Glass balustrades are also available from stock or custom made to suit the style and size of property. Available in curved, stepped or straight designs, balustrades add great character and style to homes. And with our systems there are no clamps between each pane of glass to disturb the view and the glass reaches top to bottom to give an uninterrupted, clearer view. Using the same minimal hand rail as the Juliette balcony and available in easy maintenance anodised aluminium, Balcony’s Juliettes and balustrades are easy to install and offer instant improvement to the look of any property.

Balcony is the UK’s leading supplier of curved patio doors and our stunning range is described by homeowners, builders, installers and architects as giving properties the ‘wow’ factor. Each door comes with high weather rating, thermally broken aluminium profiles, multi-point locking, 28mm double curved glazing with safety glass on both sides and a choice of RAL powder coat colours. A special low maintenance coating is available for the external surface of the glass to minimise the need for cleaning.

The properties, based in East Grinstead, are contemporary and Paul wanted to keep the clean lines and funky feel to the houses while maximising the use of light and space.

High quality, competitive prices and short lead times

Three standard Juliette balconies in a Royal Chrome finish for the master bedrooms to the rear of each house were ordered. Balcony’s products were primarily chosen for the look – clear glass with no vertical posts or clamps and brushed chrome handrails fit perfectly with the contemporary design. But Paul was also looking for high quality, competitive prices and short lead times. Balcony’s products fitted the complete spec.

Paul says: “The Juliette balconies have definitely added value to these developments and gives them an edge when it comes to selling in a tough market.”

The project

The project is a luxury gated development of three mews houses in the centre of the town. Set back from the main street in a secluded position, each three bedroom house has a large (2.84m) standard Juliette balcony on the master bedroom at the rear of the property and a bespoke 15sq metre balcony with hand rails at the front to the second bedroom, which could also be used as a study or dining room.

Keeping the clean lines and modern look

The houses are a contemporary design, described by Paul Nash as ‘modern and funky’. Local planners praised the development, as they are ‘a bit different’ from the norm. The properties look out onto the local church and Paul wanted to take advantage of the views in safety while keeping the clean lines and modern look. He found the Juliette balcony met his requirements and added to the appeal. Using clear glass with no vertical posts or clamps gives an uninterrupted view from the patio doors.  Most importantly for this project the un-cluttered glass balcony looks good from inside and out.

The commercial angle

The development is nearing completion and installations have gone smoothly. The first house is already sold, for £325,000. Although Paul chose Juliette balconies primarily for the look he also had to consider the commercial angle, looking for high quality, a competitive price and a short lead time. Balcony’s products fitted into this criteria and Paul feels they have added value to his development. Pleased with the service and products from Balcony, he will use them again in future projects.

This stems from two reasons; the first being lack of understanding of the required standards and the second a vested interest in sending customers towards a specific product.

I have had customers calling regards a juliet balcony saying they have been told they need to use 15mm toughened glass, or someone who wanted to glaze a landing staircase was told he had to use 19mm toughened glass. Both of the above turned out to be unnecessary and they had their railing made with 10mm toughened.

When glass is used in balconies, balustrades, Juliet balconies etc. there is an obligation to use what is designated as safety glass, this can be either toughened, laminated or toughened &laminated.

Definition of toughened glass: Glass that has undergone treatment also called “tempering” where the glass is heated to close to seven hundred (700) degrees Celsius and using air cooled quickly creating a strong layer on both faces of the glass while locking inside the glass a lot of tension. This causes the glass to become more resistant to impact four times more than regular float glass. When toughened glass breaks it will shatter into thousands of small glass pieces and therefore, not dangerous little bits.

Definition of laminated glass: Safety glass that is made from two or more glass panels with a plastic or resin based interlayer that is allowed to break under impact but must not allow the impacting body to penetrate the panel.

Throughout Europe, excluding the UK, single pane toughened glass is not allowed. Only laminated glass is allowed. But in the United Kingdom the majority of glass used in balustrades is toughened. Laminated glass is slowly becoming more widely used. Due to the extra cost of laminated glass I believe that until legislation turns this into a requirement toughened glass will remain number one in balconies and balustrades.

Thickness and type of glass depends on:

1) The area it must protect
2) Impact class required
3) Size of each single pane used.
4) The distance or depth of the balcony or terrace and..
5) The type of railing, balustrade or balcony

There are three British standards that are relevant to glass classification and specification on Balconies, railings and balustrades: BS6180, BS6399:1 and BS6206.

Please feel free to ask any specific question.