Reply Hey this is awesome! Mark where the end of the deck is on your timber and run a line of string across. The floorOnce the runners and the skirts are on, it's time to start showing some real visual progress. Jul 19, 2018 - Building a Wooden Deck Over a Concrete One: So we've had this very sturdy but extremely plain looking concrete porch in the back of the house, and we've always wanted to make it warmer and more inviting. 3 years ago. The last one is optional, though. All lines where they touch the concrete, where the two layers of the runners meet and where there are holes left by knots, are all filled up with a high grade exterior use silicone in order to prevent water from accumulating and getting in there.And as with all other steps - any freshly cut piece of wood gets some preservative brushed on to to avoid water damage there as well.Installing the skirtsSkirts are needed on all vertical surfaces, but at this point I only installed the ones on the sides of the floor. When attaching two boards on the same runner, angle the screws such that they are at least 0.75" away from the edge of the board and still going into the runner. The hinges I used were regular door hinges that were safe to use on treated wood, out of the same concern with the ACQ approved screws. Put the joist extension back into position, bridging between the slab and the pier block. This made for a sturdy spacer that was also easy to grab onto with a pair of pliers and pull out (some of them will be really stuck after the board is attached).Not all of your boards will be perfectly straight, but that's ok and can be fixed (to a degree...). In our case we just had an old wood skirt that had been attached to the concrete sides with some bolts, and a simple railing attached to that skirt. We have a 72" X 42" concrete stoop with four steps that we would like to cover with a wood floor and new railings. Placing concrete deck blocks about every 3-5′. Tapcon) for attaching the floor supports to the concrete. Then move down the line, set spacer, and either pull or push the board into place. I have a concrete patio, and other places I'm reading say that wood in contact with concrete is a recipe for rot. Sizes - most of the screws I used were 2" long, as that would go through the boards and offer a good amount of catch onto the base beneath them. When you go buy your supplies, make sure you get at least 10-15% extra of everything, because some beams will have unsightly knots, will not be perfectly straight (even straight ones might warp a bit in the sun if left unused for a few days), etc. How to Build a Deck Over a Concrete Patio. Check out the video above for an explanation on scribing and framing your deck and the link below has more information on the building a front deck. * Railing sections - I'm not really happy with the effort it took to lift the half finished sections into place, screw them in, and then add the top railing. But in this story, we'll make it easy by showing you how to estimate step dimensions, layout and cut stair stringers, and assemble the stair parts. Next Project . From concrete stains and epoxy coatings to a variety of enclosures, there are several ways to go about this. I live just north of Seattle Washington so rain and moisture is a big concern. 5 years ago You might just want to carve drainage channels on the bottom of the runners, or have interspersed small runners, but both of those have issues (i.e. Just so I can get an estimate for mine, Thanks so much! A concrete stoop with steps can be a formidable obstacle when trying to build a deck. Their down side, though, is that they really don't feel like wood (in my opinion). I guess I could have used even longer screws on these. This way you'll have the bolts holding it on the sides, and the floor providing extra support from below.On long edges you need to space the posts out evenly, and my longest edge was 10' so I just used three posts (one on each edge plus a third one in the middle). You'll be making a ton of cuts to fit the wood into different sizes and shapes, and will be exposing the untreated innards to the elements. This results in a bit more that 18" between runners (26.5" on center, so not exactly "a bit more" ...), but after placing a couple of experimental boards and seeing that there was very little spring to them I figured I'd be ok. I did not have a proper workbench and stopper for the miter saw, so I cut one piece to the right size, then put a heavy toolbox at the end so that I could easily set more material next to it and cut everything to the same length. As always, comments and suggestions are always welcome.See you next year!--- June 9 2012 update - Finally got around to building the panels underneath the porch, and they're quite straight forward. Without airflow below the wood - 10 inches, preferably a foot - the lifespan is degraded, so they say.Glad to hear you're not having any issues. The beams are then held together by 3" screws going through each corner and then 45 degree metal brackets on the back.The only thing I have not really figured out yet is how to lock the panels in place, but seeing that they're quite snug to begin with I'm thinking of just leaving it as is. Also, what did it cost to build yours? Then cut 5/4" x 6" beams (basically the same thing used for the floor) to length and install on top of the railings. We now have a beautiful wooden deck that is extremely warm looking and inviting. You mentioned in your posting the odd sizing of boards and figured it had some history to it. If the ground is uneven you might want to pour some concrete to make it flat. The curves will either point up or down, and this is important to keep in mind. Glad you liked them. I had seen a few decking videos where it's used to cut off the tops of the posts, but found it to be too much of a hassle and too slow. perpendicular to the runners) or, as I chose to do, at a bit of an angle (I went with 45 degrees).If you choose to add a design to your deck and install the planks in any other way, just remember that they must be at an angle to the runners so they have good support. Since the floor planks are a bit over 0.5" thick, and I was going to use 2" screws, I needed runners that were at least 2" high so I wouldn't risk bottoming out when attaching the planks. Any other ideas to reduce maintenance overhead? These will cost you even more than cedar but will last way longer. Those on either side of the steps were done after the steps were completely finished because it was much easier to measure and fit them at that point.When putting the skirts on its important to keep water drainage in mind. It would consist of inter connected plastic drums that fit right inside the bench, with a faucet that fits right between the railing balusters on the right hand side of the staircase. Share it with us! Hi there. This hinge beam has to be very strongly attached as you'll have the seats swinging off of it (and they're not exactly light). Cut PVC trim boards to wrap around stoop using circular saw. The concrete in my case is 6" thick, which is enough room to attach to bolts one on top of the other, about 2" apart. Same thing applies to screws - get a lot of them.ProtectionThis one comes before anything else. A well designed front porch or deck is an inviting feature on most homes. My runners were there composed of 1" x 2" pieces sitting on top of a 2" x 2" ones. You want to remove half the width of the post for the height of the skirt + floor, such that the post will be sitting on top of the floor. These articles will also cover how to build stair landings and ADA ramps. When the posts will get attached to the 2" x 4", they have to be centered on it. We chose a composite decking surround as we liked the low-maintenance factor and wood look. In this video, This Old House general contractor Tom Silva explains how to deck over a concrete stoop. Reply Setting up the postsThe posts are 4" x 4" beams that are 36" + the height of your skirts + the height of the floor boards (in my case a total of 45"). Attach flooring material to the top of the frame and you're done. I used 5/4" x 6" material to cover the sides and for the seating area; basically flooring material, so that the two would match.The frame of the benches is constructed of 2" x 3" beams, and then covered on the sides with flooring material and attached to the deck by driving screws diagonally through the bottom square of the bench directly into the deck. Reply A massive concrete stoop will be difficult to remove. on Introduction. Learn the simple steps to DIY deck building . Instead of removing those concrete front steps, save some time by building a wood deck over and around them. Simply put the board down, set the proper spacing at one end, and screw that end down. Now, refer to your engineering plans to determine how far apart your … As a real amateur, can I ask how you joined the pieces of the bench frame together, e.g. Deck How To Build A Deck. When you're installing your wooden deck over this, the floor planks will not be installed directly over the concrete but rather on runners that are installed perpendicular to the house (so water drainage is not blocked). Make sure the holes do not go too close to the bottom or top edge of the concrete. 4. I guess what I'm asking is with cushions on top, could it stand to be a bit longer? 8 years ago I drew a line down the middle of the 2" x 4" (to know where the screws would go in), laid it down on it's narrow side (with the line facing me) and placed a floor beam right behind it (the beam provides about 1" of lift to the balusters, effectively centering them on the 2" x 4"). Use the same technique as with the bottom railing to get the right spacing; i.e. Sure, building deck stairs can be tricky. And plenty of it. I've gotten dust in my eyes more times than I care to count, and have felt my ears ringing more than once after drilling and cutting. When you're building a deck with wood or composite lumber, supplementing nails, screws, and other traditional fasteners with construction adhesive is an easy way to get stronger, longer-lasting results. Decking How to build outdoor steps A D.I.Y. clogging over time, and potential support issues). Decks are popular backyard features, but they also make for dramatic front entries. It's important to get the angle right and to choose a very straight board, because all the others that follow will laid down parallel to this one.The boards get two screws running through them and into each runner, and where a board ends it must be cut at 45 degrees and end right in the middle of a runner. A regular drill and a hammer drill - You'll be needing two drills throughout the whole process because the vast majority of the holes will have to pre-drilled before putting screws in them. The benches are of an extremely simple design and don't take long at all to construct. Being screwed onto a firm surface will hold that cupping back, and if you install the board with the curves facing up its edges will rise over time and become both unsightly and dangerous (easy to trip over).Finally, make sure you pre-drill all holes so the screws don't end up stretching and potentially cracking the wood. Maybe you have heard this since posting your project but thought I'd throw it out there in case you have not. I still need to close of the space underneath the deck, but the weather is beginning to turn over here, the days are getting shorter, and I'm running on of time. Place steel connectors - the strongest way to attach posts to concrete. In this video, This Old House general contractor Tom Silva explains how to deck over a concrete stoop. If you have a lush, green backyard, you might be wondering how to build a floating deck over grass. You can build a raised deck over concrete base in two ways. Mark the length and position of the deck on the wall of your house with a pencil. I've used the most common sizes of available lumber, though:2" x 2" and 1" x 2" - floor support, railing balusters5/4" x 6" x 10' - floor boards, railing top caps2" x 6" x 10' - skirts4" x 4" - railing posts2" x 4" - top and bottom railingsScrews and boltsThere are a whole bunch of screws you can use on lumber, but you must absolutely ensure the ones you get are meant for use with decking (i.e. When the skirt came off I could not even see these channels because they were completely clogged. The new deck will extend past the cement by a few feet on both sides and the end so I plan to use standard deck piers for those sections. those spanning just two runners), as they would bow too much in the middle. If like us, you have an old concrete stoop that has more than seen better days, rather than going through the hassle of tearing it out, why not give it a facelift? But for a broken or cracked base, you need to repair the … * For the enclosures underneath the deck - I plan on burying 6" x 6" parallel to the edge of the floors such that their top surface is flat with the ground. The balusters need to have their bottoms and tops cut at a specific angle for them to sit flat between the railing and still be level, so I just positioned one, used a level to ensure it was straight, and marked it. In addition, the steps will have to hang off the deck because the final grading for the yard is yet to be done. 8 years ago I was thinking that the width should be longer because I want the to be really cozy. Thx for sharing that tidbit! Deck Over a Patio. Steps: 1. Now that it's time to redo the stain, I'm finding it difficult to figure out how to move the whole thing. a 2" x 2" piece is actually just 1.5" x 1.5". on Step 6. I read another post were they used a felt material, have you heard of that? And as always, brush on wood sealer to all cut ends. This gave me a height of 2" (for those of who have not dealt with north american lumber - the measurements aren't wrong; the labeling system over here is just messed up; e.g. Same rules applies as for the screws - get ACQ approved (perhaps even galvanized would work)  nails.GlueI used a fair amount of construction adhesive for places like the floor support, the skirts and the balusters, so you'll need several tubes of it. Start from the front of the step with full width boards and work your way towards the back, ripping the final board to the proper width with the circular saw (or, preferably, a table saw if you have one).When the steps are covered, use some bristol board to outline the exact shape of the skirts on the sides of the steps. Instead of removing those concrete front steps, save some time by building a wood deck over and around them. I first buried a line of 6x6 beams in the ground (with gravel underneath) parallel to the edges of the porch. Building a deck is a great addition to any house, as it creates an extra-space that can be used as a place to take your dinner or to read a good book. And you won't need any hard math to figure it out (though your calculations must be accurate!). Apply foam adhesive to back of trim. I then cut several more balusters to the exact same length and angles, and attached them in between the railings with screws in the same way I did the straight sections. The ultimate solution for a hopeless slab. Repeat the same with the bottom railing, ensuring the perpendicular distance remains 36" just like with the straight sections. The wood is already treated against water, but since these places will be inaccessible in the future you want to do as much as possible now to prevent water damage later on.Wood sealerTreated wood is basically wood into which a preservative liquid has been inserted by using a vacuum and lots of pressure. Rather, I built the railing right into place and measured lengths and angles as I went.Start by clamping some scrap material to the posts for the top railing to sit on. And if your design means that the runners are any way near parallel to the house, then you've got a problem with drainage. I'll check it again in the summer of 2017 (for a five year span) and get back to you :). Do yourself a favor and get a pair that can be easily removed and put back on (like the pair in the photo) even if your hands are dirty, as you'll need to do this often.WoodDepending on where you live and what is available, you'll probably have a choice between treated yellow pine (the green stuff) and cedar. The only thing I'd suggest doing differently (as I've learned this over the past couple of years) would be to make the storage in small, movable sections instead of one large piece like I did. I've done my best to protect against those things and take notes/photos of them, but I'm sure there's always room for improvement. Thanks. It's a bit hard to visualize in words; just refer to the photos for this one in case it's unclear.Then start placing the 2" x 2" posts (using a scrap piece of the same material for spacing) and drive a screw right into the middle of the post. Well thought out. As for reducing maintenance - I would just go with the two main recommendations in the article: put silicone everywhere there is a chance water can get in (e.g. The comments are appreciated by the authors as much as the articles are appreciated by the readers :), Hi Dave- love the deck and in particular the benches. * Benches - I plan on building a second bench right next to the stairwell, following the same design as the first one. 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