How to Lay Decking - Planning Your Deck - A Quick Checklist

Planning your deck is a big project. You will admittedly get some help along the way. There are many things to think about. Where will it be situated? How supported? What materials to use? So many things to decide. What we will do here is give you a basic checklist to help streamline the process for you and hopefully make it easier and faster for you to start enjoying your new deck.

How big will your deck be? This will be considered by where you are planning to put it and the building regulations in your area. This is any way critical in your planning. Take measurements and maybe even lay out the area with some string so you can visualize what it will look like. Maybe you are too close to an existing structure. Possible you forgot to think a stairway or other entrance point. Do a quick walk-through first. Consider how your deck will need to be supported. The decking boards must bear the weight to you, your guests and your family for years to come. Permissible withhold is essential. You will most likely have to dig for concrete footers to withhold the wood frame. Can you dig where you want your deck? How big will the footers need to be? Even if you are hiring someone it is good to go through the process to growth your knowledge of the project. What type of materials do you want for your deck? Do you need to use the same type as already exists on the property for aesthetic reasons. Is the deck for a industrial application such as a restaurant where maintenance free may be the best choice? There are many wood, composite and engineered products available today. Look at all of your options and make the best selection based on your funds and the look and feel you want for your deck. How will your deck be held together? You do not want a deck that has nails popping up a few years after it was built. Nails are less expensive to install and leave a less visible hole than screws. Screws will hold the decking boards down great and can be admittedly removed should a mend be necessary. They are also more time-consuming to install. Both nails and screws are available with weather unyielding coatings or in stainless steel.

Carpentry Framing

So there is a lot to think about. Hopefully here we have given you adequate food for understanding to get thing moving. Just planning of your deck will make for your greater enjoyment and use of it for years to come. Do your own research, be aware of what your options are and you can ensure your deck turns out the way you like. Don't be shy about asking for help.

How to Lay Decking - Planning Your Deck - A Quick Checklist

Planning your deck is a big project. You will admittedly get some help along the way. There are many things to think about. Where will it be situated? How supported? What materials to use? So many things to decide. What we will do here is give you a basic checklist to help streamline the process for you and hopefully make it easier and faster for you to start enjoying your new deck.

How big will your deck be? This will be considered by where you are planning to put it and the building regulations in your area. This is any way critical in your planning. Take measurements and maybe even lay out the area with some string so you can visualize what it will look like. Maybe you are too close to an existing structure. Possible you forgot to think a stairway or other entrance point. Do a quick walk-through first. Consider how your deck will need to be supported. The decking boards must bear the weight to you, your guests and your family for years to come. Permissible withhold is essential. You will most likely have to dig for concrete footers to withhold the wood frame. Can you dig where you want your deck? How big will the footers need to be? Even if you are hiring someone it is good to go through the process to growth your knowledge of the project. What type of materials do you want for your deck? Do you need to use the same type as already exists on the property for aesthetic reasons. Is the deck for a industrial application such as a restaurant where maintenance free may be the best choice? There are many wood, composite and engineered products available today. Look at all of your options and make the best selection based on your funds and the look and feel you want for your deck. How will your deck be held together? You do not want a deck that has nails popping up a few years after it was built. Nails are less expensive to install and leave a less visible hole than screws. Screws will hold the decking boards down great and can be admittedly removed should a mend be necessary. They are also more time-consuming to install. Both nails and screws are available with weather unyielding coatings or in stainless steel.

Carpentry Framing

So there is a lot to think about. Hopefully here we have given you adequate food for understanding to get thing moving. Just planning of your deck will make for your greater enjoyment and use of it for years to come. Do your own research, be aware of what your options are and you can ensure your deck turns out the way you like. Don't be shy about asking for help.

How to Lay Decking - Planning Your Deck - A Quick Checklist

Designing and Planning Your Own garage

A great way to heighten your home is to build a garage. A garage not only serves as a place to protect your car(s) from the elements, but somewhere to store tools, sports equipment, and boxes of junk that you just can't seem to part with. It can also contribute a space to work on assorted projects - anyone from earthenware to potting plants to repairing and restoring cars.

Garages aren't just for cars anymore!

Carpentry Framing

You can also build a garage to add quadrate footage to a house for less cost than a accepted home expanding - for example, as a playroom for the kids or as a home office. Just think, in 1939, Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard created their first stock and formed their company, Hewlett Packard, in their garage. And what about the countless bands that have started out in the garage? For anyone with a musically-inclined teenager (and even more so for the non-musically-inclined), a garage can be a godsend as a institution space.

Do it for the benefits, not the resale value

But for all the added convenience of a new garage, be aware that you probably won't get fully reimbursed for the expanding when you sell your house. A garage expanding can cost upwards of ,000, and you can expect to get nearby a 40%-50% return on your investment (although these numbers may vary depending on factors such as your geographic location, your neighborhood and the real estate market at the time you're selling your home).

Think of the remaining 60% of the cost in terms of the personal and other financial benefits you'll enjoy. Things like improved lifestyle, recreational benefits, security and security for your car, a tax write-off if you use the space for a home office, and the cost savings of not having to move to another home.

Check local building regulations

When you're building a garage addition, start by consulting your local planning branch for facts about building permits, zoning regulations and set back requirements, which regulate how close you can build to neighboring property or to the road. Failure to comply with these regulations and failure to fetch a building permit (when necessary) can mean having to tear down your new garage. Usually, what you'll need for building a garage are the building plans and a plot plan which indicates where on your land the garage will be built.

Consult with a municipal building inspector - it's free!

It is a good idea to consult with a local city building inspector before you begin your project. Their guidance is free, and they can help ensure your scheme is up to code. Rick Perry, a building inspector for the city of Plattsburgh says about municipal building inspectors, "We are a great reserved supply for the community. Our goal is to help homeowners care for and heighten their properties safely. We want to work with the homeowners to make their projects successfully"

How big?

So how big should you build your garage? A particular garage should be at least 20 feet long and 11.5 feet wide, measured on the inner walls. The minimum width for a duplicate garage should be 18.25 feet, but you'll need more space if you're planning on putting in a workbench or if you'll need to store bicycles, tools or firewood. anyone size you choose, your garage will cost roughly per quadrate foot.

Don't forget that you can take benefit of the height in your garage by using the trusses or by building a loft area to store canoes, kayaks, boxes, and patio furniture and bicycles in the off-season.

Your contractor will orchestrate the show

Building a garage expanding can be a complex job, so it's foremost to hire a reputable, licensed contractor. A general contractor can help you fabricate a basic garage and even make working drawings that you can use to fetch the important permits. But more importantly, your contractor will need to coordinate the assorted phases of the project, and bring in accepted specialists at the right times. These may consist of sub-contractors to do demolition, excavation and back filling to prepare the site for building, form setting for the foundation, framing and carpentry for the structure and roof, and adding insulation, windows, doors, roofing, eaves troughs, covering siding, electricity, plumbing and ventilation.

Use the our Cost Estimator on our site to help appraisal the cost of building your new garage.

Designing and Planning Your Own garage

A great way to heighten your home is to build a garage. A garage not only serves as a place to protect your car(s) from the elements, but somewhere to store tools, sports equipment, and boxes of junk that you just can't seem to part with. It can also contribute a space to work on assorted projects - anyone from earthenware to potting plants to repairing and restoring cars.

Garages aren't just for cars anymore!

Carpentry Framing

You can also build a garage to add quadrate footage to a house for less cost than a accepted home expanding - for example, as a playroom for the kids or as a home office. Just think, in 1939, Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard created their first stock and formed their company, Hewlett Packard, in their garage. And what about the countless bands that have started out in the garage? For anyone with a musically-inclined teenager (and even more so for the non-musically-inclined), a garage can be a godsend as a institution space.

Do it for the benefits, not the resale value

But for all the added convenience of a new garage, be aware that you probably won't get fully reimbursed for the expanding when you sell your house. A garage expanding can cost upwards of ,000, and you can expect to get nearby a 40%-50% return on your investment (although these numbers may vary depending on factors such as your geographic location, your neighborhood and the real estate market at the time you're selling your home).

Think of the remaining 60% of the cost in terms of the personal and other financial benefits you'll enjoy. Things like improved lifestyle, recreational benefits, security and security for your car, a tax write-off if you use the space for a home office, and the cost savings of not having to move to another home.

Check local building regulations

When you're building a garage addition, start by consulting your local planning branch for facts about building permits, zoning regulations and set back requirements, which regulate how close you can build to neighboring property or to the road. Failure to comply with these regulations and failure to fetch a building permit (when necessary) can mean having to tear down your new garage. Usually, what you'll need for building a garage are the building plans and a plot plan which indicates where on your land the garage will be built.

Consult with a municipal building inspector - it's free!

It is a good idea to consult with a local city building inspector before you begin your project. Their guidance is free, and they can help ensure your scheme is up to code. Rick Perry, a building inspector for the city of Plattsburgh says about municipal building inspectors, "We are a great reserved supply for the community. Our goal is to help homeowners care for and heighten their properties safely. We want to work with the homeowners to make their projects successfully"

How big?

So how big should you build your garage? A particular garage should be at least 20 feet long and 11.5 feet wide, measured on the inner walls. The minimum width for a duplicate garage should be 18.25 feet, but you'll need more space if you're planning on putting in a workbench or if you'll need to store bicycles, tools or firewood. anyone size you choose, your garage will cost roughly per quadrate foot.

Don't forget that you can take benefit of the height in your garage by using the trusses or by building a loft area to store canoes, kayaks, boxes, and patio furniture and bicycles in the off-season.

Your contractor will orchestrate the show

Building a garage expanding can be a complex job, so it's foremost to hire a reputable, licensed contractor. A general contractor can help you fabricate a basic garage and even make working drawings that you can use to fetch the important permits. But more importantly, your contractor will need to coordinate the assorted phases of the project, and bring in accepted specialists at the right times. These may consist of sub-contractors to do demolition, excavation and back filling to prepare the site for building, form setting for the foundation, framing and carpentry for the structure and roof, and adding insulation, windows, doors, roofing, eaves troughs, covering siding, electricity, plumbing and ventilation.

Use the our Cost Estimator on our site to help appraisal the cost of building your new garage.

Designing and Planning Your Own garage