Building Decks and Porches
Sitting out on your deck or porch is a perfect way to enjoy the great outdoors. It’s also the ideal place to entertain family and friends or spend time with your children. Putting one on your house can be difficult, so it is important to follow a few crucial steps.
- Before you begin, contact the local utilities to see if there is any danger where you are planning construction. Ask them to flag their underground utilities. You don’t want to hit power, gas or water lines. Check with the city permit department regarding licenses and permits for your work. Some cities have a build-to-code law that will require inspection by a professional.
- Design your deck on a piece of grid paper to help maintain scale. Make sure to follow safety codes with your design. For example, ensuring 4x4 posts are set no farther than 10 feet apart. Many home supply stores will help you with the design, with classes or one-on-one help. There are also computer programs with information, and will help you make a plan.
- Remove vegetation and sod before you begin. Rent a sod cutter if you are working in a large area. The ground will need to be raked and leveled.
- Use a layer of landscape fabric under the deck to prevent weeds from popping up through the deck's floor. Spread a layer of gravel on top of the landscape material.
- Mark your post locations on the ground for the post holes. Use a post hole digger and dig a hole past the first layer for your geographical location. You can contact the permit department if you don’t know.
- Install the deck or porch according to your construction plans. Remember to use spacers to allow for expansion and contraction in the wood.
- Apply stain to your deck. If you use pressure-treated wood, you must wait 30 days for the wood to age before applying on the stain.