Your living space is not limited to the
inside of your home. Beyond the walls of your hour, you have open access to
fresh air, natural sunlight, greenery. The best way to unite your home interior
and your exterior is by building an outdoor deck.
Your deck could be the centerpiece of your
outdoor social life and a place for gatherings, barbeques, parties, or even for
solitary rest. Decks add space to your property along with grandeur and
utility.
The experts of Home Renovation in Toronto have
come up with the following list of the types of decks you could go for:
1. Freestanding-
Freestanding decks, also known as floating
decks or ground-level decks, can be built alongside your home or anywhere in
your yard. There are several municipalities that do not allow outdoor deck
designs above a certain height. Hence, your deck must adhere to the building
codes of your area.
2. Attached/ Fixed-
Attached/ fixed decks are more elaborate
structures as compared to the freestanding decks. Rising over a minimum height,
fixed decks need special footings, guards and handrails, attached to the main
house with a ledger board.
Steps to build an outdoor deck:
1.
The process begins with the
home-owner meeting the deck builder discussing their visions. The builder will
recommend appropriate and in-trend designs that would work best to suit your
choices and also the placement of your house.
2.
The builder will draw a
detailed blueprint and give a pricing for the materials they will need, all to
give you a sufficient estimate of the budget you need to prepare for.
3.
The builder will then submit
the deck plan to the building department and technicians will mark the ground
for underground services.
4.
After establishing the position
of the piers and footers, they dig holes and set the piers & footers.
5.
They install the ledgerboard on
your house, along with support posts, beams, and joists.
6.
After they establish the basic
structure, they will nail the decking board in place and trim it according to
requirement.
7.
They will now add all the
additional features that could include stairs, railings, etc.
8.
The deck is then stained and
sealed to confirm durability.
Materials used in building your outdoor
deck:
The code requirements determine the
structural portion of the deck and they usually use pressure-treated lumber. You
will get to explore several options for the top deck. If you are renovating
your deck, you can just remove old deck materials from an existing deck and
replace them. This will cut down your costs because in that case, you will not
have to get your entire outdoor deck structure rebuilt.
Mostly, deck builders use composites, fiberglass,
tropical hardwoods, redwood, cedar, and pressure treated wood, while building a
new deck for you. There are several well-established companies offering
services for full house renovation in Toronto.