Deck Me!
We’d been talking with Weston for over a year about our new deck. We needed to save up the money; he needed to create a rough draft of the look; I had to order all the supplies to be shipped or delivered to the house.
Here’s what the old deck look liked for a before and after perspective:
Buster says the best thing about the old deck was that it matched the house.
We’d covered it with blue outdoor artificial turf to help protect feet a little, but nails were popping up through and boards were warped and twisty.
Weston was willing to work with us to use the beams underneath which were fine, and build some planters and benches to make the deck even more user-friendly.
One of the many things I love about Weston is that he’ll give me his opinion, and he’s very willing to listen to my vision, help me see if there are concerns or issues, and then say, “We can do that.”
I’m a big fan of, “We can do that.”
Weston suggested getting 20-foot boards because then the deck top wouldn’t have any seams, which would look elegant.
I toyed with the idea of hauling the boards home myself somehow…I did haul home those 12-foot carpets at Mom’s house, and that went well. What could possibly go wrong with hauling 20-footers?
Since we needed 80 of the boards, it seemed that having Home Depot deliver was prudent.
The 20-foot deck boards arrived on January 16.
Weston kindly took a little extra care in removing the old deck boards because I hoped to be able to freecycle them. (To no avail, but I’m glad we tried.)
Turns out the deck was a later addition. The original brick patio was still under there, which makes me feel better about the days Jake The Kitten was hidden below. I had thought of him wallowing under there in mud, but he was actually living in style.
The weather toyed with us throughout the weeks of deck building. There were cold and rainy days, and one day Weston had on shorts with a stocking hat and a couple layers of shirts and jackets because it seemed sunny, then wasn’t. We complimented him on his fashion choices that day.
He took the time to do a fantastic job, as always. This meant he had to step away from our deck for a couple days because of a previous commitment to another job, but that was fine with us. When our contractor is willing to let you use his tools for a project you are working on at the same time, what’s to complain about?
That’s right, while Weston was building the deck, the family was redoing the basement. Separate post on that to come, but here’s a picture of Weston and the delivery man helping me bring down the pallets of laminate flooring that were delivered on one of the days.
Each day Buds would come home to see the progress.
The above picture is a reminder to me of the care Weston took with this project. The end board on the right side of the deck looked wavery after he put the inital laminate deck board on. Buds and I would never have noticed, but it wasn’t up to Weston quality, so he took the board off, braced the underneath side more so it would be more solid and level, then put it back together.
That’s another reason we didn’t mind how long the project took. We knew it would be done well.
Look at those 20-foot boards…smooth as butter.
The custom planters were the fussiest part. They look gorgeous and I can’t wait to see them filled and blooming.
On two days of heavy rain, we had the chance to see what the birds thought of the deck while all was quiet back there with Weston not working.
The birds sat in the gutter above the deck, hung their tiny feathery keisters over the edge and crapped in a pretty, seedy pattern straight down the deck. I was horrified and fascinated all at once.
After many shared cups of coffee, many hours of labor, lots of decisions and discussions, and a few conversations with Jeremy about fishing, the deck was done.
We had a fire out back with Teresa and Jeremy on the first night the deck was done, and I’ve eaten dinner out there already. Once the weather is consistently warm, it will feel like we’ve added another room to the house.
Thanks, Weston, for making our life better.
