You know how when you improve one part of your home, it makes the other parts look tired and old? That’s exactly what happened with our deck. We were told we could likely get another few years out of it, and so we had put it on the back burner along with a kitchen remodel. Fast forward ten months, we had new windows, siding , and outdoor furniture. The deck stuck out like a sore thumb! It was old redwood that had been painted…many times. There was some rot and footings which weren’t properly done, causing it to sag on one end.
We bit the bullet and decided to replace the entire thing (over 1000 square feet!) After all, we use the deck much more than the kitchen…we practically live out here. We hired our trusty contractor Brendan and his team, B. Wahl Construction, to do the job. We only wanted to go through this expense and mess once, so we decided to do the deck in ipe wood. Ipe is an exotic wood from South America that is naturally resistant to rot, abrasion, weather, and insects. It is almost twice as dense as most woods and five times harder. This deck will last a very long time!
The project started in February. Deep new holes were dug for the new footings and then the winter rains returned with a vengeance and we were left with a muddy mess for months.
Eventually the rain stopped and work continued. Each board was screwed into place from the bottom…no holes or screws showing!
The old deck had two different levels at the front of the house and looked a bit awkward.
With some help from my mom, I made the decision to create a step/landing at the front door by dropping the front deck to the same level as the side deck. This created the appearance of one continuous flow of decking. We also enlarged the front steps creating a more gracious entry.
With no outdoor seating for months, sometimes I just had to get creative and make my own!
After the decking was complete, we had a stretch of about a month when we had no railing…an infinity deck! There was no railing when we bought the house, but for insurance purposes and general peace of mind, we decided to go with a redwood and cable design.
I did some research and found a company in Indiana called StairSupplies. What I liked about this company was that they used slim metal intermediary guides between the wood posts. They almost disappear!
There are still some finishing touches needed, such as attaching the small silver disks that the cable threads through (waiting to be sure they won’t need more tightening) and a built in bench that will anchor the entrance to the deck.
We are so glad we made the decision to replace the deck sooner rather than later. It is our outdoor living room where we spend the majority of our time…certainly more time than we do in the kitchen. That project is still a few years away!
Next week I will share how we recycled some of our old decking. 🙂
[…] life and to him there aren’t problems, only solutions. After he and his talented crew of two finished the deck, I asked him if he could build a storage shed off the house. There is a small garden shed on the […]