Dave, I think you hit on one of the major characteristics of our weather. We can use a deck 12 months out of the year because of our climate. We'll have a few days where we'll stay inside, but most of the year we can be on one deck or the other. I'm even now considering a hard cover over part of it so we can go out on the deck and watch the rain.
Eddie, thanks for your thoughts. You've added a lot to the strength and quality of this deck as a long distance consultant. You aren't going to send me a bill, are you?
Western, there
are lots of steps.
However, since the main living area of our house is on the 2nd story and the 2-1/2 story level, mostly we can just walk out onto a deck and have no more than five stair steps to go 3/4 of the way around the house. The added benefit is that I can walk out of the double French door at my office and have steps down to the side yard or walk around the deck and have steps down to the front of the house. Previously, I had to walk out the front of the house and down the only set of steps or go all the way down to our walkout basement. Actually, we found ourselves coming and going through the garage most of the time, especially to carry in groceries. Also, I'm so spoiled to having a raised view of everything that I feel odd in a house with only one level. Does that make sense?
Finally, this deck is going to provide tremendous shade for the area of the house below it. Under my current deck, I have stain that's been there for four years and it still looks almost as good as the day I applied it. That will surely be the case now with the covered areas, and I can also put in flowers that won't get cooked in the sun. The areas above and below the deck are improved in our hot TX weather. Shade is good.
Ron, if we put a gate at each end of the new deck and put a ball out there, I think I know a little dog that will play 'til she drops.
...and to keep this tractor related, using my grapple and my loader forks sure made cleanup of the area a snap.
