We moved into our house 10 years ago. Little by little we’ve made improvements. We added hardwood floors, painted, renovated one of the bathrooms and spent a bunch of money to make sure the basement stayed dry. A project we knew we’d need to eventually tackle was the deck.
I’m not a proud person. I’m happy to make do until I have the money to take on a project. Last year I reupholstered the deck furniture. And we’ve been using one of those screened in cabanas to give us some shade and keep the mosquitoes away.
These lime green and blue oil lamps were the inspiration for the fabric color.
Doesn’t look too bad and we certainly enjoyed hanging out on the deck last summer. Winter came.
And it was a long, cold, snowy winter. We couldn’t wait to get out and enjoy the deck and had already decided to redo the deck, screening in a portion of it.
It’s a good thing we made that decision because this is how the deck looked in April.
Awful. Sad. Pathetic. Just looking at that deck gives me splinters.
That chapter has ended. We’re in the middle of replacing the deck. It’s still the same size. We’re just going to permanently screen in a portion of it to keep the mosquitoes out and we decided to go with Trex instead of wood. Lucky for us that the foundation of the deck was in excellent shape.
I was reluctant to go with Trex at first but I am really glad we did.
“Trex products offer superior durability and performance that you can’t get from wood. Trex decking resists termites, won’t rot, warp, or splinter and never needs staining or painting. What’s more, Trex decking is made from 95% recycled materials, making it an environmentally-friendly choice you can feel great about.” (http://www.trex.com/why-trex/faq/) Mark likes that it’s low to no maintenance and I like that it’s environmentally friendly. I was worried about it looking ‘fake’ but am really pleased with the way it looks and feels underfoot.
Looks great!
We decided that we really don’t want another room but a comfortable outdoor space that we’ll use in the summer and on those random warm weather days early spring and late fall.
I couldn’t be happier with the way this improves the appearance of the back of the house.
The contractor said he’ll have everything complete by the end of the month. Can’t hardly wait and have been collecting deck ideas on my Pinterest board. Stay tuned!
5 comments
So excited for you!! This is something I would love to do as well! Looking forward to hearing your tips and insights after it gets done!
Trex (composite decking) only spans 12″. The existing joists look like they are 16″-24″ on center. The decking is going to sag. Wood decking spans longer, so if you’re going to switch to Trex you need to add additional joists typically because wood decks are usually built with joists at 16″ on center.
Fast forward six years and no sagging. Your comment, however, is duly noted.
Great idea… your old deck looked almost identical to my current deck. I’d love to see how the finished project looks like. Wondering how you finished the screens, roof, etc? If you stilll around can you post some pics?
Nice job!
The screens are set in individual frames for easily replacement. One the outside (sorry I couldn’t find a pic – we’re in the middle of a snow storm!) the deck is finished with white vinyl trim. This is a photo taken after another storm showing the screens covered in snow but you get the idea.