The Deck is Done

Our deck is finally finished. We decided to go with an all Ipe deck and are very happy with the way it looks. Our deck was built by Clemens at http://www.finedecks.com/. Ipe is a Brazilian hardwood and requires a completely different approach to basic deck building. With Ipe, it is important to find a builder that has lots of experience working with such a dense wood. Ipe is a Brazilian hardwood that is just beautiful and is so dense that when placed in water, it sinks instead of floating. This spring I am going to apply the RAD deck cleaner and Woodzotic stain to make the deck look like an indoor hardwood floor. The stain and cleaner can be found here: http://www.restore-a-deck.com/index.html

The finished product is 11x18.

This last picture actually shows how the boards are fastened down. To provide a custom look, a pilot hole is drilled and then a screw is used to fasten down the board to the cross supports. Then a wood plug is inserted and glued down. After the glue is dried, the wood plug is sanded smooth to provide a nice even surface and does a great job of concealing the screws.

We originally wanted to build a 16x18 deck, but that created a problem with our lot size and would of required a variance to proceed. It is funny that Ryland neglected to mention that to us when we bought our house. It is amazing what the builder "forgets" to mention to a prospective buyer. We will never buy another house from them and we have decided that we are done with big community builders from here on out. Our next house will be totally custom and include a much bigger yard. Our present community is too cramped and we would like some space. On another note why do the local governments allow these plans. We have so many houses piled on top of each other that it is a complete eye sore.