hack - How to Add Sliding Doors to Any Bookshelf

    Noting Grace / How to Repurpose Exterior Iron Stair Railings

    new iron stair railings on brick front porch

    White Arrows Home / Painted TV Trays Made New Again

    « Welcome Home Sunday Week 66
    How to Install and Mortar Wash a Herringbone Brick Patio »

    Join the List

    for your weekly Noting Grace fix.

    Reader Interactions

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    1. Jennifer Fancher

      April 20, 2020 at 7:51 am

      Thank you Kristin! I hope all is well with you, my friend!

    2. Kristin

      April 15, 2020 at 3:13 pm

      Your house is so beautiful and you just used the curb appeal even more! Such a great idea!

    3. Jennifer Fancher

      April 14, 2020 at 3:28 pm

      Thank you my friend! I am so glad you are a part of this with me!

    4. Jennifer Fancher

      April 14, 2020 at 3:28 pm

      Thank you so much Michelle! I'm so glad this inspired you! Have a great week!

    5. Leslie

      April 14, 2020 at 3:08 pm

      Gosh, this is what I love about this series. Showing that repurposing works. You just have to be a little creative sometimes. Thank you for hosting us!

    6. Michelle

      April 14, 2020 at 10:56 am

      This is an amazing tutorial! The railings really add a lot of character to the home. They're beautiful!

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    Jen and Trent Fancher of Noting Grace

    Hi, We're Jen and Trent!

    We’re the DIYers behind the projects here at Noting Grace. We know that having the home of our dreams isn’t a reality for most of us, but you can create a home you love with a little bit of ingenuity.

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    31 shares