Add railings to the side of a concrete stoop

So, I have a troublesome concrete stoop. I've been chiseling away the bad concrete and will be resurfacing it when I get to a more sturdy section. I would like to put up a new railing, since the previous person used drywall screws and anchors to attach the old one. Suffice it to say, it didn't hold, and the concrete didn't like it when it let water in to freeze, and thaw, and now it's a pile of scrap metal.

In my head, I'm picturing putting posts onto the side of the stoop to run a railing down -- much like affixing a rail post to the side of a wooden deck, like this:


I'd use either wedge anchors or threaded rod and epoxy.

However, I'm not seeing anyone posting about doing this online, which makes me wonder if this is a bad idea? So... is it a bad idea?

 

Post a real picture.
No way is that idea your drawing going to work.
Post need to be set at least 2' in the ground and tapered out so you can use 2 bags of concrete and then attached to the side of the steps if you want to.

 

I can't post a real picture, because I haven't done it yet.

What you're telling me is that anchoring into the side of concrete using wedge anchors won't work, but anchoring into the top of concrete using wedge anchors, as with most commercially available rail systems, will? Explain, please?

 

It all depends on how thick your cement is, (you might drill right through it) but the threaded rods (1/2") set in epoxy should work. Allow a full day for the epoxy to set before you drill the holes in your posts and put the nuts and washers on. Problem you will have with that plan is plumbing the posts up, so buy a few extra washers to slip between the post and concrete, as needed.

 

Your plan looks to be sturdier than lot of the cheap wrought iron rails that builders install with just a couple of screws.

I would temporarily install and plumb the posts and drill through them to mark the position of your threaded rods.