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Balustrade Regulations for Wire Rope Balustrades Print E-mail

 

This should only be used as a guide and we recommend speaking to your local council before installing your balustrade.

There have been several revisions to the Building Code of Australia (BCA) regulations on wire balustrades in the past few years with revisions made in 2005, 2007, 2008 and again in 2009. Other websites are still recommending spacing and distances based on the old regulations so please be careful before installing your own balustrade.

Based on the most recently released regulations in MAY 2009 our understanding and recommendations are as follows.

Scenario 1. Balustrades with a fall of less than 1 meter to the area below (ie the furthest someone could fall if they fell off the edge of your deck).

In this case a balustrade is not required so you can space the wire at your own discretion and place your posts at any distance you like. We would recommend spacing your wires at between 100mm and 200mm and your posts at around 2 meters apart.

Scenario 2. Balustrades with a fall of between 1 and 4 meters.

The top of your handrail on your balustrade must be at least 1m from the floor of your deck and we recommend using a top rail of at least 40mm thick (either timber or steel).

When using Hydraulic Swaged (Preswaged Kits) with 1x19 wire or Handswaged with 7x7 wire the spacing between wires needs to be 80mm and we recommend the distance between posts no more than 1.5meters. Using a top rail at 1m off the ground and at least 40mm thick you would need to use 11 wires.

 Recommendations for wire balustrade using Hydraulic fittings and 1x19 wire rope

Runs of wire can only be installed in straight lines and must be terminated at each corner.

We recommend a maximum length of any run to be 10 meters. If you have a straight line of over 10 meters you should terminate on one side of a centre post and start a new run on the other.

 

 

BCA 2009 TABLE D2.16a WIRE BALUSTRADE CONSTRUCTION – REQUIRED TENSION FOR STAINLESS STEEL HORIZONTAL WIRES

 

Clear distance between posts (mm)

 

600

800

900

1000

1200

1500

1800

2000

2500

Wire dia. (mm)

Lay

Wire spacing (mm)

Minimum required tension in Newtons (N)

2.5

7x7

60

55

190

263

415

478

823

1080

1139

X

80

382

630

730

824

1025

1288

X

X

X

100

869

1218

1368

X

X

X

X

X

X

2.5

1x19

60

35

218

310

402

585

810

1125

1325

X

80

420

630

735

840

1050

1400

1750

X

X

100

1140

1565

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

3.0

7x7

60

15

178

270

314

506

660

965

1168

1491

80

250

413

500

741

818

1083

1370

1565

X

100

865

1278

1390

1639

X

X

X

X

X

3.0

1x19

60

25

183

261

340

520

790

1025

1180

X

80

325

555

670

785

1015

1330

1725

1980

X

100

1090

1500

1705

1910

X

X

X

X

X

4.0

7x7

60

5

73

97

122

235

440

664

813

1178

80

196

422

480

524

760

1100

1358

1530

2130

100

835

1182

1360

1528

1837

2381

2811

3098

X

4.0

1x19

60

5

5

10

15

20

147

593

890

1280

80

30

192

300

415

593

1105

1303

1435

1844

100

853

1308

1487

1610

2048

2608

3094

3418

3849

4.0

7x19

60

155

290

358

425

599

860

1080

1285

1540

80

394

654

785

915

1143

1485

1860

2105

2615

100

1038

1412

1598

1785

2165

2735

X

X

X

Notes:

1

Lay = number of strands by the number of individual wires in each strand. For example a lay of 7x19 consists of 7 strands with 19 individual wires in each strand.

2

Where a change of direction is made in a run of wire, the tensioning device is to be placed at the end of the longest span.

3

If a 3.2 mm wire is used the tension figures for 3.0 mm wire are applied.

4

This table may also be used for a set of non-continuous (single) vertical wires forming a balustrade using the appropriate clear distance between posts as the vertical clear distance between the rails.

5

X = Not allowed because the required tension would exceed the safe load of the wire.

6

Tension measured with a strain indicator.

 

 

Scenario 3. Balustrades with a fall of over 4 meters.

Horizontal wires cannot be used. You would then need to use vertical wires.

 

Click here to view the BCA Wire Spacing Regulations on Balustrades

Click here to view the BCA Wire Deflection Regulations on Balustrades

 
 
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