Glass Balustrades

Frameless Glass Balustrades from IQ Glass are expertly designed to suit each project application, from staircases to external balconies

Frameless Glass Balustrades

Frameless Glass Balustrades are a popular architectural glazing design feature on many projects, internally or externally, to create a clear yet strong safety barrier.

Using toughened laminated structural glass, specially designed for use as frameless balustrades, you can create a structural balustrade that creates no obstruction insight through a space with a minimal contemporary finish throughout a build.

Frameless glass balustrades can be used on external balconies, internal level changes or stairwells with various fixing techniques depending on the surrounding elements. They can also be integrated into a number of our aluminium door frames to create a minimal Juliette Balcony. Using a proprietary channel base IQ Glass can hide all base fixings away to give a completely frameless glass panel for safety use.

Any external glass balustrades from IQ Glass will be made with a specially designed, externally rated interlayer for excellent levels of weather resistance. These strong ionoplast interlayers are clear and thin but do not weather like standard PVB interlayers on the external edges of the glass balustrade, for a longer life.

Transparent Safety Barriers

Due to the minimal fixing of frameless glass balustrades, you need to be secure in the knowledge of the safety and reliability of this safety barrier. With IQ’s in-house design and structural engineering team, we can design a minimal, aesthetically neat and functional glass barrier between levels with no visible fixings.

Balustrades can be created with curved glass, at lengths of over 6m long and of varying heights to give greater freedom of design for these bespoke structural glass elements. Coloured interlayers can also be introduced to the laminating procedure to create a more decorative effect or integrating other laminated materials such as wire meshes of fabrics for an even different effect.

Handles, handrails and caps can be added to the glass balustrade design as required and different edging details are available to compliment all architectural designs.

IQ would always recommend using specialist low iron glass in frameless balustrading. This will eliminate any ‘greening’ effect that could be visible on the exposed glass edges of the frameless balustrade.

At the Showroom

Seeing this type of frameless glazing solutions in person allows the completely minimal design to be genuinely appreciated.

The roof terrace at the IQ Glass showroom is protected by frameless glass balustrades, which provide a safety barrier without obstruction views or the flow of natural light.

Other glass balustrade solutions can be seen at the showroom, such as Opti Edge, which uses a glass capping laminated to a frameless glass balustrade to create an extremely durable glass balustrade without compromising on the minimal design.

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Opti Edge

Opti Edge frameless glass balustrades can be specified up to 20m wide. The pane on top of the balustrade creates a smooth glass surface. This surface protects the interlayer from water damage and stops dirt. Opti Edge balustrades provide easy maintenance.

Glass fins and beams can also be specified for frameless Opti Edge balustrades. The innovative solution gives the beams and fins a straight edge and clean finish.

Specification

Technical Specifications

The fixing option most suitable for any specific glass balustrade installation will depend on the glass specification, location of the balustrade, project type and building construction. IQ Glass investigate all these elements of the building construction during our design phase and create a balustrade and associated fixing method most suited to your project.

For over slab fixing, the balustrades sit on top of the surface and held in place with a 124.5mm high fixing that is bolted down below the balustrade for high levels of strength. This method of fixing allows for a drainage profile to be installed to help channel waterway that flows down the glass. This method of fixing enables a maximum line load of 3kN.

Offset over slab fixing is installed in a similar method, however, the fixing is bolted down into the slab below through a fixing on the inward-facing side of the balustrade.

The Sieger® balustrade system and frameless structural glass balustrades are suitable for commercial use such as factories and warehouses (with light traffic) and retail. Within these buildings, the maximum height for the glass balustrades is 900mm for stairs and ramps, while 1100mm is the maximum height for landings and edges of floors, due to regulations.

The line load requirements for commercial buildings vary depending on the location. Office and work areas with light pedestrian use have a line load requirement of 0.36 kN/m (applied 1100mm above FFL), 0.5 kN/m2 UDL (applied to the entire glass face, below line load height), 0.25kN concentrated load (applied to any part of the glass panel below line load).

Channel Fixing for Balustrades

This fixing option is the most minimal option for fixing balustrades. The toughened laminated structural glass balustrade is fixed into a pre made and specially designed balustrade channel. This channel is designed to be installed below finished floor level for a frameless balustrade design.

The balustrade can be fixed on the edge of the slab which allows water from the balcony to drain through the balustrade system. A drainage channel can be installed by using this method of fixing and a maximum line load of 3 kN is available.

IQ Glass will design our glass balustrade channel fixing to suit the project requirements and the positioning of the balustrade installation. 

This type of balustrading method can be used internally or externally and is a perfect option for balcony and terrace areas.

Bolt Fixing for Balustrades

A bolt fixing design is generally used where a glass balustrade is requirement to be fixed to the outside of a structure, for instance staircases.

There are various ways that we can design this type of balustrade fixing in order to achieve the most preferred design finish for your project. This fixing method is only suitable for balustrades with a maximum height of 1.1m.

A double row of 70mm stainless steel bolts can be used to secure the structural glass balustrade to the structure. These architectural bolts will protrude approximately 10mm from the face of the glass to create a sleek and minimal exposed fixing design to the surface mounted balustrade.

Alternatively we can cover these bolts with an aluminium or metal pressing to hide them away.

Bolted/Clamping Plate Fixing for Balustrades

If a balustrade is over 1.1m high then higher specification fixing techniques must be employed to ensure that there is minimal deflection at the head.

The most preferred fixing method for these over height balustrades is a bolted plate or clamping plate fixing detail. This is a surface mounted balustrade fixing method. Here a steel fixing plate is fixed to the surface of the balustrade with countersunk fixing bolts.

This steel plate offers a larger surface area of fixing than a basic bolt fixing and can therefore provide a higher level of stability to the tall balustrade.

This clamping or bolted plate can then be covered with aluminium or metal pressings for a neat visual design.

Deflection of Balustrades

When a structural glass balustrade is built and installed the glass is clamped or bolted at the base normally by only 90mm. The individual glass units will be installed fully aligned however there can be a natural bow in the glass and there will be a deflection on the glass when the panels are leant on or have a load applied to them. This alignment will be slightly reduced due to the inherent deflection in cantilevered constructions.

With the in house design and structural engineering capabilities at IQ Glass, these deflection rates are greatly reduced when compared to other glass balustrade providers however it cannot be completed engineered out.

A misalignment of a few millimetres may start to appear in the alignment of structural glass balustrades.

To overcome this IQ, can offer a range of various beautiful metal capping handrail channels available in Stainless Steel, Bronze, Polished Chrome, or any other specialist architectural metal. Please contact us for more information.