These are the guides we end up writing out on the phone: what the building regulations actually require, how to choose between the options, and what each decision does to the price. Written by the people who make the steelwork, in Sheffield.
We are fabricators rather than a building control body, so treat these as background rather than a ruling on your own project. Your building control officer decides what your building has to comply with.
Before you order
- Do I need planning permission?. The usual position for balconies, balustrades, external stairs, canopies and railings, what changes it, and why your local planning authority is the only body that can tell you.
- How to get a price from us. What to send us for an accurate quote, when a site survey is chargeable, what drawings cost, and what we do and do not supply in the way of structural calculations.
- Lead times by product. Guide lead times for staircases, balconies, balustrades, glass, Juliet balconies, handrails, canopies and cellar doors, what the finish does to them, and when the clock starts.
- Frequently asked questions. Surveys, drawings, lead times, delivery, installation and what we do and do not cover.
Balconies and balustrades
- Balcony & Juliet balcony building regulations. Heights, glass specification, structural loading, planning permission and when building control is involved.
- Glass balustrade building regulations. What the regulations require of a glass balustrade: height, glass type, loadings, and where each fixing method is acceptable.
- Retrofitting a balcony to an existing house. Adding, replacing or modernising a balcony on a building that was not designed for one. Support types, planning, costs and timescales.
- How to choose a glass balustrade system. Framed against frameless, finishes, fixing methods, DIY against fitted, and what to check before you order.
- Juliet balconies: a complete buying guide. Glass or metal, sizing to your doors, fixings, planning permission and real prices.
- Balustrade fixing and substrate guide. Core drilling, base plates, face fixing and concrete pockets, and what works on decking, concrete, paving, membrane roofs and parapet walls.
- How to measure for a Juliet balcony. Measuring the structural opening, the overlap we add as standard, height above finished floor level and the 100mm gap rule.
- Glass balustrade gates. Hinging off a post, a wall or a glass pane, single against double leaves, gap rules at the gate edge and why we usually recommend a framed gate.
- Raising or extending an existing balustrade. Taking an existing barrier higher without replacing it, for regulations, child safety, privacy or wind.
- Steel balcony kits, supply only. What is in the kit, what you provide, how the order runs, delivery and offloading, and kit against installed.
- Glass balustrade FAQs. The questions that come up most often on glass balustrades, answered briefly.
Staircases and handrails
- Staircase building regulations. Rise, going, width, headroom, landings and handrails, plus UKCA marking and what building control will ask for.
- Staircase classification. Private, utility and general access stairs, what each means for the dimensions, and which one applies to your project.
- Steel staircase buying guide. Straight, spiral, kite winder or curved; spine or twin stringer; treads, balustrades and finishes, and what actually drives the price.
- Steel staircase FAQs. Lead times, access, trial builds, supply only against fitted, and the practical questions.
- Handrail building regulations. Handrail heights, when one is required, grip and diameter, ramps, external rules, materials and loadings.
- Curved, raked and cranked handrails. Ramp and winding path handrails, twin rail systems, curved stair and balustrade rails, and what we need from you to quote one.
Glass
- Toughened and laminated glass: a buying guide. What each one is, when you need both, thicknesses, edges and holes, spontaneous breakage, and how to measure for cut to size panels.
- Glass quality standards and quality of vision. How glass is inspected against the Glass and Glazing Federation method, and what counts as an acceptable blemish.
- Glass and noise: acoustic performance. Independently tested sound reduction figures for laminated glass, and what they mean in practice for balustrades, screens and cellar doors.
- Glass floor building regulations. Loading, glass specification, slip resistance and fire safety for walk-on glass floors, well covers and wine cellar hatches.
- Walk-on glass floor buying guide. Choosing a thickness against span, invisible non-slip and PTV ratings, painted black borders, Ritec ClearShield, sizes, weight and offloading.
Garden and outdoor
- Washing line pole buying and fitting guide. Heights, spacing, setting poles in, ground sockets, and what else you need.
- Shade sail post buying and fitting guide. Post sizes, heights, rake, how tight a sail should actually be, footings and taking the sail down in winter.
Product FAQs
- Hinged glass floors and wine cellar doors: nineteen questions on glass, loadings, safety features, sizes, colours, weight and installation.
- Glass well covers: glass type and thickness, whether you need a steel frame, condensation, slip resistance and removal for maintenance.
- Choosing a glass wine cellar door: manual against electric, frame types, and installed examples.
- Steel walk-out balconies: support, decking, drainage, balustrade options and what a retrofit involves.
- Glass door canopies: sizes, fixings, glass specification and what a canopy will and will not do.
- Looking after walk-on glass: cleaning, anti-slip treatment and the maintenance a glass floor actually needs.
Finishes, materials and certification
- Material finishes and quality standards. Galvanising, powder coating and stainless steel: what each finish does, and what is and is not a defect.
- Natural wood. How solid timber behaves in service, and what movement and checking are normal rather than faulty.
- UKCA certification. What UKCA marking and a Declaration of Performance mean for structural steelwork, and why building control may ask for them.
- Product maintenance. Keeping steel, stainless, powder coating and glass looking right once it is fitted.
Not covered here? Call 0114 243 9009 or email sales@diomet.co.uk and we will tell you straight. If your project needs something beyond the standard range, see bespoke and made to measure, or have a look at our projects.