Backyards-Decks

                Well it is that time of year again, to start thinking about your backyard.  “Wait!” you say, there is still snow on the ground and it is only February.  The timing is actually better now so you have time to think about what you want to do.  Also if you wait too long most of the contractors are going to be busy and you might not get what you want in time to enjoy it.  The other thing that is good is that you will have the snow to draw out your ideas with, if you are in the northern hemisphere.

                Let us start off by talking about the deck/patio.  The deck/patio is an integral part of the yard, it can make or break the yard.  You have to think what you are going to be using the deck for, whether you are having large parties or you just want a nice get away to read a book.  You also want to figure out what you are going to be putting on the deck.  Are you going to be putting a gazebo, bbq, table and chairs on it?  Other considerations are; how high is the patio door, obstructions along the wall, (like an air conditioner) or water taps in the wall.  If you have a walk out basement you are going to have to think about where you are putting the posts as not to obstruct any windows or doors.  If your patio door is low and close to the ground, how much clearance (a good airflow under the deck will help in making it last a long time) you have under the deck.

                The way you start is to grab some graph paper, (1”x1” grids is good), and start to draw your house, property line and any structures, trees and such that is in your yard.  Try and use one square equals on foot.  Once that is drawn out, mark on the drawing along the back wall of your house where all the taps, air conditioners and any other obstacles that might be in the way.  Also draw in all the structures, fences and such with the measurements on how far it is from the house and where the location is in the yard. See fig. 1

figure. 1

                Once you have that all drawn out you can now figure out how big you want your deck, just keep in mind it is not the size but how it is being used for.  Figuring out the size of the deck can be a little frustrating.  You want to take in consideration the size of the yard, other structures that you have.  Do you have kids that want a playground set, have or want a shed, these are all the things that you want to think about when planning.  Other aspects that you want to think about is the design.   Do you want just a square deck, any chamfers (corners that are angled) or multi-levels?  It is a good idea to make several different cut-outs of the deck so you can replace it on the drawing without having to make new drawings every time.

                Let us talk about multi-level decks.  If you are leaning to have a multi-level deck you need to break the deck down to areas, like a cooking area, eating area and a lounge area.  Each area needs a specific size to accommodate the furnishings.  The cooking area should have enough room for your bbq, a small table, and some room to move around.  Now depending on what you are using the deck for will determine the eating area.  If you are just going to be sitting outside enjoying a coffee while reading a book than a small area for a bistro set would work.  But if you are planning to have family/friends bbqs then a bigger area is needed for the tables and chairs.  To figure the minimum are you need is to look at your table width and length.  If you don’t have a table now is the time to go looking for one (an excuse to go shopping J).  For the width take your table and put chairs on both sides, slide the chairs out like you are getting up from them.  Now measure the distance between the backs of the 2 chairs and add a couple of feet to allow people to get by, that would be your minimum width.  Now do the same thing on the ends of the table to get your minimum length.  Now for the lounge area you want to figure out what you want, whether you want an outdoor couch with a table and chairs or just a couple of lounges.  When you have all that figured out it is just a matter of fitting it all together.  Do you want the upper area just for cooking and the eating area/lounge area to be on the lower?  Or do you want the bbq and eating area on one level with the lounge area in the lower section.  I generally put the cooking area just outside of the patio door because there are times you might be bbq and just eating inside.  If you make the eating area to small when someone leaves the table the chair can catch on the edge of the deck.  It is always better to make deck a little bigger than a little small.

                So now you think you have got the size right you need to make sure it is not going to interfere with anything else in the yard.  You also have to make sure your setbacks meet your municipalities’ code (check with your city hall for what your setbacks are).  Well if you don’t know what a setback is, it’s the distance from your property line to the structure i.e. the deck, shed or playground.

                With all that done it is now a matter of figuring out what you want the deck to be made out of.  Generally you will be using pressure treated lumber for the supports like the joists, beams and posts.  As for the decking you can use several options listed here:

                   

1.       Pressure treated green

2.       Sienna pressure treated lumber (brown)

3.       Cedar

4.       Composite (Trex, Azek)

5.       Stones (yes you can use stones) with silcasystem or latitude stones

                Pressure treated (p.t) is one of the most widely used product for the decking surface.  It is easy to maintain.  If you are going to stain it, you should wait 4-8 weeks depending on how much sun, shade and rain you get.  You want the wood to dry out enough to let the sealer or stain into the pores.  Failing to let the wood dry will cause the stain or sealer to peel.  Also if you apply a stain you will have to refinish the deck every couple of years.  I have known some p.t wood to last a long time even without sealing or staining, it just greys over time.  You can get p.t in either green lumber or what is called Sienna (brown) lumber.

                Cedar wood is another decking material that is widely used.  It is a nicer finish to the wood creating a warm and inviting yard.  Talking about cedar a lot of companies advertise it as a maintenance free or close to maintenance free deck, well that is not 100% accurate.  Cedar is supposed to be rot resistance, now it is resistance under ideal circumstances, like when there is no rain, sun or weather to affect it.  Hmm you say, well cedar is a good chose if you build the deck well.  First would be using it on decks that are higher than 2’ off the ground, to get proper ventilation under the deck.  You want the underside of the deck to be ventilated to keep the moisture away (moisture is the enemy).  That means not completely covering the underside of the deck and putting in vents to let the air flow.  The second thing is to seal the deck ever year or 2 depending on how much sun you receive on the deck.  The constant wet and drying cycle from the weather does play havoc on the wood and sealing it will prolong the life of the deck.  If the maintenance, which isn’t really hard, isn’t a problem it will create the warmest and most welcoming deck of the decking.

                The next decking material would be composite, it is truly maintenance free and can last years.  There are several manufactures of composites like Trex, Aztec and Timbertec to name a few.  It also comes in a variety of colours to mimic the different woods and stains.  With composite there is a few things that you would need to do like to wrap the top of the joists with a breathable membrane that will keep water from getting into the joists.  Don’t completely wrap the joist just the top where the deck board sits on.  The other step is you definitely want to put a 1/8” gap between the deck boards for water easement and run off, also for expansion and contraction during the winter and summer months.  The only maintenance that you would need to do is to wash the deck every now and then, you could even use a pressure washer (unlike wood where you don’t want to use a pressure washer because it will put water into the grain damaging the wood).    

                You can even use stones (latitude stones or silca system as examples).  The latitude stones are a tile look and mixed with wood can define different areas of the deck i.e. the bbq area.  Or you can use the silica system that allows you to use certain patio stones to create a raised patio look.  Both are maintenance free and make your deck and yard a unique and inviting area.

So now you have the size and all the materials you want I would take it to a home centre that has a deck estimator to get an idea of how much the materials are.  With that you can create a budget to work with.  You can use it to hire contractors or you can do it yourself which we will discuss later.