A well designed and solidly built deck can help extend the useable living space in your house (as well as increasing its value). With a relatively small tool investment, some hard manual labor, and a willingness to "measure twice and cut once", building a deck is a home improvement activity that many people have the capability to take on themselves.

This following page outlines the process I took to build my deck. As with any construction task, if you get four people in a room, you will have five opinions on how to best accomplish it. Accordingly, it is important to recognize that the materials and methods presented here are only one way of approching this moderately complex task.

Even the best planned deck will necessitate some creative in-the-field problem solving - no measurements are perfect, no cuts completely accurate, and not all circumstances can be prepared for ahead of time. My basic advice would be to order extra materials, take extra time, and be willing to hop in the car to make several trips to the local hardware store.

Planning
In order to legally construct a deck, you have to get a building permit from the City of St. Louis. Acquiring a building permit can be a frustrating process if you are not prepared - download this pdf file for a flowchart illustrating the process of obtaining a permit. As long as standard construction practices are adhered to and you aren't trying to do anything too "out of the ordinary," the City will likely let you prepare your own permit drawings. You may find, however, that it pays to take advantage of the experience, design talent, and drawing skills of a professional to prepare your drawings.

Before you start preparing drawings or hire a professional, you will want to carefully consider why you want to build the deck.

• Are you simply replacing an existing deck?
• How will you use your new deck? Entertaining? Dining? Grilling? Play? Hot tub?
• How much construction experience do you have? The more experience you have, the more complex a project you may be willing to undertake.
• What is your budget? The materials cost for a 10'x10' square deck will be approximately $1,200. Extras like complex railings, trellises, and multiple levels will bump up the cost. If you hire someone to build your deck, labor will be the largest cost.
• Are there any special conditions that you have to deal with? Often a deck will have to work around basement stair access, meters, hose bibs, and other things attached to your house.

The example deck was designed to meet a variety of criteria: easy access to the back yard, grilling area, dining area, seating area, and provision of shade. A privacy screen was incorporated to shield the deck from the neighbor's adjacent kitchen window. It also incorporates an existing brick pier that supports a second floor sunroom into its structure. The image below illustrates the final design of the deck, taking into account all the criteria.

Whether you are drawing the deck yourself or hiring a professional designer, it is critical that you fully understand how the deck is put together. The easiest way of demonstrating this to yourself is to draw details (to scale) of every unique connection. How does the deck attach to the wall? Are there sills or brick details that protrude from the wall that you will have to deal with? How does the band board attach to the posts? How will the posts attach to the piers? Etc...

The drawings to the right and photo below illustrate how some of the connections were made in the example deck. Note how the two drawings represent the same information in different ways. It is not necessary to go to this amount of detail, but rather, make sure to think through the critical elements in depth so you don't end up tearing out work.

The galvanized steel angles you see in several of the photos were installed as temporary support while the footings were poured (more on this later).

Staging
The procedure for building a deck is roughly as follows:

1. Drawings and Permit
2. Lists - Make lists of the materials you will need (add in about 10%-15% for waste) and the tools you will need.
3. Rough Layout - Block out on the ground the approximate shape of your deck using 2x4's or string and stakes.
4. Dig Footings - In St. Louis, footings must be a minimum of 30" deep.
5. Hole Inspection - The building inspector must stop by to measure the depth of the holes before you pour any concrete. Call between 8:00 and 9:00 am, 24-48 hours ahead, to schedule an appointment.
6. Outside Framing - Build the outside framing of the deck, including the ledger board, BEFORE pouring any concrete. This way, you can place the footings and piers exactly where they should end up - no guessing.
7. Concrete - Pour the footings and piers, including anchor bolts and steel reinforcement.
8. Concrete Inspection - The building inspector stops by again before you backfill your footings.
9. Framing and Finishing - Install posts, joists, decking, railing, trellis, etc...
10. Final Inspection - The building inspector visits a final time to verify that work was performed per drawings.
11. Bar-B-Que - Invite your friends over to enjoy your deck!

You will probably need to invest in some additional tools for this project. Also, be prepared to make many runs to your local hardware store for additional tools and supplies throughout the process.

From permit to completion, my deck took approximately eight weekends, Saturdays and Sundays, six to eight hours a day. Plus a couple evenings. I had assistance from friends and family to dig some of the holes, stand the posts, lay the decking, and install the rail. When you have people over to help, make sure that you have a clear idea what you would like to accomplish, how you want to proceed, and have all the right tools and supplies available.

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