Customer Reviews for Veranda Surface Mount Bracket and Post Kit

Works very well, a very sturdy post installation. I'm happy with results.

Pros - Once the bracket is mounted adequately to the concrete it works fine. Post looks good with a vinyl sleeve. Cons - I FOUND THE CONCRETE SCREWS PROVIDED WITH THE BRACKET TO BE IMPOSSIBLE TO USE. I drilled four 1/2' diameter holes, filled with a good grade of epoxy, set the bracket over the holes and inserted a 3/8" threaded rod thru the base plate hole into the epoxy. Let it set and bolted the bracket to the concrete. Was solid as a rock. The post provided with the bracket is a untreated pine post. I was able to plumb the post using wood screws thru the holes in the bracket and a couple of shims.

I used 16 of the post on my deck and they were very easy to install and very stable.

Rating provided by a verified purchaser

These are excellent. I trimmed the bottom of the 4 x 4 for a snug fit into the bracket, trimmed the top for an overall height of 38 inches, leveled and screwed the base with 4 flathead screws and bolted to the deck. Sturdy and provided a good mount for the railings. Use caution when mounting to the deck as to the direction of the openings to mount the railing supports.

Shave of base of post is not very cleanly done but overall, a very nice and easy post solution.

Let's just say If I had to do the post's first I would have returned everything. You have to double plumb everything. First you have to shim the junk wood post into the bracket. Most of my post's we're twisted which makes it all the harder. Build a bracket with the post installed into it already so hours aren't spent wasted. Another complaint I have is why sell the railing fastener kit with screws for balusters and those of us that used the round metal balusters double pay for screws that come with the metal balusters. Overall after building a 16'x19' deck I think this product is a poor value.

The product is bad. The wood poor quality and bracket ill designed. I bought it to match the decking, but should have read the reviews and gone with something else. The product description says it can be used on wood or concrete. However only the hardware for concrete installation is supplied. Almost every picture shows it installed on a wood deck, but it doesn't come with the hardware. Really, how many of these are installed on concrete? This product description is really misleading. Now, I am off to True Value (not Home Depot) to buy hardware. Save yourself some aggravation and buy something else

The 4X4 was cut way too small for a nice fit into the bracket. I bolted the bracket plum, but trying to get the 4X4 plum was a tricky operation. The best thing to do first is cut shims to fill the gaps between the bracket & the 4X4. The bracket is well made & powder coated. It is all I needed, but couldn't find it separately. .

What you get for $42 each is a cheap pine post and a bracket, and some bolts that MIGHT be useful if you're installing this into concrete. If you're using this on a wood deck (like 95% of customers, and like the video shows), you get no hardware. They don't even include the little screws to attach the post to the bracket. The kit also states that for wood deck application, the bolts need to go through a minimum of 4" of wood. That means they will only work properly for a wooden deck if you planned ahead and put a double 2x brace around your perimeter. Because of the size of the flange, the outside of your posts will end up 3" inside the outer edge of the deck surface. Returning all 16 of them to the store.

Need these to put rails for my stairwell leading up into my loft in my shop. They bolted to floor very easily and are very sturdy.

the wood posts were twisted and bowed to the point that some were unusable. out of the 14 i purchased, only one of them was straight. The bad ones i did use made it harder to install post wraps. The kit comes with concrete fasteners. if you want to use these posts on a wood deck, you will have to buy a bunch of bolts, nuts, and washers. I am a carpenter by trade and these posts were not easy to install. I dont know that a DIY would be able to install these. Would not recommend to anyone wanting to do there own project.

This product is not worth $43.00 the wood used is very cheap split & not even cut properly to fit the steel bracket the steel bracket is good, but doesn't come with bolts..Pressure treat wood should have been used instead of cheap pine for the post even if it is covered with a plastic sleeve..I bought 19 of these post @ $43 dollar & replace all the cheap pine I was given with my order with pressure treat wood..Did I mention how cheap & split the cheap pine was after sending $917.00. Then I had to spend another $60 plus dollars on 3/8" bolts, nuts, washers, & lock washers...one more thing I had to spend another $14.00 on a 3/8 steel bit, because the holes in the bracket aren't really 3/8" as mention in the video...I had to drill out all 76 hole in the 19 brackets.. John

The post and bracket were easy to install except for the requirement of needing an support insert between the deck joists. Railing is most often selected after the deck has been finished. So to install the post, I had to remove deck boards to put in the support and then reinstall. What a pain.

Purchased a number of these kits because they looked very sturdy. The packaging and directions don't tell you that you have to drill through the metal bracket to mount the bottom rail. A difficult task at best and took twice as long to install. They are very sturdy once you finally get them installed but don't be fooled at the amount of time it will take you. We finally finished mounting seven of them and are not looking forward to mounting another six for the front.

Surface mount deck posts are the best idea for ending up with a great looking and safe deck railing system.

So top-mounting either rail posts or columns is kind of a bad idea anyways, but if you must, the brackets are pretty beefy. The included 4x4 stubs are tapered way to strong, like flopping in the bracket. I tossed those and started over with PT 4x4, shaved about 3/16 off each side, beveled the edges, and slammed the bracket on tight with a small sledge. These were intended for a rotted column job where tying into the porch frame was not a possibility. Worked out fine, its really the brackets you want- which are outrageously expensive. For a railing application, I'd still much rather go the conventional route and tie into the frame as opposed to top-mounting rail posts.

The kit seems great, the base installs easily and squaring the post is pretty simple. Then you have to install the lower rail. The cutout in the base to allow wood screws to fasten to the post are too small and in misplaced. This means that you have to drill out every hole for the bottom rail. To make things even more fun the buckets are designed for the screws to be driven in at an angle. So when you try to drill the holes in the right place the brackets and sleeve gets all chewed up. Veranda thought of solution to the problem and supplies self-tapping screws which are too cheap and do not work. A 3-4 hour job has stretched to over 12 and still not done. Save yourself huge headaches and use a different system.

I purchased 7 of these for a front porch project. Of course the last one opened did not contain the mounting bracket or bolts. The bracket is of high quality sturdy construction. The post could be better. The end that slides into the bracket could have a better fit. my posts had over 1/4" play side to side. I understand that shimming is required to square up the post, I don't think that over 1/4" is required. The concrete bolts and washers were acceptable. If the washers are not pushed inward towards the center of the post, the trim piece I used would not fit down over them. When the trim piece fit over the washers, it still had approximately 1/8" gap to the concrete floor. Certainly a bead of caulk will fill the gap. I am of the opinion that the less caulk used the more professional the job looks.

First off, the only nice thing about this bracket kit is the bracket, itself. Out of the several that I have used for other Veranda products, I had to return 2 for poor craftsmanship of the 4 x 4 post. Further, the bracket itself does not lend itself to a 3.5" lower rail installation, as when you drill through the post sleeve, you will hit the bracket's metal (which you can drill through). I also recommend to through away the accompanying bolts/screws, as they are junk - not to mention, the washers that come with this will not allow a lower trim piece to sit flush with your deck/concrete. Do yourself a huge favor and purchase the Red Head 3/8" x 3" wedge anchors and your installation will be a breeze (quicker install and washers are not too big). You may have to buy a smaller wedge anchor depending on the hole (or be prepared to enlarge the mounting plate hole).

The post and bracket worked perfectly. However, I had quite of bit of difficulty with the anchor bolts. Had to go and get a different type of anchor at the store that worked better for my application.