Decks | CreatorWorship

Posts Tagged ‘Decks’

Last Roundup

Posted in Capentry, Change, Decks, General, Photo, Project, Woodworking, tagged Carpentry, Decks, Woodworking on August 26, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Permanently or for a while, I don’t know, but certainly for the next few months I will not be building any decks since I have started a new, fulltime job indoors helping people recover their health. It is a major career and direction change for a 62 year-old, but one I have been pursuing for nearly five years now. I agreed to this deck somewhat reluctantly because I knew that it was going to push right up to the time I would be moving. In fact, I did end up pushing very hard to complete it the day before I started packing the truck. The completion of this short phase in my life reminded me of a song on an old 78 RPM record my mother had in the Livingroom Closet. On the very static recording, Gene Autry is crooning, “I’m headed for the last round-up”. In the song, he is actually talking about going to heaven, but as a boy I didn’t catch on to that. Instead, I took it to mean that an old cowboy was riding in his last cattle round-up, meaning he was retiring. I get asked somewhat frequently how I like retirement, having retired from public education after 28 years. I don’t really know. I have built decks for two years and now end that round-up circuit in order to start a new adventure.

There were costs to building decks. I worked long hours on the clear days and not at all on the rainy days. I was totally worn out at times. Making mistakes and having cost overruns was frustrating. I was frequently exposed to chemicals that I have a reaction to. It was difficult to price things to make money without chasing off potential customers. I knew that I could not physically do this work long-term. There were benefits to building decks. I was my own boss and kept my own hours. I met new people and had many profitable conversations. I was physically stronger than I had been previously for many years. I sweated profusely which is good for a body. Solving problems was a good challenge. I had the sense of a job well done and thank you’s for accomplishing it. It paid many bills.

For a tour of the process on this latest and possibly last deck, click on Something Old and Something New.

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Table Deck

Posted in Capentry, Decks, General, Photo, Project, Woodworking, tagged Carpentry, Decks, DecksandSuch on November 14, 2021| Leave a Comment »

I try to do what the customer asks for. The house is a remodel with new vinyl siding. Attaching the deck to the house would mean putting holes in the new siding and crushing it to the wall. Additionally, he wanted the posts set on concrete footings. I said on, not in. The combination of these two requirements meant a deck with very little lateral stability. To solve this problem I installed twelve diagonal braces with copious numbers of screws. Along with the stairs, the deck ended up quite stable. Check out the pictures at “Table Deck“

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Throwback Thursday

Posted in Decks, General, Photo, Project, Relationship, Woodworking, Work, tagged Carpentry, Decks, Maintenance, Relationships, Woodworking on June 10, 2021| Leave a Comment »

I have been building decks as work arises for just over a year now, but before that when I was full time teacher, I would do projects in the summer and sometimes on weekends. The following deck was built in the summer of 2013 and turns 8 years old this month. Unlike another one that I built that had no maintenance in the ensuing years, this one has been taken good care of. I cannot find pictures of building the deck though I remember taking some. My two youngest sons helped me with the project which included replacing the front steps, installing a thermostatically controlled vent in the front porch shed roof, trimming two trees overhanging the house, reshaping the the contour of the ground above the house to direct water away from the house, and building the deck which replaced a similar one that had not been maintenanced properly. Besides being re-stained regularly since it was new, there have been improvements like the skirt underneath and the concrete pads at the base of the steps and underneath. The wall below the deck was there but has been landscaped along with other areas around the steps. Decks are certainly not permanent structures, but when taken care of properly may last and look good for more than 30 years.

Though you may take care of your deck and it may rot anyway because of circumstances of the wood quality or environment of the deck*, it is much more likely to last in good shape when you do some maintenance.

This idea of maintenance applies to all things that you own, but also applies to your body and relationships. Make time for taking care of yourself. Make time to get to know better those you love and those with whom you are acquainted. You will be happy with the result and the benefits will be long term.

*Things very detrimental to decks include intense solar radiation (south facing or reflection off of glass or radiation from brick or asphalt), residing under trees where there is much litter accumulated and constant moisture that promotes algae and mold growth.

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Repair the Supports

Posted in Experience, General, Photo, Problems, Woodworking, Work, tagged Deck Repair, Decks, Woodworking, Work on January 20, 2021| 3 Comments »

I could be talking about the underpinnings of society, but that seems to be going no where at the moment. So, I’ll just talk about a recent deck repair that I did.

Two of the posts had significant bows due to warping at a knot or knots. The first one pictured is the worst since a crack goes almost all the way through the two knots on either side. Gravity is persistent and will overcome any imbalance eventually. For that reason I hand pick all lumber when I am building a deck and take back boards that are not looking like they will go the distance. Nothing is permanent and decks can be expected to last 20 to 30 years depending on how often you stain it, the quality of the original boards, maintenance, and how it was designed.

Here is it close up. I should have shown the other side so you could see how serious the problem was to the structure of the post.

The other one looked as follows. If the grain at the top of the knot split to combine the two cracks, the post would not be far from gone.

The first step was to install a temporary support. A few posts from a previous job and my trusty persuasional tool (sledgehammer) served the purpose well. I hammered the temporary up to plumb, allowing you to see just how bowed the post was.

The next step was cutting the post off and rigging a way to pulled it out of the concrete slab. The slab was added after the house and deck were built, so they poured it around the posts. My car and truck jacks worked slowly but surely.

I was surprised how shallow the post was set. The aluminum plate, badly corroded, was sitting on gravel in the hole whereas these plates were usually used to set posts on concrete. There was not too much cracking of the concrete.

I filled the hole with concrete and inserted a “J” bolt that would later secure the bottom plate.

Two days later I installed the new posts. You can see in the background that I had not yet installed the second post.

A post whose bottom can dry out will last much longer.

Next I went around and clamped together joists which had warped and separated and screwed or bolted them together as needed. Some just looked ugly and others presented possible structural problems.

That does not look good from a structural standpoint. I had to jack up the left joist a bit to clamp and screw it together.

This one looks bad but is well supported so I don’t believe it caused a real problem.

However, real or perceived, I was tasked with fixing it.

My father would always say that there was nothing better than a nut and lock washer. I have a son and son-in-law, who are Materials Joining Engineers, who would likely differ. At any rate, I must not have quite learned the lesson. However, in my defense, I find that a flat washer crushed slightly into wood works quite well.

Decks And Such (https://facebook/decksandsuch), be the job small or large, fixes the prob lem (prob-><-lem -> problem) and gets the results.

I am pleased to thank God for the strength and experience to work in this way and the flow of work that has begun in 2021. When work slacked up in December, I became concerned, but it was all part of the plan. I had back problems soon afterwards that prevented me from working. As soon as that subsided, the work started coming again. We can depend on God to provide; we need to trust Him even when things get lean.

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1:12

Posted in Capentry, Creating, General, Photo, Project, Woodworking, Work, tagged Carpentry, Decks, Handicap Ramps, Little Things, Ramps, Woodworking on January 15, 2021| 1 Comment »

1 to 12 is the maximum steep ratio of rise to run for a handicap ramp, which means that for every 1 inch the ramp needs to rise it must have 12 inches or a foot of run. I needed to build a ramp up onto a porch 29 inches above the gravel driveway. Following is my solution for the limited space available. It is a very little slope that feels almost like walking on the flat.

I had to double the joists at both ends of the eleven foot span. Notice in later pictures that one of the occupants began washing the siding. It looks so much better now. I also had to reroute the downspout and extend it to again reach the drain pipe it had not been draining into recently. The little details matter.

Notice the tar at ground level. Even though treated wood is rated for below grade (underground use), I have noticed numerous times that it does not particularly rot below grade but does at ground level where it mildews and grows algae prolifically. I do all of the posts with a good quality tar, too. I did not run the deck all the way to gravel so that I would run a mound of gravel to redirect water which was washing out near the foundation. Some little details are not so little.

I detest wasting material. The lumber yard didn’t have 10′ decking boards that I wanted so I had to cut off nearly 3′ of board that was not long enough to use on the 4′ wide ramp. I used some of the scrap for erosion control. A little scrap is a big deal- don’t waste!

I was pleased with the result and so was the homeowner. She gets up and down easily now. The little things make it worth doing a good job.

Classic Pine woodgrain that almost looks like plywood. Would you notice such a little thing?

This turn was the most challenging part of the railing, but it sure makes it sturdy. Notice that the siding is cleaner. Turning every board so that the good side shows takes a little extra effort, but it reaps big benefits in appearance.

Based on what I just said about turning the boards, can you imagine how many knots I hid? The little detail that should also be considered when selecting the side up is the crown or dip of the board. Lumber is cut out of a more or less cylindrical trunk. The grain curves in the board. If the crown is down, the board will bow with a dip in the middle across its width. This can hold water on a flat surface and increase deterioration.

The day is nearing an end and I have a little clean up to do before I talk to the homeowner and head for the house. Another project completed for Decks And Such (www.facebook.com/decksandsuch).