Deck and/or Patio Prices?

If you're in a townhouse and had your deck and/or patio built after you moved in, how much did you pay? I'm talking 12 deep x 18 wide? I think those are the proper dimensions. Who did you use? Would you recommend them? Thanks!

 

Factor about $25/sq ft. Add $5 more for composite wood like Trek/Evergrain. Kinda expensive in my opinion for this area.

-Teak

 

owch... That is expensive. I was hoping to save by not having the builder do it.

 

You do save with a builder deck and you don't.

You save as the price goes into the full mortgage of the house, no having to worry about a second, or dipping into reserves.

You don't as you only get one type of deck, you can't accessorize easily, and its usually just PT lumber, not Trex, cedar or epee <sp>.

The good thing about not buying a builder deck is that it gives you some time to figure out what you really want to do with the yard. Perhaps build a screen porch UNDER the deck, or have a patio installed.



Neil Z.
Resident since 1999

 

The $25 a foot is about what we were told by one company who is building decks around here. In time, we'd like a patio and deck. We're just not ready quite yet! Moving in here is expensive enough, now we need to save more!

Does anyone have any rant or raves about the companies that did your decks?

 

You're welcome to check out mine. Done by Kenny Williams Construction. Did a great job. Only a few minor issues like using a some nails on the decking part. But overall good job with the work and price. Contact me direct if you want to come by (Profile). I'm near the M&S model homes. I'll be around Sat until about 7.

-Teak

 

I can do it for about $20 - $22/sq foot and that is for Evergrain composite decking. This also includes all permits.

www.rmera.com

 

I'll check out the website. Thank you!

 

We used him (our deck is in the pictures from 2004). I'm happy to say the deck is still standing[8D] Great price & it was an easy process.

 

May I ask couple of questions about your deck ? Did you use the Evergrain composite decking ?? If you did, how is it holding up in terms of color ... did it fade more than you expected ?? I'm trying to learn about trex/composite decks ( pros and cons ) Thank you for your help.

 

Friend of mine has Trex decking. After less than a year it is sagging under the weight of his medium size trophy BBQ grill.

 

Sasha_j: The reason its sagging is likely because the joists below the decking were spaced too far apart. Since composite materials are not rigid, the joists shouldn't really be more than 12" apart.

Snoopy: Go to Tart Lumber on 28. They have displays of both Trex and Evergrain (in all available colors) inside that show new product right next to the same color product that has aged. Its a good way to gauge the way they discolor with age.

 

Thank you for this tip .. We will go check it out this weekend ...

 

My friend was not happy with his deck contractor, so it stands to make sense that they did not fully understand the needed requirements for Trex decking.

 

We do have the composite & it's not really faded significantly. We have a grill mat covering a small portion of the deck, and when we move that you can see the difference but it's not horrible. We just need to move the mat around from time to time I think We're in Southern Walk and if you wanna check it out, let us know.

 

Does anyone know if you need a permit to put some screening up under your deck? (townhouse) I would love to put up some ceiling material like UnderDeck and then put in some semi-permanent screens up around a patio base...

http://www.underdeck.com/images/home/screen_porch.jpg is what I'm going for... does this need to be approved I guess?

 

ricm, what are the best hidden composite decking fasteners? I've seen Tigerclaw and the Eb-Ty ones... any recommendations?

 

You would need to send a request to the modifications committee for the underdeck (which is better than was on the market 3 years ago for this sort of use), and the screening if there were any sort of permanent stand, or bracing that would remain after the screens were taken town.

On the safe side, send in the request with all the supporting information.



Neil Z.
Resident since 1999

 

boomertsfx: I really haven't experimented with any hidden fasteners. All of the deck I've done have been with TrapEase screws. You can check out their site at www.fastenmaster.com.

 

Whatever you do DO NOT use Home Depot's At Home Service for this...what a disaster! They subcontract out to USA Decks or Decks America, they use many different names that vary by state.

The construction failed inspection 4 times and finally the Loudoun County inspector said he wasn't coming back until we were satisfied.

Ultimately, we weren't and we had them come back and tear it down.

We finally had to threaten to sue in order for them to come pick up their materials.