Westbury Aluminum Railing, Installed on Twin Cities Decks
If you've been weighing your options for deck materials, chances are you've already heard about Westbury. Here, we'll talk about the railing itself and about getting it installed right. Two Teacher Construction has been building decks across the west and southwest metro since 1996, and Westbury aluminum railing is what we've installed on a large share of them. Below, we'll talk about what the Westbury system is, the styles and colors we install, and how it complements a composite deck.
We install Westbury on new decks and as part of full deck makeovers in Mound, Minnetonka, Wayzata, Plymouth, Orono, Excelsior, Eden Prairie, and the surrounding lake communities.
What Westbury Aluminum Railing Is
Westbury is a powder-coated aluminum railing system made by Digger Specialties Inc., built specifically for residential and commercial decks, porches, and balconies. Posts, rails, and infill are made out of architectural-grade aluminum, then finished with a baked-on powder coat that carries both the color and the weather protection your deck needs to last for decades.
The case for aluminum is pretty straightforward. Wood railing rots, splits, and needs to be sanded and re-stained on a cycle. Iron and steel rust. Aluminum does none of the above, and the powder coat doesn't peel the way paint on a wood rail eventually does. An occasional rinse with a hose is pretty close to all the maintenance you'll ever need to perform. That's the difference between a railing you have the keep maintaining, and one you essentially forget about after install day.
The finish is not an afterthought either. Westbury runs its aluminum through a 10-step powder-coating process, and cures it at 400 degrees. The coating is certified to the AAMA 2604 standard. In plain terms, it's built to resist fading, chipping, and corrosion through Minnesota winters, and it's backed by a bulletproof lifetime limited warranty that covers the structure and the finish.
Why Homeowners Choose Westbury Over Wood or Steel
For anyone weighing aluminum deck railing against wood or another type of metal deck railing, there are a few things that tend to settle the decision:
It is genuinely maintenance-free.
No staining, no sealing, no sanding, and no rust treatment, year after year.
The finish lasts.
Because the powder coat is bonded to the aluminum rather than brushed on, it holds color and resists chipping far longer than a painted wood rail.
The sightlines are cleaner.
Aluminum is strong enough to do the job with a slimmer profile than bulky wood posts and rails, so you keep more of your deck's natural view. On a lake-facing or elevated deck, that really matters.
It stays solid.
Aluminum has no seasonal wobble, no warping, and no swelling. The rail feels the same in February as it does in July.
Set against a wood rail that has to be refinished every few seasons, or a steel rail that shows rust at the welds down the road, aluminum asks the least of you once it's up. That is why it has become the default pairing for a maintenance-free composite deck.
Westbury Railing Styles We Install
Westbury makes a deep line of railing styles. They share the same aluminum construction and powder-coat finish but give very different looks, so the right one depends on your deck and your view. The styles we work with most:
Tuscany
Tuscany is the classic picket style and the best-selling product in the Westbury line. A clean aluminum frame, evenly spaced vertical balusters, and a flat top rail. It reads as traditional or contemporary depending on the color, suits the widest range of homes, and the flat top gives you somewhere to rest a drink or lean on.
VertiCable
VertiCable swaps the pickets for vertical stainless steel cable inside an aluminum frame. The sections are factory-assembled and tensioned, so the cable stays tight, and the result is a near-invisible barrier that opens the view while keeping the durability of an aluminum system. It is the one to look at when the sightline is the whole point.
Riviera, Montego, and Veranda
Beyond the two above, Westbury offers Riviera, a multi-rail design, and Montego, which features curved balusters, as well as Veranda, which sets full tempered-glass panels into the frame for a completely unobstructed view. If one of these fits your deck preferences better, we can offer them.
We keep dedicated photo galleries for the individual styles so you can see each one finished on a real deck. If you want to see more, click here.
How Westbury Pairs With a Composite Deck
Westbury and composite decking were made for eachother, and pairing them is where the maintenance-free promise really pays off. Composite boards take the staining and sealing out of the deck surface. An powder-coated aluminum rail takes the same maintenance work out of your railing. Put them together and you have a deck that asks for little more than a yearly cleaning.
We've installed Westbury alongside every composite and PVC decking line we carry, including Trex, TimberTech, Azek, and Deckorators, so we know that the rail can be specified to suit whichever boards you pick. Its slim profile and attractive colors coordinate easily with the full range of composite tones, whether you want to match the deck for a unified look, or contrast it for more definition.
If the decking you want is still an open question, our composite deck builder page dives deeper into the board options we can offer you. Decking and railing are choices best made together, and we will show you how each Westbury style and color works with your decking selection.
A Railing Is Only as Good as the Install
Westbury is engineered well, but a railing still has to be installed correctly for maximum safety and longevity. That's where a local crew that does its own work matters. Two Teacher Construction has been building decks and railing in the Twin Cities since 1996, based in Mound and concentrated across the west and southwest metro, from Minnetonka and Wayzata to Eden Prairie, Chanhassen, Edina, and the lake towns in between.
When you work with Two Teacher, you know the quality you're getting before you start. We are:
A licensed Minnesota contractor (#BC073200)
EPA Lead-Safe Certified (NAT-109447-1)
Four-time Reader's Choice Award winner
What Goes Into the Cost of a Westbury Railing Project
Every deck is different, so what a Westbury project runs depends on your specific project rather than just a flat rate number. The factors that change the price the most are:
- Total linear footage. The full run of railing around the deck is the single biggest driver. A small landing needs a fraction of what a full-blown wraparound deck does.
- Stairs and transitions. Stair railing, and the extra posts and angles that come with it, take more labor and material than straight, level runs.
- Height and layout. Taller decks, multiple levels, and complex shapes need more posts and more careful structural work.
- Style and color. A VertiCable or glass section is a much different price than standard Tuscany pickets, and color selection factors in as well.
The easist way to find out what your project is going to take is a real-life conversation about your actual deck. We will look at your deck's layout, walk through the style and color options, and lay out the scope clearly. Hearth financing is available if you would rather spread out the investment over time. When you are ready, contact us for an estimate.
Get a Quote for Westbury Railing
If you are ready to put Westbury aluminum railing on a new deck or a deck makeover, we are glad to walk you through the styles, the colors, and what your project would involve. Call (952) 472-5670 or reach out through our contact page, and you will be talking with a local Westbury installer who handles the whole job in-house, start to finish.