How To Build Your Own Deck – Whether you’re looking to build a deck yourself or want to hire a professional, adding or remodeling a deck is an important factor for your home. It creates an outdoor living space and increases resale value.
We are so excited to show you our latest deck build project! We were very grateful when John recently contacted us to build a patio for his brand new beautiful home.
How To Build Your Own Deck
There are many types and sizes of decking, depending on the house they are designed for or the homeowner’s taste. Homeowners are always faced with doing or doing home improvement projects themselves.
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As you know, we are big proponents of DIY, and we will give you tips for building a deck! There’s nothing quite as rewarding as doing it yourself, especially taking on a huge project like building a new deck.
Building your own deck can certainly save you a lot of money, but mistakes can cost you dearly. If you are considering tackling a major project such as building a brand new deck, consider the pros and cons before tackling this project, while checking out our latest project!
When it comes to building a deck, there are definitely some benefits to doing it yourself.
Any home improvement project that you rent out rather than DIY will typically have materials marked. The markup is usually 5-10% because the contractors have to pay for the materials, spend time picking up, dropping off, towing, and bear the cost of materials until the project is completed.
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Keep in mind that this number is only for the cost of materials and builders and contractors have all the necessary materials for the job, which would drive up the cost since these professional tools cost a lot of money.
There are other material costs that come into play that most don’t think about, such as: concrete, fasteners, wood, nails, screws, backing boards, etc.
And from the experience we’ve had, when the homeowner buys materials, we always have a shortage of materials, which means the timeline is delayed because of ordering materials. So if you hire us and read (and bring up) this post, we will not flag any material for your job!
Another big factor to consider is time. This is certainly not a few weekends of work. And there is certainly no discussion about whether a professional can do it faster.
Learn How To Build A Deck The Right Way
This deck build took us 3 full weeks to build. A qualified deck-building professional has the experience and expertise needed to build a deck with proper materials, safety, and code building.
A professional gives you a project timeline and access to the resources needed to keep things on track. They also have the necessary tools for things like the foundation.
If your remodel is major, you’ll need a building permit to do it legally before the project begins. You must submit your forms to the building department along with a copy of your building plans, a property survey, and a filing fee.
One scary problem you might run into is a deck of cards getting wobbly. Decks can collapse due to various foundation problems, such as loose joints or fasteners for planks, inadequate diagonal bracing, improperly installed piles, and much more.
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Don’t have the skills? Don’t worry, DIY tutorials are all over the internet. Almost all major manufacturers have tutorials on their websites.
Learning DIY home improvement projects will last a lifetime, you’ll always use those skills, and you’ll save a lot of money in the long run.
And the biggest reward is that you will feel like a really big manly man when you finish building a deck! Or the biggest bad girl!
A professional is done faster, after all, this is his profession. Professionals know how to make beautiful, sturdy decks in a matter of weeks. And they know how to prevent small mistakes that can lead to big problems later on. They are the experts.
Build A Deck: A Step By Step Video Guide
If you hire a contractor to build the deck, plan to spend double that. Contractors need to make money, so they charge for labor and overheads.
If you’re a control freak, you might as well do the DIY yourself. When someone else handles the project, you need to trust them to do the job. When you’re doing odd jobs, you’re in control of every detail.
Whether you’re planning to tackle a new patio building project on your own or planning to hire a professional, we hope you’ll stop by for guidance or get the job done!
We tap into your story to create a home that will bring joy to every day of your life.
Pros And Cons Of Hiring A Professional Or Building A Deck Yourself
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It is a “floating deck”, meaning it simply rests on blocks at ground level and is not anchored deep into the ground.
This type of decking can only be made in areas where there is no deep winter frost. In colder climates, the soil goes through freeze and thaw cycles, which over time results in upheaval and movement of the soil, which would ruin all your work in a short time.
Building a deck is a lot of work and it’s not cheap. But it is doable and you can save a lot of money by doing it yourself instead of outsourcing it. The total cost for this was almost exactly $1600 USD. The foundation and frame totaled $600 and the decking itself was $1000. The total time spent was over 100 hours over a period of a few months.
How To Build A Backyard Deck
If you want to build a deck, this Instructable will give you some ideas for starters, but I highly recommend taking a few weeks and studying everything you can find before making a plan.
You don’t need a store full of tools to build a deck. Here’s a list of what I think is essential:
The main body of my deck is just a bit larger than a 12-by-8-foot rectangle. This worked out well for the use of materials and produced little waste.
I started by laying cement blocks in a 4 foot grid and sprayed around them to indicate their locations. The blocks I used are “Old Manor” landscape blocks I got at Home Depot. Other hefty paving-type blocks would also work.
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Each block site was dug about six inches deep. I used a pickaxe to remove the soil mostly horizontally, just a few inches at a time. The aim is to excavate as much earth as necessary, while keeping the soil underneath as compacted and undisturbed as possible.
Just pick the highest looking spot and set that block first. As long as all other blocks are equal to this or lower, you’ll be fine.
I just tried to keep the level of all the blocks within an inch or so, but there’s no need to worry about the exact height of the blocks. Any differences will be compensated later with shims when the deck frame is in place.
To place the blocks, I made sure that all loose soil was removed from each hole and that there was only hard soil at the bottom of the hole.
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I added a few inches of paver base (actually a mix of jagged rocks, gravel and sand) and compacted this layer by placing a block on top and hitting it with a larger rubber mallet.
The block has been removed and a layer of leveling sand has been applied and re-compacted as described. If I had to raise or lower the block, more leveling sand was added or removed. Once I was happy with the height the block got some good compaction again with the hammer and more sand was added around the block to lock it in place.
This was repeated over and over until all the foundation blocks were in place. This step alone took several evenings to complete.
My garden has been well arranged and packed for at least 15 years or more. Since I followed the same procedure for placing each block, any further subsidence of the foundation blocks should be uniform. Where I live, we don’t have deep winter frosts, so it’s acceptable to use blocks that essentially just rest (“float”) on the soil surface.
How Much Does It Cost To Build A Deck?
In colder climates, you cannot build a “floating” deck, but must build it on anchor posts cemented deep enough into the ground to prevent ground movement (swelling and surface adjustment that occurs as the ground goes through freeze and thaw cycles over time ).
The area where my main deck frame would go was quite tight so I built the frame in my yard and moved it into place once completed.
The frame is built with pressure-treated 2×6 lumber. The outer frame was
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