Laying The Groundwork
Holy molten core of the earth, it was a hot one this weekend! I’m glad I spent Friday night getting the mowing done. Though I was nearly mowing by flashlight towards the end, I was able to get the whole thing knocked out. Given the temps on Saturday and Sunday, that proved to be a good move.
Saturday was a lot like playing “Supermarket Sweep” at Home Depot. I picked up a new 18-volt DeWalt cordless drill, a new 7-1/4″ Milwaukee circular saw, three sets of various bits and drivers for the drill and a couple of sawhorses and clamps. The total bill was somewhere around $500 or so, but given how long I’ve been waiting to purchase some good power tools, the investment is definitely going to be worth it.
Sunday afternoon was spent putting up some guidelines for the deck and placing the Dek-Block piers. I think I’m really going to dig using this floating foundation system as it’s the most conducive to dealing with the mixed terrain with which I have to contend.
Next up is to get the header board on the house and then purchase the posts and beams and get those built. Won’t be long before I’m going to be building the actual deck frame. Can’t wait!
Those DeWalt drills are *great*, nice choice. So are you going to use actual wood for the deck or that Trex deck material?
As real as pressure treated lumber can be. My brother swears by the Trex stuff, but I’m thinking it would be overkill on this.
Trex is nice, but the thinner decking material will cost you in having to add joists every 16″ vs. 24″ in addition to the higher cost of material.
Just be sure to seal your treated lumber early next Spring to avoid splintering. Also, using Trex for the structural part is a waste.
I’m curious to see your plan for the stairs… and… did you ask Pythagoros with help for keeping your deck square? He and I have a proven relationship!
3, 4, 5 method: from the point that attaches to the house, measure in 3 feet. From the point that attaches to the house, measure 4 down the length of your string. Measure the distance between those two marked points and it will be 5 feet if you’re squared up.
Yup, that’s him/her/them…
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