How to Bolt a Wood Railing Into a Cement Staircase

Mark the positions where you plan to set your railing posts with a pencil. Drill out an over-sized hole at each mark with a masonry bit. Since concrete is hard to drill into, you may find that your masonry bits become dull after a couple of holes. Have extra drill bits on hand before you begin. Drill straight down so you don’t have any crooked anchor bolts later and use a level against your drill if necessary.

Blow out the interior of the holes with a can of compressed air. You don’t want to leave any dust in the holes, or it will prevent the new concrete from bonding with the existing concrete.

Mix up a small batch of anchoring cement in a bucket. Make only enough to use within 20 minutes as anchoring concrete hardens quickly. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for the amount of water to add.

Set a galvanized steel anchor into the hole. Pour the anchoring cement around the anchor so that the concrete slightly overfills the hole. This will prevent water from puddling around the anchor. Straighten out the anchor so that it stands upright within the concrete. Repeat for the remaining holes. Allow the concrete to cure overnight.

Secure the wood railing posts to the anchors by drilling a hole into the middle of each post. Use the same size drill bit as the steel anchor’s diameter. Measure the distance of the anchor from the surface of the concrete and mark this distance on the drill bit with a piece of masking tape. Twist the post onto the steel anchor until it sits snug against the concrete.