Tag Archive for: Decks

IS YOUR DECK SAFE?

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Trex Decking – Home Improvement

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Good afternoon everyone, Backyard Brian here. I’m going to take a few minutes and show you something that we’ve been working on. It’s a trex deck that we are starting to install. This is pretty cool because we’re able to take an old deck and pull off the old decking that was pressure-treated, splintering, and falling apart. We’re putting this nice, new surface down here that you can see, and we’re putting them down with clips. These clips are hidden fasteners that go in between the boards and so that there are no screws in the face of this deck. It is a completely clean surface and made with composite material that is made from wood fibers and plastic. It also has a nice shell that’s pretty indestructible and doesn’t fade or scratch. This deck will last a very long time.

The next thing we’re going to do on this particular deck is lay this white vinyl tile, and it will have a complete pergola over the top as well. I’ll be using these posts; the mosaic will be all vinyl; and there is no painting, which is what this homeowner wanted.

I’m getting ready to head out to my daughter’s softball game a little bit later this afternoon for Waynesboro High School. First scrimmage of the year, and we’re excited for that. We’re going to do one other thing. We’re going to Highland County to the Maple Festival for the spring, which is going to be lots of fun. Can’t wait to get some maple donuts and maple syrup pancakes, which is kind of carb load. Then I’ll get back to eating healthy next week. Anyway, I hope you and your family have a great weekend. We will talk to you again soon. Bye.

 

The Sun is Shining! – Framing a Floor

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Good morning, Backyard Brian here.

The sun has come out after many cold days, and we’re excited for some sunny weather here in January. We’re getting outside to frame the floor, so I want to show you a little bit of what we’re doing. Here’s the process that’s involved with framing the floor for a backyard structure. This floor system is being built with TGI Joyce, and the advantage of this choice over conventional lumber is that they can span a much farther distance. They stay nice, straight, and flat. They have this OSB-like feature that’s used as a rim board here around the edges. Then, based on loads above, we put insert these squash blocks that help reinforce the frame to make everything is nice and strong.

This particular structure is on a block foundation that we installed this past week. You’ve also got a pressure treated plate that won’t rot under the moisture on top with a foam sealer underneath to keep moisture out. Then there are bolts inside here (anchor bolts) that secure the floor system to the foundation. That’s kind of how this all gets built and put together. We’ll show you some pictures as we go along. We’re using a zip-wall system on this particular structure, which we’ll be able to show you as the walls start to go up. We’re also using AdvanTech sub-floor here. It’s a tongue and groove, three-quarter sub-floor. It’s treated to be weather resistant so that it doesn’t swell like traditional plywood or OSB when it’s rained on, which is important this time of year.

My Favorite Wood for Exterior Projects: IPE Wood

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