How to build a low to the ground deck part 2

Hello again...

Part two: How to build a low to the ground deck.

 So we are working on a low to the ground level deck project in Macomb Township MI. Where the clients had a failed stamped concrete patio that we are building a deck over.

 Let finish up the framing details. Here is the framing plan see below. There was a small modification to the deck plan during construction where we cut the corners on the deck. The homeowner wanted the corners cut but the existed concrete patio only allowed 1'6" cut corner. Because we had the room enough without having to remove anymore concrete.

 Macomb Township deck framing plan.

Another point with framing of this project is the location of the beam closest to the house. On a low deck like this it is a challenge if the house has brick we cannot attached to the house. Normally in a free standing deck design you would have the inside beam/posts a couple of feet of the house, but here if we do it that close to house the posts would be in the 5' basement back-fill zone.  Where the post hole footing have to go down to virgin soil and about as deep as the basement footing height. So on this deck the four posts would be 8' -  9' deep.

So we had a an engineer design a typical ledger connection through a brick veneer on short spans of 6' or less to avoid this type of scenario as in this project. The one post by the fireplace we had to do extra deep because we cannot attached a ledger where there is a fireplace.

Basically we have to drill 1 1/2" holes through the brick so the 3/4" lag bolts don't bear on the brick and crack the brick from the deck load. Than we install 3/4" x 8" galvanized lag bolts into the house rim joist to support the short spanned ledger.

Here are some final pictures of this deck project.

Here in the picture above you see why we had the 12" on center joist spacing, because the Timber Tech Legacy decking is running on a 45 degree angle the framing has to be 12" on center. Also you can see why we had all the blocking installed around the perimeter and up the middle of the deck. For the picture frame border and center seam board.

We usually always picture frame our decks so the fascia cladding is protected. If you looking at the pictures from part one you can see why it costs more or is a big up grade from the way most guys build a deck without the picture frame border over the deck rim and fascia cladding.

Above we are working on building a built in bench, which is kind of built like a mini deck on rail posts. 

Thanks for reading our blog. I hope we inspired you with a new outdoor living project !

Michigan deck builders. 

2010 deck products - Timber Tech

Hello ..  We have been writing about the new products for decks and patios for the 2010 year.
 Having already reviewed Correct Deck CX and their lifetime warranty on LABOR and materials.
 We also reviewed the new awesome looking Horizon Tropics  from Fiberon.

Today we a going to look at one of our original favorites

         

Timber Tech has been the most inovative composite/pvc decking product manufactures on the market. Their XLM deck board has made huge waves in the low maintenance decking arena. 

The  Radiance rail is the nicest looking, best quality kit railing in my opinion. They have a few new products that I have heard about this year.

The main one being the Reliaboard     
Which is a deck board product geared towards the budget minded consumer, who wants a low maintenance deck but at a more affordable price. It comes in two colors Cedar and Grey, and it has more of a square edge profile. The Reliaboard is to be screwed down and there is no a hidden fastening system for the Reliaboard. The big plus for the Reliaboard is the fact that it prices out at about the same cost as Cedar wood decking. The budget composites make up about 30% of the share of the low maintenance decking category.

The railing that should be paired up with the Reliaboard is Timber Tech's Builder Rail  Which is a composite 2x4 top and bottom rail with 3/4 round metal balusters.

The budget composite products are not for everyone and they work well in some conditions and not very well in others, so do your homework when considering a budget product. There is reasons why the XLM is the price it is or other ultra low maintenance products are priced higher, they are just about as close to fail proof as there is in decking product choices.

Timber Tech also came out with a new XLM color at the mid to end of last year called Desert Bronze  Which is a black colored streaked deck board which mimics the look of a tropical hardwood. A very nice looking product that has all the durability of the XLM with the enhanced look. In Michigan I have heard it did really good, but it is expensive. I would like to see the Desert Bronze color become more affordable.

The other - some what new Timber Tech product which came out last year

was DeckLites  Which is low voltage lighting for decks. 

There is three different option in the DeckLites -  Post caps, Accent lights, and Riser lights

 First the DeckLite Post Caps are just for use with the Timber Tech railing post sleeves.

       The DeckLite Accents can be used on any                               deck or in combonation with any other decking product.

The Accent lights can be mounted just about anyway you would like.

 

          Finally, the DeckLite Riser lights are for the riser boards on steps.

Timber Tech also make a high quality transformer to use with their DeckLites.

The low voltage lighting is a really nice addition to a deck and is reasonably priced.

Timber Tech generally offers a 25 year materials warranty on all the products, the low voltage has a 5 year warranty

Thank You for checking out our blog

Our Next Project: A small pressure treated deck in Rochester Hills MI

Here is what have been building the last couple of days. A 7x20 treated pine deck with 1 foot cut corners, and 2 steps. We also built a small privacy fence at the end of the deck

Here is the design

Here is what it came out like

Privacy fence,

Treated pine 4x4 posts, 2x4 rails, 2x2 top section with cedar tongue and groove solid panels,

Next we are going to Auburn Hills to build a Correct Deck CX deck

"Low Maintenance Decking" Part 2

Before I go into the new “Extreme low Maintenance Decking” I would like to review our last blog post, we went into a little background about composite decking, often called “low maintenance decking”. And we talked about some of the problems that can happen to composite decking products…. As a consumer who is looking to replace or build a new deck? What would you base your decision on? … How much the product cost verses the, maintenance, appearance, durability. Usually most people would like a combination of all three with as low of a cost as possible, understandably money is tuff to come by! But this is the most common challenge, we encounter. Appearance is usually the first quality consumers are looking for in their product choice. Maintenance and durability secondly, and they are usually combined qualities. Generally the materials are the majority of the cost of a new deck, you probably can bet 50% to 70% overall. So the product you choose will greatly affect the cost of a new deck. With that in mind there is no perfect product out there. www.correctdeck.com “Correct Deck CX” is usually our first recommendation. Correct Building Products based in Biddeford Maine. (Founded in 1999) Correct Deck CX is 60% hardwood sawdust / 40% polypropylene. “Correct Deck CX” has a co-extruded top layer, which covers all the exposed wood fibers and is extremely durable against stains and scratching. The “Correct Deck” has another quality no one else has, they add a micro-ban mold inhibitor, like they put in caulk to prevent mold. They also have a hidden fastening clip system that is unique in how the screws are set straight down instead of most systems where the screws are set on an angle. If the screws are set straight down the boards can be replaced in middle of a deck and put back with the same hidden fastening system. Where the angled screw clips cannot be completely replaced, the deck board would have to be screwed through the face. Some of the other strong points of the “Correct Deck CX”, their deck boards can span 2’ at 90* and 16” on a 45*. This make re-covering a deck that has 2x decking possible, because their deck board has the same span capability as 2x wood deck boards. They have a railing system that is called DCL rail; it is basically a composite 2x4 that attaches to a railing post in the same traditional way a wood railing would attach. With this system you use a metal baluster such as “Deckorators” or “Fortress” to finish your railing. The metal balusters add a nice contrast to a deck, and there are many different styles of balusters. Another benefit to the DCL rail system is that it saves quite a bit of money over the kit railing systems. Correct Deck has what is called “Rapid Rail” kit rail system; we very much prefer the DCL railing over the Rapid Rail….. With all these qualities for the price of the Correct Deck CX product we believe it is one of the best choices on the market www.timbertech.com ”Timber Tech” is usually our second choice, and it is no way any less of a product than “Correct Deck”. The” Timber Tech” makes some different products than the Correct Deck.” Timber Tech” in my mind is the innovator in the decking and railing industry. They are always coming up with new products and improving on their existing ones. They are based out of Columbus Ohio and they are part of “Crane Plastics Company”, which has been in business for many years, and “Timber Tech” has been out now for around 12 years. They have a large product line; “TwinFinish” is their base line of decking. It does have exposed wood fibers, and will fade, and could scratch. With that being said it is still a very good product we have installed many decks with “TwinFinish” and have not had any call backs. Along with the “TwinFinish” there are two other products with similar traits; “Floorizon” is a tongue and groove product that comes in all the same colors and finish as “TwinFinish”. The other product that is similar is their “Earthwood” line. This product has all of the same characteristics as the “TwinFinish”, but looks like a natural tropical hardwood. Many customers prefer the look of this product. You have to careful with this product because it does tend to scratch easily. We like to compare this product to inside hardwood floors in how you would care and treat it. With all of these products there are two main styles of railings. One is “Ornamental”. This is a composite with exposed wood fiber and matches the colors of the Twinfinish and Floorizon. It is a very nice looking product. Their second railing product is the “Radiance Rail”. It is a composite base with a vinyl overlay, which is a lot more weather resistant with no wood fibers exposed. We believe that the “Radiance Rail” is the nicest kit railing on the market. “Timber Tech’s” new line of decking is called “XLM”. This stands for “Extreme Low Maintenance”. The “XLM” is a cellular PVC product which is completely different from composite. It is lighter, more durable, and has no wood fibers. The “XLM” has a co-extruded cap-stock, which is very hard. It can be pounded on without scratching or dented. It is also very stain resistant. The “XLM” comes in three colors with matching “Radiance Rail”. The “Radiance Rail comes in black and white, the black being unique because it is the only Composite/vinyl product on the market that comes in black. Next time we will get more in-depth on the “Extreme Low Maintenance” decking products Bayn Wood- Autumnwood Construction Inc.

Deck Pictures Video 4

Here is a video of some decks we have built