BACKYARD DECKS

Michael Holigan: Today, we're going to look at a different way to dress up the backyard. Over a quarter of all the homes in America had a wood deck, we're going to put one in. We've got Keith Powell from Cedars Expressions with us. Good to have you here Keith.

Keith Powell: Nice to be here. Thank you.

M.H.: Help me out. When you start a deck, where do you begin?

K.P.: Well first of all, you want to come to the house and actually survey the area and actually get ready to build the deck. You want to look and see what you can incorporate into the deck and find out what your limitations are going to be and basically, you know, from there you can go from wood, what kind of wood we want, which we've got Wolmanized wood here, what we've decoded to use for this deck.

M.H.: What is Wolmanized wood?

K.P.: It's just a brand of treated pine and we went with a select "A" grade which has very few knots in it, it's very attractive.

M.H.: That's good looking lumber. It's straight, something that's rare to find in lumber any more.

K.P.: Very nice. And that's what we chose to go with this one.

M.H.: Well, when you say we're going to incorporate things into the deck, do you mean we've got a spa over here and we've got some trees. Can you build that into the deck?

K.P.: That's correct.

M.H.: Well what are some of the special things you're going to do to make it a better deck?

K.P.: Well we're going to set the piers in, ten inch piers, two foot deep, which is just a huge concrete pier and our girders on four foot centers and then we're going to go back with 2x6 joists. And a lot of the do-it-yourselfers, they come in, I know my first deck, many years ago, I come in with 2x4 joists, which is not sturdy enough. So they may make the mistake of not building it sturdy enough.

M.H.: When designing a deck, you need to keep in mind the shape and the look of the home.

K.P.: They've got a tall, blocky house. You don't want to add a lot of curves to it. If they've got some house that's contemporary, you want to add some curves and things to it, to make it accent the house.

M.H.: Okay, so incorporate the whole look in the backyard. We used Wolmanized lumber, a pressure treated pine. Before purchasing your wood, talk to the lumber supplier to determine what wood is best for your geographic area. And keep in mind the cost of lumber is different in different areas of the country. Just a few quick tips while you're building a deck. Don't worry about lining up the actual decking itself. You need to come back afterwards and cut it, after you've pulled a chalk line, so you know you have a straight line. Plus, below the deck, put down some sort of matting or plastic to prevent growth. You don't want a bunch of weeds coming up through after it's finished. And remember, a deck is not like a house. It's okay to build out around the trees. As a matter of fact, it even looks better. Don't knock down the trees. Keith, the deck looks great. Are there any last tips, if someone's building a deck themselves?

K.P.: Sure. What we've done here is to accent the edges. We've put a chamfered edge, which is a 45 degree angle, and it really accents the deck and gives it a nice touch. And here we've got, we had extra lumber, so we built some benches for them, and they can move those around where ever they like.

M.H.: Okay, so they're not nailed down?

K.P.: Right.

M.H.: There's no reason to throw away the lumber, that's expensive lumber.

K.P.: Right.

M.H.: How about around the tree here? You held out for it. And how did you know how far to hold out from the tree?

K.P.: Well, we usually leave about eight inches or so away from it, and we chamfered the edge there. And actually, we did not do a perfect round circle. We did the shape of the tree to accent it, so it really gives it a nice look.

M.H.: So as it grows it will be even all the way through there.

K.P.: Right.

M.H.: And with eight inches, most likely a child will not fall in a opening that small.

K.P.: Right.

M.H.: This is really a sharp deck and one reason is because of the different levels. Can you build part of the deck at one level and add on later, instead of doing the whole deck?

K.P.: Sure. If cost budgets, you could put the bottom level in first and come back a year later, or however long you want to, and put the second layer on it, or you can do it in however many stages you need to.

M.H.: You can spend as little as several hundred dollars to several thousand dollars for a deck. And it should last about fifteen years. Your deck should also be sealed with a protective coating but be sure to check with the lumber supplier in your area to see how soon that treatment should be added and during what season of the year.

Episode 28 1996 - 97 Season

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