Railing or No Railing?

How was your 4th of July? Ours was very nice, but HOT!!! 
This is our house, and we have been contemplating the idea of taking out the railing. I like how it looks, but there are several reasons on why we would want to take it out.
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This is the porch looking one way from the front door.
1. You could see it doesn’t have a lot of space to walk.
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2. If we took the railing out we would have at least an extra foot of space.
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This is the porch looking the other direction from the front door.
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When sitting down on the chairs this is the view. (on the left side.)
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The view from the right side.
3. You could see the railing is not in the best shape and could really use a caulking and repainting.
4. The railing also blocks the view.
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These Knock-out-Roses are bigger than they usually get. We had a very mild winter.
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So what do you think?
Should we take out the railing?
Or should we keep the railing?
Click on the comment link below and let us know.
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16 comments:

  1. My husband and I just had this same conversation a few days ago. Our house is 20 years old and the front porch is about the same width as yours and it was originally built with railing. We are very pleased that ours is now taken down for all of the reasons that you have explained. We have rockers on our porch and there would not have been enough room to have them if we still had the railing. I completely agree with you too about how railing blocks the view and confines the space. I spend alot of time on our front porch especially in the morning for my devotional and then in the evenings reading, so not having the railing has been a big plus for us. We live in Texas, so our next purchase for the porch will be ceiling fans for these HOT summer days!

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    1. Thank you for your information. It is nice to hear from someone who had the same situation. I did get a rocker at a garage sale that I resold it at a garage sale because there was not enough room on the porch. If we take it out I will have to look for another one.

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  2. We have railing on our porch, but it truly serves a purpose because our house sits high on stilts. I also think you should remove it to open it up and modernize it.

    Andrea L.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the info. I like the idea of modernizing it.

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  3. I would take the railing down and extend the concrete porch ... Just so I could have more room. Have you tried www.houzz.com they have some great ideas on there.

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    1. No, I have not tried that website. I will have to check it out. I don't really have room to add on the one side. We thought about it on the other side. Thank you for the input.

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    2. I was just checking out houzz.com, and I could spend hours on there. I think I will have to show my hubby this before we make our final decision.

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  4. You could take down the old and put up a more contemporary looking railing or stone wall --- low enough to use as additional seating area.

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    Replies
    1. I forgot, a while back we had talked about putting up a railing on the outside of the porch or posts. It would give us the extra space and we would still have the look of the railing. I like your idea of changing the style of it or putting up a stone wall. I think if we were to do this we would leave the railing off for a little and see if we really miss it. Thanks for your comments.

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  5. I saw the first picture and thought you should leave it, it adds nice curb appeal. But can you even use it? No. After seeing the other pictures, especially the extra foot of space, I think you definitely should take it out. You have such nice landscaping and now I think the railing clutters it up a bit. Removing the railing will simplify it and you'll have another space you can enjoy.

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  6. I would take it down. It would open everything up and make it more welcoming for people to come sit.

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    1. I agree with you about it will make it more welcoming, and I am leaning towards taking the railing down.

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  7. I would take it down. I think it will open up the space so much and make it seem more like an outdoor "room". You seem to have such a beautiful view that is being blocked by your railing. Good luck!!

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    1. Thank you for your input. I think my husband is convinced. Now we need to find the time to do it.

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  8. I agree take it down. It will make the porch stand out more. Plus it's not like there is a huge drop off the porch so it's not needed for safety.

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Thank you for your comments!