How To Build A Timber Deck

Decks are one of the most popular DIY (do it yourself) home improvement projects, every year nearly 1.1 million home owners build decks without any professional help. If you are planning on building a deck on your own, here are a few things you need to keep in mind before you start working on your deck.
Like most home improvement projects, a deck also requires clearance from local municipal authorities. Submitting your deck’s plans to the local municipality has two advantages, the first advantage is your housing plans will be 100% legitimate. The second advantage is all your plans will be scrutinized ensuring the plans are safe. Remember, you might have to tear down the deck if you have not got permission for its construction. If you have not made a deck before, make sure you get your plans looked at by an architect or someone who has constructed a deck before. Every year, hundreds of homemade decks collapse due to structural insufficiencies. In a nut shell, the safety of you and your family comes first.
New age construction materials like aluminium, plastic and vinyl are viable alternatives to wood. If you want to make a deck that is ‘different’, then you should consider using some of the new age construction materials mentioned earlier. Compared to wood, new age materials last longer and are easier to maintain, new age materials are also available in a variety of textures and finishes. The only disadvantage of new age materials is that they are usually more expensive than wood. If you do not want to spend an exorbitant amount on construction materials, wood is still the best option.
All said and done, wood is still the material of choice when it comes to constructing decks. Wood is cheaper than new age materials, is appealing and is also easily available. If you plan on using wood to construct your deck, try and make sure the wood is treated with water proofing materials. In addition, you might want to use UV protection coating on the wood to preserve its looks and expect to spend some time applying sealant every few years to keep the wood in good shape. The colour of paint used varies from person to person, and many people prefer using semi-transparent paint for preserving the natural look of wood.
There has been considerable controversy around a known carcinogen (cancer causing substance) called CCA (chromated copper arsenate) which was used to treat wood. Although wood is no longer treated with CCA, there are still some hazardous chemicals used to treat wood today. If you are using wood for constructing your deck make sure you know exactly what chemicals it has been treated with and only use wood that is 100% safe. Although, making decks is perhaps the simplest of all home improvement tasks, it helps to be a little creative while working on your deck. There are numerous websites you can visit to get new ideas for making decks.
Resource Box
For more ideas on how to build a deck visit http://howtobuilditonline.com

Greg Whitburn is the author of this article. Before starting on your next DIY project, take a look at the exact steps involved and your options when building, on our pages on How To Build a Deck. Find more information about How To Build A Timber Deckhere.

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How To Build A Timber Deck
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