The Deck Makeover

From Australian Handyman Magazine

Kate gets decked out to give her tiny verandah a quick makeover, but discovers it has to be replaced completely.
My tired back deck could barely fit a table and two chairs on its peeling maroon boards, and was even more of an eyesore after my recent courtyard makeover. I assumed a simple decking re-clad job would do, but discovered rotting timber joists and splitting bearers under the old boards. It was time for a whole new deck!

Download The Deck Makeover PDF

The new design
We decided to extend the deck further along the back of our house to make it more functional. It gets beautiful morning sun and looks out over the yard – a really great place to have breakfast. I kept the design simple, running stairs directly from the house to the yard, and using simple, open wire railings to create a sense of space. We decided to fix it to the house, rather than make it freestanding, to extend our living area. If only I could afford those fancy bi-fold doors.

Calling in the professionals
I’ll admit to feeling daunted at the thought of building something that not only had to look pretty, but was an actual construction job. Any short cuts could end in disaster. I decided to seek some professional advice. With the know-how of carpenter Dave, we double checked that I’d measured everything correctly. Dave then got stuck in and helped with all the initial heavy framework for the deck, such as fixing the ledger, the bearers and joists. This saved me needing to hire any big tools, and saved loads of time (not to mention giving peace of mind). I finished by laying the decking boards, and painting and putting up the handrails. It was well worth a day or two of professional help!

STEP 1

Removing the old deck
Using a crowbar, we got stuck into lifting the cracked decking boards. Too easy! Or so I thought. Beneath the boards I found rotting joists and split bearers. This meant that the deck had seen better days and the whole lot would have to be replaced. Biting the bullet, we cleared the entire area and prepared to start from scratch.

STEP 2

Measuring and setting out
The height of the deck was determined by the existing sliding doors to the house. We measured up from the ground to the bottom of the doors to set out the new design. I marked the shape of the deck directly onto the existing concrete slab, using a builder’s square in the corners. The overall dimensions of the new deck determines how many bearers, joists and posts will be needed to support it, so it’s important to get this part right.

STEP 3

Putting up the ledger
My first job was to set the height of the timber ledger. I marked along the top of it, allowing room for the joists and decking boards to sit just below the doorsill. Using a drill, we drilled holes for the dynabolts at 450mm centres along the ledger. With carpenter Dave’s help, I then lifted the ledger away and drilled into the brickwork using a 12mm masonry bit. I tapped the dynabolts through the ledger and into the brickwork then tightened them up.

STEP 4

Posts and supports
As the deck sat over an existing concrete slab, there was no need to build footings. The posts sat in galvanised steel supports, which were dynabolted into the slab. I marked the housing positions for the bearers on the posts. Dave made a series of close cuts, using a circular saw, then cleaned out the housing with a chisel and hammer.
HINT: Reseal any cut timber edges to prevent rotting. I brushed mine with Protim Reseal.

STEP 5

Erecting the bearers
Now for some heavy lifting. The bearers do what the name suggests – bear up the deck. I needed two big bearers to run parallel to, and at the same height as, the ledger. I positioned them into the notched-out housing in the posts, then drilled two offset holes through each bearer into the posts. I tapped in the cuphead bolts and then tightened the nuts with a shifter, to fix them firmly in place.

STEP 6

Putting up the joists
The treated pine joists, which sat perpendicular to the bearers and ledger, were cut to length. As the decking boards are to be fixed to these, we spaced them at 450mm centres and checked them for straightness with a stringline. We then fixed them in place with galvanised nails. HINT Nail guns help get the job done much faster than hammering by hand.