Porches and Decks

[USAFpj]

As I'm heading into the finishing stages of a modular build, I once again find myself looking to wiser sources for my decision making process. The mortgage allots close to $15K in decks and porches. What I'm thinking, and what is attached, is roughly 400sqft of decking, of which 224sqft are covered with a shed roof, and another 100sqft of that is covered by a gable roof. $15K is a lot of money for treated SYP, so I want to get this right. The builder has done a lot of them, and has a nice album of his work. But it's still just SYP. The decking, railing, steps, and balusters are PT, while the pine directly underneath the roofs are untreated tongue/groove with exposed 4x6 beams. Have you guys been happy with your decks, or am I about to enter a maintenance train wreck? I'm thinking that because 2/3rds is under a roof, that may save me on endless staining, but my ol' man says the best way to take care of the decking is with gasoline and a torch. :laughing::laughing:

View attachment Oberstar porch and deck drawing.PDF

 

[dave1949]

Listen to your Father and build a patio.

Seriously I don't get the popularity of decks that could be last forever, maintenance-free patios, covered or not. I'll even say some decks look like cancerous growths on an otherwise nice looking building. Please pass that along to your Dad.

 

[s219]

So my thinking is mixed on the topic. At the last house we had pressure-treated decks/porches, and I stained them every 3-4 years. When the stain got faded, they sure started to look ratty. Even when freshly stained, they looked unremarkable.

At our new house, it's all porch, in the sense that it's all covered. We used quarter-sawn douglas fir tongue & groove planks for that -- same stuff you'd find on older homes. I think my builder found new old stock, just barely enough.

We put Sherwin-Williams Deckscapes stain on both. The back porch has held up fine, probably because it is shaded most of the day and doesn't get wet unless it's a real serious storm. But on the front porch where sun and rain intrude more often, the stain started breaking down in less than a year, and I could tell it would be the same old B.S. The painter that worked on our house suggested we bite the bullet and remove the Deckscapes stain from the front porch, and then sand it and put on Cabot oil-based polyurethane. Here's a pic shortly after it was done last year:



That has held up great, and still looks good after a year. I have no idea how it will do long term though. So it's a bit of a wildcard.

Now it's time for me to build a deck out back, and I am about 90% certain I am going to just build a retaining wall to level out the area and then put down 24" square bluestone tiles and make it a patio. That area will get a lot of sun, and I just don't have the heart to put wood out there and have to deal with maintenance -- I have enough of that on other parts of the house to worry about as it is.

A neighbor down the street just did a porch and used that composite decking. He use a system where screws were driven through the side of the boards, so you don't see them. It looks amazing from a distance. Up close, it's a little artificial looking. But overall, it seems like a very good option, especially if it holds up long term. My concern would be how well those boards do over time. I have seen a lot of early composite decks where the boards sagged quite a bit. Hopefully the material has gotten better, or maybe it just needs special joist spacing.

Anyhow, I feel like I have been all over the map on porches and decks, and now I am liking the idea of a masonry patio!

 

[KennyG]

I've had a number of houses with different approaches. If the deck is going to be close to ground level, just go with a patio. Pavers vibrated in give you a almost permanent maintenance free space. Pressure treated decks can be nice but will always look like pressure treated decks. Areas under a roof will hold up pretty well but if it's exposed to the sun count of refinishing every couple of years. Cedar looks a little better but also needs a good bit of maintenance. Now I have a composite Azek deck with powder coated steel railings. This is the ultimate. It's rigid with normal joist spacing. Maintenance consists of power washing a couple of times a year. Snow just pushes off easily with a plastic shovel. The only downside is that it's a little warmer than wood on bare feet.

Whatever you decide, plan ahead for various uses. Make sure you have a good spot for the grill and pipe gas (if you have it) to that spot so you don't need tanks. Leave a good spot for a hot tub and make sure the framing can be easily cut for it. I have a hot tub sunk into the deck and it's great to have it right there. Plant some fast growing shrubs on the west side of the deck if possible to provide some afternoon shade. I can't do that because the pool is on the west side and that's the biggest problem - late afternoon sun beating down on us and in peoples eyes.

 

[USAFpj]

Thanks for the replies- I've been reading some of the past 'wood vs. composite' threads, and like always, guys are quick to help with their experiences. I've attached a pic of the home when it was just placed on the foundation; due to it's height, we knew we wanted a covered side and front entrance deck, so a shed roof on the front, a small gable roof on the side, and simply connect them with exposed decking. One point I want to make is that the front faces NorthEast, and that side entrance is East, so the sun might give us some leniency:2cents: Now that you've seen what I'm working with, I'm all ears to how you guys would design it as well.

 

[s219]

Hmm, keeping in mind I am artistically challenged, I think I would do a covered porch for the side door for sure, since you already have the gable bumpout there and a little porch extension would look great. It will also add some variety to that side of the house. Maybe some timber/stone columns to support the gable. Could maybe do a different roof material there, but it all depends on your taste (I tend to like the same roof material everywhere).

Front seems like it would get crowded and spoil the look of the house if a shed roof was tacked on. I just don't see how it could be done without shoe-horning in there in an un-natural way -- the design just doesn't seem to want that. So I'd be inclined to leave that as an open deck, but style it to look good (which is where I pass the ball). It will probably have a great view out into your property. Consider those stainless-steel cable railings, which would reduce visual clutter.

Which entrance will be the main one in use? Could the side entrance become the main entrance where visitors go? And could the front entrance really be more like a door that connects inside and outside living spaces? Call me crazy, but I'd make the side door and covered porch be the "front" door, and turn the front door and deck into something like a back door that leads to an open deck.

We mixed up the roles and responsibilities of front and back with our home, since the back has the views and water access and a nice screened porch. And there is no back yard possible since we border right up to wetlands. The front has the open porch and spills out to the driveway and yard (where the septic field is, planted with grass). That's where my barn is, and all my firewood piles. So when you drive up to our house, it's pretty informal with no real front yard at all. I am doing a little landscaping there, but just enough to keep things tidy.

 

[USAFpj]

Craig, you and I are indeed on the same page. That side entrance is the main entrance, so a gabled 7x14 with 4ft wide stairway will be that design. And yes, the devil is in the details with rock/beams- but I'm sure you and I can agree that can be completed when I'm actually back in country! As for the front, I never thought of that, as we have a huge SYP deck at our current home... that we never use- too hot or rainy!



Perhaps an open deck in the front with a gabled front for my shade? Here's a pic of the same model home (with logs) that shows the shed roof design with deck:

 

[downsizingnow48]

I've used Cabot semi transparent stain on the treated yellow pine decks on our Virginia house, right on the Chesapeake and exposed to everything. Unstained, a treated wood deck looks gray and shabby very quick. With the Cabot stain, a light tan color, it still looked great after 5 years which is when we moved to Sacramento.

 

[dragoneggs]

We put Sherwin-Williams Deckscapes stain on both. The back porch has held up fine, probably because it is shaded most of the day and doesn't get wet unless it's a real serious storm. But on the front porch where sun and rain intrude more often, the stain started breaking down in less than a year, and I could tell it would be the same old B.S. The painter that worked on our house suggested we bite the bullet and remove the Deckscapes stain from the front porch, and then sand it and put on Cabot oil-based polyurethane. Here's a pic shortly after it was done last year:

View attachment 431508

That looks beautiful... I'm jealous, but we don't have any covered areas. I need to think about composite vs. wood as a replacement and expansion of our deck. I hear you on the fake look though.

 

[s219]

Here's a pic of the same model home (with logs) that shows the shed roof design with deck:

View attachment 431580

That looks a lot better than I thought, which confirms my lack of architectural skills. The low ceiling could only help the shade. It looks natural -- I reckon that type of porch on a cabin is like butter on corn.