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The Process Of Building A Deck

When we last left off in our deck saga, our hero (that’s me in this case) was avoiding battling the heat as he tediously valiantly drilled in screws across the middle of our deck. Since that chapter of this drawn out harrowing tale, John The Weary Daring continued this mind-numbing history-making task.

Decking 1 Finishing Screws

Since that’s about as exciting as I can fake my latest day of deck work, I’m just going to skip to this part where you can see the middle of the deck all laid down and screwed into place. Let’s just say I was glad the deck was finally more solid surface than it was holes for me to fall into.

Decking 2 Middle Done

I could just fast-forward through this next part since it was, in essence, just more board screwing. Er, ahem – board attaching. But of course, since I was at the end of the deck there was some special planning / measuring / calculating I had to do. So let’s dive into those details for a second…

Decking 3 End Before Anything

Luckily I didn’t have to worry about cutting the boards right away. I learned from several tutorials that when you get to an open edge – especially when you’re doing the “picture frame” border, you’ll want to cut all of your boards with a circular saw once they’ve been placed. That way you get a cleaner and more even edge than if you were trying to measure and cut each board independently and then placing them all.

Decking 4 Laying Uncut Boards

So once my jagged little edge was all screwed into place, I brought out my miter-cut frame piece and used it to mark where the edge of my boards needed to be sliced with a nice clear pen line. Like so:

Decking 5 Marking Cut

Before cutting, I was sure to set the depth of my circular saw to 1 and 3/4″ so that I’d only cut through my deck boards and not into the girders below.

Decking 6 Setting Saw

Then I revved up the saw, started cutting – momentarily stopped to fake a photo op (I’m no good at keeping a straight cut line with my left hand, but my right was occupied pressing the shutter – another task my left aint’ so great at) – and then finished down the line, stopping before I got to my last board (which is part of the “picture frame” design, so it was already pre-mitered before I screwed it in).

Decking 7 Cutting

Here’s my end piece dropped into place (after sanding my cut edges to smooth them out). Not too shabby, right?

Decking 8 Frame In Place

Cutting that half of the end was pretty easy, actually. It was cutting the next part that took me some time because it was on an angle. My geometry is pretty rusty so it took me a few test attempts on scrap wood to figure out what angle the two picture frame boards should meet at.

Decking 9 Testing Other Angle

But once I got it right, I repeated my process of marking my cut with a nice obvious pen line, and then broke out the saw again.

Decking 10 Other Angle Marked

Here’s the clean, cut edge looking all pretty… and sawdusty too, I guess.

Decking 11 Other Angle Cut

Here’s the final frame once I got everything screwed into place. I have to say I’m pretty darn proud of myself for figuring this out and not ruining any boards in the process (minus the test scrap pieces that volunteered as tribute).

Decking 12 Angle Done

And here’s that end all finished up. Looking at this makes us REALLY glad we opted to do the picture frame. Just that little touch seems to make it look a lot more “pro.”

Decking 13 End All Done

So with that, my friends, all of the deck boards are officially down. Can I get a woo to the friggin hoo? Because there were moments in this process where I never thought I’d get to something that actually looked and felt like a deck. In this picture you can also see that we ended up with two zippered seam details, and we’ll be centering the dining table between them like Sherry did in the rendering here. We’ll share more close-up seam photos soon (we think it’ll really pop when we seal the boards and furnish things so that they’re sort of a built-in detail around the table once everything’s in place).

Decking 14 After

The only bummer is that now I have to deal with the things that I’ve been back-burnering in my brain this whole time: the railing and the stairs. Something tells me they’re not only going to require a lot of math, but that they’re also elements of the deck that the inspectors will be especially mindful of. Could this spell disaster for our hero? To be continued…

Anyone else perform some DIY project heroics lately? Even if they’re just heroic in your own mind?

Psst- Wanna catch up on all of the deck action? Here’s where we shared our vision for the space, then we removed the plantings and the old balcony, followed by selecting our materials and documenting our first day of building progress. Then we dug our post holes, learned that we failed our first inspection, revised our plan and dug more holes (which got approved) and proceeded to set posts. Next it was time to install our joists, do a bunch of last minute prep for deck boards, get started laying decking boards, whip up a mood board with our design plan and continue laying deck boards. Whew, all caught up.

Comments

  7. Jordan@the2seasons says

    Cheers to you on this huge project. I am so impressed I am glad we stuck with a patio and do not have room for a deck. I am sure you will love having it. Congrats again on the major part being finished.

    Reply

  9. Heather says

    I love the “minus the test scrap pieces that volunteered as tribute” you added in there. Nice ‘Hunger Games’ reference.

    The deck looks really great, and I can’t wait to see what else is in store for it!

    Reply

  12. Brian says

    Looks awesome! Can’t wait to see how you tackle the stairs and railing!

    Any interesting plans for the railing? Maybe a 1×4 horizontal slat wall?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We thought about a lot of different designs (horizontal being one of our favorite ideas) but since you can see the wood railing out of the sliding door in the nearby living room while standing on the deck, we wanted to keep things consistent, so we’ll be adding the same traditional vertical slat railing, just because it appears on the upper deck of the patio, so we wanted them to relate.

      xo,
      s

  13. Erica F says

    Wow, looks great John…look forward to seeing the finished rails.

    Hope you are able to finish everything in time to enjoy that sweet deck for Labor Day – you’ve certainly “labored” in bringing it to fruition. :)

    Reply

  15. Katy says

    Wow, it looks amazing so far though! I am studying for the GRE currently, and the other day I had to find the circumference of a circle. I KNEW it involved pi and something with the diameter but for the life of me, I could not figure it out for the life of me! So be glad you at least don’t have to deal with pi for this project!

    ~Katy

    P.S. Unless it was pie pie, pie is always a good idea.

    Reply

  16. Jenny B says

    It looks amazing! I’m always blown away by how quickly you guys get things done and the deck is no exception :) Must be nice to have something solid to break out a happy dance on too!

    Reply

  20. Cady says

    I cleaned out our hall closet this weekend – would that fall into heroic?! One question I have is do you all set a timeframe or goal for your projects? I’m fairly new to your website so I haven’t see that yet but was curious. You all seem to start and complete projects very regularly so I was wondering if you have a timeframe in which to do some of the big ones and if that’s what helps keep you on track.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Haha- yes that’s totally heroic! As for our time frame, we generally set a goal time of when we’d be thrilled to complete something (in the case of the deck, it’s Labor Day) but we try not to put a ton of pressure on that date since we know that sometimes timelines go off track (and personal things can pop up like a sick kid, an unexpected book deadline, etc). By not being too rigid about the deadline, it can help keep morale up so everyone isn’t grumpy and disappointed if you don’t hit it on the nose every time. We just generally subscribe to the one-day-at-a-time method, which also keeps us from getting overwhelmed. We just slowly inch towards a goal and eventually we usually get there! Haha.

      xo,
      s

  21. jessica says

    Nice job, Hero John!
    We installed recessed lighting this weekend. My heroic boyfriend crammed his 6’3″ frame into the (old insulation filled) attic for hours on end to do the wiring, since electric + my brain = fail (and insulation + my lungs = epic fail). We now have beautiful (working!) recessed lights in the living room. Woot!

    Reply

  22. tae says

    yay! congrats!!!! this project is such a major undertaking. so impressive. i feel like you need to have some kind of deck party when it’s done to celebrate.

    Reply

  23. Brooke says

    Beautiful! I saw something on Tom Silva on This Old House did that was brilliant – some way of figuring out the railing so you didn’t have to do a lot of math. It included some elastic from a fabric store. Too complicated to explain, but if you found the video online, it may help speed up your process. Good luck!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I have the table we got from World Market for a screaming deal, some chairs from Joss and Main (both were in the mood board) and am currently hunting down a few other things. Also still have big bulb string lights from our wedding we’d love to use if we can!

      xo,
      s

  30. Crystal @ 29 Rue House says

    I love it! We’re doing some mini-renovations in the kitchen. I’m trying to be patient and just let things happen as they happen rather than stick to a rigid schedule. For me, practicing patience is heroic in my book! hahaha

    Reply

  31. Candice Sandusky says

    If you’re board screwing, honey, you’re doing it wrong. ;) Congrats on the big finish! The deck looks fab!

    Reply

  34. jeannette says

    that little space was really quite strangely grotty and please-get-me-out-of-here. you’ve turned it around completely, making it clean cosy intimate convenient. i think this may be your most awesome makeover, and the zipper detail is just over the top.
    i’m thrilled. i love all the tedious detail. can’t wait for the tedious detail on the armature of the stairs.
    so proud of both of you.

    Reply

  37. Paige says

    Awesome job guys!

    If you like horizontal…go horizontal on the railing. You can always redo the other side to match. Thus giving the “old” patio a bit of a facelift as well. Win, win!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yes, we love that idea but have another railing on the patio side of the house that’s vertical. Since you can see both railings from the hall (the new deck one and the old patio one) we’re thinking we might go classic/vertical just so they’re cohesive and it doesn’t feel mismatched. More on that soon!

      xo,
      s

  38. Beth says

    It looks great! Do you have any plan for putting anything under the deck to prevent little kids or dogs from going exploring in there, or will the stairs pretty much close it off? Our dog Sherlock *loves* to go under our deck for some reason, even though he knows he’s not allowed. ;)

    Reply

    • Monica says

      When we were little my parents added a door underneath the screened porch and that’s where the lawnmower and various lawn tools were stored. They basically walled the underneath in with flat boards, and turned some of the flat boards into a door that latched and locked, so it looked seamless. No idea if that makes sense?

      Your deck may be too “crouchy” for that, but you could still add a little door and use it for storage. (Hobbit storage?)

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s so smart! After we add the stairs ours will be mostly blocked off (thanks to that weirdly placed AC unit) but it’s a really cool idea for someone with more access!

      xo,
      s

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’re definitely planning to seal it and probably will stain it as well, but here you have to let boards acclimate for a few months before doing that. Will keep you posted!

      xo,
      s

  41. Allyn says

    Yay! SO seriously impressive. I agree that the picture frame completely rounds it out to look like a pro.
    Maybe you should just attach a slide at the end. Don’t worry about the stairs at all.

    Reply

  43. Thais Bessa says

    It is beautiful! I wish our deck had the frame, it looks a thousand times better!

    Thank God, our deck adventure here is in its epilogue already: throwing nice barbecues (including indulgent desserts) to thank my husband’s mum and stepdad for helping us with the hard manual labour stages + baby-sitting.

    I guess after rail+stair, staining, furnishing and decorating, you also have thank-you barbecues for John’s dad planned, right? :)

    Reply

  45. Gina says

    Yay! It looks amazing! I’ve have been on pins and needles waiting for these posts. We’ve been re-doing our deck too so it’s nice to see someone elses vision and progress. What kind of wood did you use? Are you going to stain it?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We used pressure treated lumber from a local vendor (called 84 Lumber). We will eventually seal it (and probably stain it, still not sure) but here you have to wait for things to acclimate a few months before you can do that. Will keep you guys posted though!

      xo,
      s

  47. Liz says

    Your deck looks great! I loved the Hunger Games shout out you added in there :) Only 5 days until the DVD comes out!

    Reply

  48. Kate says

    Woo to the friggin hoo! The deck looks awesome John!!
    When my husband and I re-do our deck next summer, I’ll be showing him your posts and the lovely picture frame design you guys picked out.
    You guys are truly an inspiration for us newbie Do-It-Yourselfers.
    Keep up the amazing work!

    Reply

  50. Michele Daggar says

    Wow, It looks fantastic John. What a summer to have built a deck. I don’t envy all that time spent in the humidity!

    I guess now it’s time to celebrate with a new soda shirt (or two!)

    Hope you get some relaxation time on that deck soon!

    Reply

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