# Forum Home Renovation Decking  Loki's Deck

## Loki429

Day 1 - holes for the footings 
Well it has finally started! After months of planning and waiting for council and others approvals...
The plan - build a deck with a covered pergola on the rear of the house. Also install a spa mounted flush with deck level at one end.
Dimensions are 11.5m x 4.0m, 0.4m off the ground at one end, and 1.2m off the ground at the other end.
Day 1 started with digging the holes for the footings. I hired a two man post hole digger, got a mate to help out, and spent the afternoon sweating and labouring away! I can tell you the post hole diggers are not for the feint hearted! On a number of occassions the thing lifted us off the ground and spun us around, at one time almost doing a full 360. 
I eventually learned that the way I was holding the throttle caused me to lean on it oven harder when we hit a rock. A bit of adjustment with the style and I was then able to get my thumb to slip off the throttle if we hit a rock causing it to stop digging. However once we got through the layer of rock and into some clay/soil the best method was to let it dig in and hang on for dear life as it dug in and quite rapidly dug the rest of the hole. 
Most holes however needed a considerable amount of poking with a crow-bar (is that what it's called? long steel bar, about 2m long?) Was it worth hiring the hole digger - I guess so. I had eleven holes to dig and all of them hit rock. A fair portion of each hole however was not rock and the auger simply ate that up.   Damage count - 1: Managed to hit one sewer pipe with the auger and had to repair that during the week.

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## Loki429

I ordered 0.8 cubix metres of premix concrete for delivery. Turned out to be a lot easier than I expected - about 15 barrow loads and 25 minutes waiting time for the truck. 
Added bonus - my two mates that I arrangeed to help with the concrete ended up shifting a whole heap of timber from the front to the back yard! 
Tool count - 1 sledge hammer handle (borrowed from neighbour, snapped near head, and wasted one hour getting the old one out and new handle in.) 
Fun factor - the missus offered to knock out the old brick stairs to the back door! (Something to do with "relieving inner tensions...") Finally I can sit back with a beer and watch someone else do some physical work.

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## Loki429

Finally the real construction work begins.
Got a mate over to help me and we managed to set the posts, get all the levels right (using trusty clear pipe with water in it for levels), notch the posts for the bearers and then cut/set the bearers. Definitely required two people for this part with bearers 250 x 50 hardwood at 6.0m long (= very heavy!)
Posts are 90 x 90 kwila (couldn't find any suitable Australian sourced alternative that was readily available.)
Joists are 100 x 50 hardwood at 4.2m long. 
Tool count -one drill. My 15 year old Makita finally gave it up and decided to stop turning. Going by the amount of sparks coming out of it the previous day I would say the brushes were stuffed. 
Trips to Bunnings - one per day.

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## Loki429

Now that the frame is up I find that if I stand on it and grab hold of one of the posts I can "wobble" the post and the attached bearer back and forth slightly. This is in the direction the joists run.
On closer inspection it appears there is some movement in the joist straps I've used. Perhaps that is one advantage of skew nailing the joists? 
I'll have to go over them and put a few skew nails in as well, and maybe some bolts in the end joists to the posts to stop the movement in that direction. 
I'm sure once the pergola rafters are on you won't be able to wobble the post, plus once the weight of the decking is on the joists they will be sitting quite hard on the bearers and won't move anyway.

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## Loki429

Well laying the decking is certainly taking a lot longer than I expected. I have noticed however that I am getting faster and now have a method that I am happy with and is working well. 
I've taken the advice from other members and am now using a string line to mark every 5th plank. I run the string across and then draw a pencil line across each joist. Then I cut the decking for that run and drill/screw on every joist. I've got a couple of clamps that I use to bend and stretch the board into position, and a long piece of scrap that is handy for extra leverage where required.
Then I layout and cut the boards in between, and space them using a heap of short lengths of dowel. This deck is in a bushfire categorised area and the decking has to have a minimum spacing of 5mm - the 6mm dowel I'm using is working well! 
The decking is 86mm x 19mm grey ironbark. I chose this due to its colour, availability, it is fire retardant, and Australian grown. There is a list of timber that is suitable for use in a bushfire area - see my previous post about this. I also wanted to avoid using Merbau as I hear it all (mostly) comes from rainforests in Asia. 
I'm using Macsim stainless steel decking screws, 10G x 50mm. Two screws per plank screwed at every joist.
The timber yard recommended and sold me a "Smart-Bit" for pre-drilling and countersinking. It drills a pilot hole, countersinks, and has a non-marking stop collar that ensures each countersink is at the correct depth. Great little tool, cost about $40, however has turned out to be useless for me  :Mad: . I snapped a few screws off and had plenty of trouble getting them in. In the end I had to drill a pilot hole with a larger drill bit, then put the smart-bit in the drill and countersink them. Very time consuming changing bits all the time when you only have one drill.
The drill bit in the smart-bit is 3.6mm. I ended up having to use a 4.0mm bit and ensure the pilot hole went the full depth of the screw. (Thats F14 hardwood joists I'm screwing into...) 
After breaking more drill bits, more screws, more frustration and taking way too much time I went in search of something else.
I ended up at another hardware store and bought a "Carb-I-Tool" bit. Best thing I ever did! This is a drill/countersink bit, tungsten carbide, and is going to last! It has a removable 4.0mm drill bit that can be adjusted to the correct depth. Just to be safe I bought a couple of extra drill bits too. Total cost - about $50. I can now drill and countersink in one go - easy! 
My poor little GMC 12V cordless drill/driver though is not handling the job of screwing. One battery is good for about 60 screws, the other battery about 30 screws. I am getting pretty good though at using the 240V drill as a screwdriver but without the clutch of the cordless you need to be very careful. I hold the drill "pistol-style" using only one hand, and my little finger on the trigger. I keep the speed slow and when the screw stops I let the drill twist in my hand. I guess you call this a basic torque control! 
Anyway I finally managed to get one day's work done without breaking anything and without having to go to the hardware store. I've wasted so much time having to stop work, pack up, drive to the hardware store and back again. 
Oh yeah - the pencil count is now at 5. For some reason our dogs enjoy eating pencils and will happily take any pencil left laying around and not being watched  :Annoyed: .

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## pawnhead

That looks great. :2thumbsup:  
Nice to see some hardwood framing. Cheaper than TP, and you can go for bigger spans as well. 
I'm not surprised at the workout your drills are getting. It puts a pretty heavy strain on them going into Hwd at slow speed. You could try hand pressure on the chuck to go that last bit of distance. 
Oh, and I feel your frustration with the pencil issue. I had the same problem building my deck. I 'mysteriously' lost four pencils, but eventually found two of them in the yard full of teeth marks.  :Wink:

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## glock40sw

G'day.
You can get rid of the "Wobble" by running 2x1 bracing diaginally under the joists. That worked on my 13m x 3.6m deck.

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## pawnhead

Speedbrace is good for that. If that doesn't fix it, then you could run a cable with a turnbuckle from under your outer bearer, down to the bottom of the next post towards the house.

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## brynk

i notice an open piece down the other end of the deck & have a vague recollection of a discussion about a spa? is that your plan for this?  
in any case, lookin great! i'm enjoyin the view & all i've got is a couple of photos. mind you, i'd probably spend just as much time at the bottom of the yard lookin back at the deck itself  :Biggrin:  mmmmm ironbark...

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## Loki429

Well I can finally say that 90% of the decking has now been laid. This process turned out to be a lot more time consuming than I expected however I am very happy with the results.
I've attached a pic showing how I spaced the boards before drilling and screwing. There seems to have been a few people asking questions about this recently. I can confrim that the mark and screw down every 5th board first method works well and ensures the boards are laid straight. 
I can also confirm that it hurts when you step on a board that isn't screwed down and it flicks up and you fall down the hole  :Redface: . I'm now sporting a very large bruise in the inside of my knee and thigh  :Frown: . 
Yesterday we started on the beam for the pergola. I wanted to keep the view from the deck and house onto the bush unobstructed so opted to skip extending the centre pole to the pergola beam. So in the end I ended up with a span of almost 6m. The beam I've used is 290 x 45 F27 hardwood. Very heavy and very expensive, but specified by the engineer and I quite like the look of it. It took some muscling to get it into position though.
Interestingly the beam at the house (the ledger for the pergola?) is a lot larger than I would have expected. It's 190 x 45 treated pine - again as specified by the structural engineer. When I discussed this with them they said that as we don't know the structural capability of the lintels over the windows and sliding door we need to span those areas. He went as far as saying that the beam should be fastened to the wall on either side but not above the windows/door. 
And yes brynk that is an opening at the end of the deck where the spa will be set in  :Biggrin: .

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## pawnhead

That's a huge span in the guts. It looks like about 5.5 metres. 
What are your plans there since there are no handrail posts, or am I just jumping the gun? 
Edit: Oops. Ignore the question. I should have paid more attention to your post.  :Doh:

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## oohsam

Geez that looks great. 
Good work, I wish I worked as fast as you did....Check out my post for my latest update on laying deckboards. I work full time and dont have much time off, so I only get about 1 hour of daylight per night and then all weekend. I am hoping to have the boards laid by this sunday night.  
I began using the "screw down 5th board" method...Read my post for an update on this its right HERE  
Good stuff though Loki, Much respect for you.

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## oohsam

Any updates Loki? Hows it all going...got the spa in yet?

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## Loki429

Here's a quick update on progress. We've had a couple of days with rain/thunderstorms which has slowed me down a bit, plus I had to go into work for one day (which I managed to trade for an extra two days off in lieu!)
The pergola's taking shape and I ordered the Suntuf roofing. Should be getting that next week sometime. Unfortunately all of the rafters have significant markings on them and I am having to clean them up before installing. There's a combination of water/timber stains, strap marks, and timber mill stamps. Being in a visible position I wanted them to look good so have been sanding them with a belt sander. Worth the effort though as they're looking great now!
Looks like we've got some sunshine today so I'm hoping to finish off the pergola frame and then work on the fiddly parts of the deck (against the house and around the posts.) 
And no Oohsam the spa hasn't arrived yet - got to wait another 3 - 4 weeks for that to arrive. It means I'm going to be left with a hole in the deck for a while... 
As for the gap in the middle - that's where the stairs will go. See a new post I'm about to create about that one. 
cheers!

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## pawnhead

Looks good.  

> As for the gap in the middle - that's where the stairs will go. See a new post I'm about to create about that one.

  Awaiting with interest. 
I hope it's not going to be a boring, narrow, straight staircase. I'd go for something quite wide, and wider at the bottom so it draws you in to the deck, and I'd put the stringers underneath, so the treads 'float'. A few ideas come to mind.

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## Dusty

Excellent work, Loki. 
Great narrative also. It will be of useful assistance to others further down the track, who tackle their own deck building. 
Never fails to amaze me, how quick we all _"think"_ we are going to get the boards down, verses how long it actually takes.  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):  
Including the spa, when it goes in and when all the decking is done and dusted, have you got a final costing on materials and your time. Or, have you skillfully avoided keeping a tab on the $$$$, which is generally the less stressful way to go  :Shock:  
Nice view too.

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## Loki429

Hi Dusty 
Yes I agree about the time - I had some rapid progress early on in the building and assumed the rest would go just as quick!
As for budget, yes I'm keeping a close tab on everything I buy. I'll post a summary when its complete.
We've budgeted $25k for it. There's $10k for the spa, and I'm up to $12k in timber, materials, hardware, a couple of tools and a few cases of beer! I need to order some more timber but that should be less than $1k.
No pricing on labour but I will do an hour estimate when finished. It's been about 14 days work so far. Oh yeah we spent about $2.5k just getting council approval, structural engineers report, certifier, owner-builder license etc before I even started  :Mad:

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## Loki429

Here's a couple of pics of the rafters before and after cleaning them up.
They were way too marked and dirty to use as is especially as they will be getting a clear coat of oil.
Anyway all the rafters are up now and looking good. 
BTW - they're F17 kiln dried hardwood, 190 x 45. I was hoping to use treated pine for the pergola as it would have been lighter and easier to work with but the span is 4.0m, spacing 0.9m and needed something stronger according to the structural engineer. (The tables in Allan Staines book indicate I could have use 170 x 35 F5 seasoned though - I think the structural engineer over spec'd a lot of this stuff!)

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## pawnhead

> (The tables in Allan Staines book indicate I could have use 170 x 35 F5 seasoned though - I think the structural engineer over spec'd a lot of this stuff!)

  They do that all the time just to cover their bums, and sometimes they don't seem to care how much it costs you. It's annoying when the code lets you get away with a lot less.   :Mad:

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## UteMad

> Excellent work, Loki.  
> Never fails to amaze me, how quick we all _"think"_ we are going to get the boards down, verses how long it actually takes.   
> Nice view too.

  Here Here!!!!!!! 
Get it all the time or they can't translate m2 to lineal to work out they have like 1000 lm of deck at 5 bucks per metre and that adds up  DOH!!!! 
Cheers Utemad

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## oohsam

hahaha thats gold....Lineal is easy as to calculate..LOL...
I do it the "dumbass way"...Figure out your length if its 10 meters then you need 1x 10 meter board. 
calculate how many boards you need by the width of the deck Divide by width of board...then you know how many boards you need at 10meters...DONE and DONE!  
LOL..Im sure there is a "proper way" to do it..but I hated maths all my life...and I stil do : )

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## silentC

I do it the same but I divide by the width of the board plus gap. So for a 90mm board, I divide by 95. Over a wide deck, that can add up to a couple less boards needed. Say your deck was 10 metres by 5 metres and you're using 90mm boards. If you say 5000/90 * 10 you will order about 560 lineal metres. If you say 5000/95 * 10 you will order about 530. That's a big difference.

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## oohsam

Yeah I see what you're saying, but I normally add 10% for wastage...So this way I dont add the 10% and the wastage is already in there.

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## silentC

Yep fair enough. I just used up the last 10 1800 boards that I had left over from the verandahs that I did last year on a set of steps. There's always a use for it.

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## brynk

> BTW - they're F17 kiln dried hardwood, 190 x 45. I was hoping to use treated pine for the pergola as it would have been lighter and easier to work with but the span is 4.0m, spacing 0.9m and needed something stronger according to the structural engineer. (The tables in Allan Staines book indicate I could have use 170 x 35 F5 seasoned though - I think the structural engineer over spec'd a lot of this stuff!)

  what type of roof covering do you plan on putting up? does the engineer have a wind category rating on your drawings? it will be n-something - n2? n3?

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## UteMad

Lineal metres to square metres everyone has there own way... Decking ranges from 86 - 90mm anyway so we do 11.11111111111 LM / m2 for 4 inch plus waste (easy you just do 11 then point 1 til the calc screen is full) ... Seems to work plus if i run short the labour down time costs far more than the boards i will take to the next one.. 
cheers utemad

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## Loki429

I calculated the lm of decking by dividing the width of the deck by the board width plus gap, then rounded up to the next nearest number. Then multiply that number by the length of the deck to get a lm amount. 
As for the structural details - the structural engineers report did not include any details regarding wind classification, however plans from when the house was built (3 years ago) have "wind classification W33N" stamped on them. Roof covering will be "Suntuf" sheets. We're northern beaches of Sydney so certainly not in a cyclone zone! 
Today I did a lot of the fiddly stuff - ripped some boards to the correct width to fit against the house and cut some others to size with cutouts to fit around the posts. 
No pics today sorry - I'll take some more when there's enough to show up on a photo!

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## Barry_White

> Roof covering will be "Suntuf" sheets.

  Loki 
I would rethink roofing it in Suntuf. You will cook under it in the summer time and it will be uncomfortable in the winter. If you do a search you would find a few adverse comments about polycarbonate/fiberglass sheeting as roofs on entertainment/outdoor areas.

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## Loki429

Been doing some fiddly bits over the last few days, and I'm now back at work so it will only be weekends from now on! 
Anyway I trimmed the vertical faces (ends & sides of joists) with some decking, did the cutouts around the posts, and whilst I had the circular saw setup for mitre cuts I thought I'd make a tray thingy for the dog's bowls! I already had one problem where the bowl left a black mark on the deck that needed sanding to remove. (It was only there for half a day, just had a bit of water spilt from it  :Mad: .
This way the bowls are off the deck and won't harm it. It also stops the dogs from sliding the bowl around the deck at 4:00am and waking us up.  :Biggrin:  
I've ordered some more timber for the handrails and the stairs and should be picking up the suntuf roofing this weekend. (And yes Barry I am aware of the heat under that type of roofing.) More pics when that's done. 
Oh yeah - the last pic is the view from the house early one morning last week. Pretty weird to get fog/mist that thick in our area!

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## pawnhead

Looks good. Nice spot you've got there. 
Have you sorted out your stair design yet?  

> (And yes Barry I am aware of the heat under that type of roofing.)

  I've got it on mine and it's not that bad, although the suntuf skylights in the adjoining room make it quite hot compared to the rest of the house. The rest of the house has a high pitched roof as well though so it stays relatively cool.
It looks like the heat won't get trapped under yours anyway.

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## oohsam

Thats great work Loki. 
I like how the line of the screws are so nice and straight. 
I made a jig for mine, but I stopped using it after a while...Still turned out ok, some of the screw lines a little wobbly but only I can notice it on my deck.. 
Nice work cutting round those posts..I had a heck of a time cutting around mine..but yeah...im an ameture! LOL

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## Spelunx

Nice one Loki!!!  
Looking good! :2thumbsup:

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## Loki429

Time for an update I think! 
Construction has been progressing slowly. I'm back at work and struggling to get time to concentrate on the deck building. Plus we've had a heap of rain in Sydney lately that has stopped me! 
Anyway decking is finished, handrails and balustrade finished, and the frame for the roofing all finished too. I've started putting the Suntuf roofing on and hope to finish that off this weekend. (Maybe I should have built the roof first then I would have been able to work undercover...) 
The handrails are 90 x 41 merbau to match the posts. Posts and handrails were routed joints and I sanded then chamfered the edges of the handrails before installing them. Very time consuming with over an hours work in each handrail!
The balustrade is s/steel which I purchased pre-made from Miami Stainless. I was very happy with the result, it was easy to install, plus they were very helpful when I ordered it and it was delivered to my door the following day. Highly recommended. 
I bought some oil and have oiled the roof frame prior to putting the covering on. I bought Cabots Aquadeck for a couple of reasons - it is water based so is easy to clean up, and it has a quick drying time which will be desirable for me when doing the deck (you try keeping two dogs and a cat off the deck long enough for the oil to dry.) However although I am happy with the result on the roof frame where I have applied some to some scrap decking I'm not overly happy with the result. It seems to be a bit dull and flat. It seems to have very good water repelling capabilities but in my opinion doesn't bring out the colour or grain of the decking. Anyway a friend at work has brought in the leftovers of a tin of Feast & Watson which I briefly tried last night. Seems to be much better but I'll wait until I can see it sunlight and compare with the Aquadeck. I've got another couple of weeks work before I'm ready to oil the deck anyway. 
As for those merbau posts - yuck! I don't know how people use that stuff all the time. It makes a mess on everything including staining itself. My nice shiny new galv stirrups and bolts are now all dirty and red, the concrete pad is a dirty red/brown colour. These I'm not too worried about however where I have drilled holes in the intermediate support posts for the balustrade the rain on the merbau has caused a stain to run down the post below each hole. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to clean these? Nappisan? Bleach? Or will I have to sand them? 
As for the stairs - yes I have settled on a design and have ordered the extra timber required. It will be double tread/riser stairs the full width between the posts which will double as seating. Then down the middle I'm going to add extra normal size stairs approx 2m wide.
I'm going to have to start building them soon as I'm getting pretty tired of having to jump up and down from the deck all the time! 
Anyway here's few pics of the current progress. Also couldn't resist adding a pic of the dog sleeping on the tray I made for their food bowls in an attempt to find somewhere dry during all the rain recently. 
Oh and yes that is still a hole for the spa to go. Should be delivered in a couple of weeks now! I've started building a pad for it to sit on too - 4 x 2.4m TP sleepers nailed together, filled with rubble and then topped with concrete. 
Cheers
Loki

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## brynk

niiiice work on that corner detail, and the balustrade as a whole!  :Biggrin:  
what are your plans for the spa - it is going to sit directly on the conc. pad? will you put some of that flexible foam filler they use for bathtubs as well? someone once told me that you 1/2 fill the bathtub with water before you put the filler in & leave it there for it to go off. can't remember why though... thinkin about it, when you fill the spa the conc pad is going to sink a little. maybe that had something to do with it. 
i think napisan will go to work on the timber itself, as well as the leaching. maybe a light scrub then a light sand will give you the most consistent results.   :2thumbsup:  r's brynk

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## Loki429

The spa comes with its own timber cabinet and they say all that is required is a flat surface to place it on. So it will be sitting directly on the concrete pad. 
I hadn't thought about the pad settling slightly with the weight of the spa full of water however. I do have a slight margin to work with (5 - 10mm) and will keep an eye on the levels as we fill the spa, and then over the next few weeks. If it settles too much then we can always lift the spa slightly (empty it first) and then put some packing under it. I'm waiting for it to be delivered before I trim the decking to shape too.

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## oohsam

Whaoh....thats awsome Loki. 
I like what you did with the handrails. I'll be putting my handrails on this weekend hopefully and the Balustrade should be at my house by friday if I get the order in today. I wont be pre ordering like you did, I prefer to put it all together myself...Plus Im notorious for getting my measurements wrong, I have to measure things 3 or 4 times..Im terrible!  
Just a quick question Loki, What will be using to close the gap around your deck? I have seen decks that use merbau, and I think it looks really classy but will obviously have costs involved that may not be required, or will you just be using plynth boards?
You dont have many stumps that go all the way to the ground as your intermediate hand rail posts stop at the bearer, so you may have trouble nailing the board into something, and it may warp if u use merbau or something..Would love to get ur thoughts 
Since my deck is so low to the ground I'll be using merbau only on the visible sides, coz it wont cost that much really. 
When you ordered the stuff from miami steel, did that mean you had to drill your holes big enough to fit the bottle screw through as well, how does it look is it really noticable that the hole is bigger?
What are the gaps you used between the balustrading 125mm? you have 8 runs, im assuming those handrail posts are 1 meter.  
Also, with the top of the handrail, I like you chiseled out 5-10mm and so it would sit nice ontop of the posts. Is there any advantage for doing it this way, i was just going to sit mine on top, but chisel the corner posts so it slots into them. Again, would love your input!? 
Great work Loki, very impressed. Cant wait to see it with the spa. 
Do you have to put a fence around the spa? In vic, we dont have to if you use one of those solid lids that clip down, not sure about the regs in Sydney.  
Im having the same problem with leeching with my merbau, its leeching alot and losing a bit of color, im hoping that the oil will rejuvinate it after a good deck wash. Let me know how u go with the oil. 
Cheers.

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## Loki429

Hi oohsam 
The underside of the deck needs to be kept open. We're building in what's classed as a category 2 fire zone and that is one of the conditions (along with the minimum 5mm gap between the decking boards.) A fair bit of the long side of the deck will be covered by the stairs/seats that go on next and for the rest of the exposed bearer (that is marked and dirty - one of the problems of using rough sawn h'wood) I may stain it or even clad it in some decking if I have enough left over. 
Re the balustrade I used the streamlined fittings. All I had to do was remove the locking nut and the hole swaged end / tensioning system passed through the hole. I'm happy with the result and don't believe the hole looks too large. Gaps between wires are 114mm. My plans that were approved by the Council and a private certifier clearly show the heights off the ground, material, and a spacing of 125mm between wires so I should be ok there. Looking at the BCA reg's they want a spacing of 80mm which I felt would be too much wire as well as being very expensive! The majority of the deck is < 1m off the ground anyway. 
The handrails were rebated 10mm over the intermediate posts in order to locate them accurately, provide a stronger joint, and for neatness. Pretty easy to cut too if you have a router. If you don't then I would just sit the handrail directly on top of the post. I had trouble however cutting my posts accurately. Holding a circular saw sideways and cutting 1m off the ground is not easy! And to make things harder my saw would only cut about 85mm deep and the posts are 91mm  :Doh: . 
Spa - no fence required. You do however have to have a "lockable" cover for it. The lockable part here is a bit of a joke as they are basically just web straps on each corner with plastic clips and locks. It would however stop a kid from removing the cover and drowning themself.

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## oohsam

Thanks for the reply. One more question, with the balustrade, I read in your other post that they have to be hydraulicly pressed. Does this mean I cant order the bits and put it all together myself? I have to order it to size? From inside post to inside post? 
EDIt- sorry, they have hand swaggable and hydraluic types.

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## pawnhead

> I bought some oil and have oiled the roof frame prior to putting the covering on. I bought Cabots Aquadeck for a couple of reasons - it is water based so is easy to clean up, and it has a quick drying time which will be desirable for me when doing the deck (you try keeping two dogs and a cat off the deck long enough for the oil to dry.) However although I am happy with the result on the roof frame where I have applied some to some scrap decking I'm not overly happy with the result. It seems to be a bit dull and flat. It seems to have very good water repelling capabilities but in my opinion doesn't bring out the colour or grain of the decking. Anyway a friend at work has brought in the leftovers of a tin of Feast & Watson which I briefly tried last night. Seems to be much better but I'll wait until I can see it sunlight and compare with the Aquadeck. I've got another couple of weeks work before I'm ready to oil the deck anyway.

  I used Cabots Exterior Varnish Stain on my pergola, and I used Feast Watson Weatherproof on my deck. After a year, I'm happy with it where the deck is under cover;    
But it hasn't performed as well where it's exposed to rain, and a bit more traffic (although it does say that it's not for floors and decking);    
Being poly, you can't just throw another coat on, (although I did six months ago, and it looked better) it would need a re-sand in the affected areas. 
Excuse the mess and sawdust, I'm doing some work out there at the moment.

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## Loki429

Time for another update. 
Well the deck is very nearly complete! Some timber on the sides of the stairs to be put on, finish oiling the deck and handrails, and complete the drain for the downpipes. 
For those that were asking how the spa was going to be installed I've attached a pic of the underside of the deck showing the spa cabinet and the slab it sits on. The slab was formed with 4 x 2.4m treated pine sleepers then filled, compacted and concrete poured on the top. I then placed plastic over this before putting the spa on to help with pest control. I lifted the decking around where the spa was to fit to make installation of the spa easier, and then cut the decking to length and shape to neatly fit around it. 
I'm happy with how the stairs turned out, however there was a surprising (to me anyway) amount of work involved! The sides are yet to receive more decking to close them in and cover the frame. They've given me the look and feel I was after, and I believe they assist in making the deck transition to the lawn and not be a stopping or cutoff point. 
For the downpipe I opted for a "Rain Chain". These are a traditional Japanese downpipe method known as 'kusari doi'. I wanted to avoid having an ugly downpipe on the corner of the deck and having seen rain chains before thought they would make a good feature. So I bought two of them to fit either side of the steps. At the bottom of the chain I have installed pipe to the stormwater system. Around this drain I will make a concrete 'pad' that I will cover with some decorative pebbles. The water from the rain chains will splash onto the pebbles and then go down the drain. 
As for heat under the polycarbonate roofing - yes you can feel the heat but it is considerably cooler than being in the sun and is quite comfortable. We do get a good airflow through which is a great help too. I've also noticed the back room of the house is much cooler now. 
I bought the Feast and Watson decking oil and have applied one coat so far. It has turned out a bit darker than I was expecting but I'm still very happy with the result. It's also extremely easy and quick to apply - I wish painting was that quick! 
Here's a few pics now and I'll post a few more next weekend (as long as it has stopped raining...) 
Cheers
Loki

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## battyman

Gee Loki, that deck looks sensational!  :2thumbsup:  After seeing your impressive handiwork I don't know if I can post pictures of mine when I build it, as it might look a tad inferior.  
Can you post a picture and some more details of this rain chain? Sounds interesting. 
Steve

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## Buggermedumplings

Loki, did you choose the natural or a coloured oil? 
Cheers

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## Loki429

BMD - the oil is definitely "Natural" not coloured. It's pretty much the same colour the timber goes when wet anyway.
The colour is better after sanding, however not as good as I remember when it first went down and was wet for the first time. If I was to do it again I would oil the deck pretty much as I laid it to preserve the colour. 
battyman - here's another pic of the rain chain, and a link to wikipedia for a definition. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain_chain
If you type 'rain chain' into an Internet search engine you will find a lot of places that sell them online and have a lot more information. There are many different styles of "cups" too.
I ended up buying mine off ebay from a seller in the US. 
cheers,
Loki

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## brynk

gday bloke 
looks bloody brilliant. can't wait to see the 2nd-storey extension  :Biggrin:  
r's brynk

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## BustedThumbs

Brilliant looking deck. I'm a little ashamed of mine now. :Blush7:

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## oohsam

Geez Loki, You've done a top job mate. Praises to you. 
Im yet to oil the deck...I know its been weeks. Im actually thinking of not using the 10litres that I bought of the Cabots "natural" decking oil, as its far from natural. Very dark. I might go for the feast and watson. I like the colour of yours... 
Im also considering getting it sanded...Did you get someone to come and sand it for you or did ya do it yourself?

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## Waldo

Loki429, your deck has come up a treat.  
I've been searching for a suitable timber for the posts that compliments merbu for the decking, and kwila looks like the right choice. Love your attention to detail, it's got me rethinking some aspects of my yet to be built deck.  :2thumbsup:

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## AV Elec

Very nice deck Loki, you should be proud  :2thumbsup:  :2thumbsup:  
I'm looking to build a deck off the back of my house with a spa sunken in it. The deck will be 2500mm above an existing slab and I was going to sit the spa on a concrete plynth at suitable height. 
I am planning to make the top of the deck go over the spa so when the spa isn't being used, I can put a section of timber decking over it to cover it. What do people think? Any issues I should be aware of? 
I plan to use hardwood, and stainless screws anyway.

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## brynk

gday av elec 
it is customary to start a new thread with your questions -  
after you have done this, can i suggest you give as much detail as possible including all dimensions of deck and spa, heights, existing structures, a photo or two even...  
i can think of at least one issue almost immediately. say your spa is a metre deep. that makes your plinth around 1500 off the slab below; that will be a fun pour doing it out of a wheelbarrow  :Biggrin:  
r's brynk

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## Andy Mac

NIce looking job on the deck Loki! As people have said, your attention to detail is inspirational. I esp. like the steps, which look a bit like bleachers...very useable as both steps and seating. That rain chain is a great touch, and your plan to finish it will be worthwhile.
Regarding the polycarbonate sheeting, I have a couple  in my shed, and when the sun is in the right (read 'wrong') angle, my workbench becomes almost unuseable because of the direct heat. But you're the one living with it...
My only concern about your whole deck is the neighbour's windows peering strainght into your spa!! :Rolleyes:  I couldn't handle that, would screen that end off straight away, but then I live hundreds of metres from the nearest neighbour! You city folk are no doubt used to having other people in close proximity.
Anyway, great job and look fwd to photos of the deck-warming party. :Biggrin:  
Cheers,

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## AV Elec

Thanks for the tip Brynk - I will do that :Doh: . I don't mean to tread on anyones toes :Smilie: .

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## chessp

The deck looks brilliant. You appear to have spaced your posts approx 3m apart across the span of the deck. Is this correct?

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## Loki429

Thanks for your compliments!
I must say I have enjoyed building the deck and that has helped a great deal. I've also not been rushed so if there was ever a day when I felt like I didn't want to do any work on it then I simply left it. I told myself at the start that I wasn't going to cut any corners and that if I started to I would take some time away from it. I realise not everyone has the luxury of this sort of time though. 
Wildo - you'll find kwila and merbau are the same timber, just a different name.
Andy - yes the proximity of neighbouring houses is always a problem in Sydney. The original plans I submitted to Council had a timber "privacy screen" mounted at each end, covering from the roofing to the handrail. I've had second thoughts about this and am now thinking of some sort of roll-up blind. Currently we are getting privacy when using the spa by standing the spa cover on its side at that end of the deck.  
Having the spa under cover is great too - sitting in the spa with a drink watching the thunderstorms and rain is a great way to relax! 
chessp - yes the posts are about 3m apart. The deck is 11.5m x 4m.  
We've got a long weekend coming up (after BDO on Friday  :Biggrin: ) so I'm hoping to complete the finishing touches. Then we've got a party the following weekend when it will well & truly get christened. 
Cheers
Loki

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## DvdHntr

> does the engineer have a wind category rating on your drawings? it will be n-something - n2? n3?

  Not if he is a decent structural engineer. The Design Wind Speed should be given Vr = 45m/s or something like that.

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## maxpaget

Hello Loki 
Your deck looks fantastic. I especially like the attention paid to the balustrade. It is one of those things that you can spends ages building something like this, only to find you struggle to find a good finish to bring out the best in the timber, but you seem to have cracked it! 
I don't know if there is a precedent or some form of etiquette, if there is, I apologise. I was going to ask you if you could post your plans as I am in the process of trying to plan a similarly located deck out the back of the house. SWMBO wants it to be about 13.5m x 5m. I am already questioning my sanity! 
Cheers 
Max

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## Loki429

Hi all 
Sorry for my absence and very delayed response!
Re the deck plans yes I have no problems with sharing them here. The originals however are in Microsoft Visio format (I work in IT and that's good for network and computer drawings!) which I don't know how many people will be able to open. Saying that however there is a free Visio viewer utility you can download from Microsoft that allows you to view but not edit.
I'll attach them anyway. 
Timber sizes and references to spans are on the drawings. In hindsight however I would use more posts as the deck does have a very slight spring/bounce to it in certain places. Going to larger bearers and joists would not be economical. 
Cheers,
Loki 
sorrry just tried to attach the visio file but it is too big. Even when saved in Autocad format it's too big. I saved the individual pages as jpg but with the size restrictions quality will be low.
PM me if anyone wants the original file and I'll arrange a way to email it to you.

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## Loki429

As requested here's some details on the steps construction.

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## Buggermedumplings

Loki, just wanted to find out how your SS balustrading is going?  I'm thinking of getting them from Miami Stainless too and would like to know how you have found them over last few months eg need to retension etc etc... Cheers.

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## happyflute

Hi, Loki 
Very impressed by your project! 
I am curious to know how the unseasoned hardwood timber you used for the deck sub-frame has performed since installation.  I am trying to decide whether to use seasoned hardwood or unseasoned ones for my deck.  Have done research on the net and formed the impression that unseasoned hardwood might shrink, twist, split, etc.  Do you have any such problem? 
Cheers

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## Loki429

> Hi, Loki 
> Very impressed by your project! 
> I am curious to know how the unseasoned hardwood timber you used for the deck sub-frame has performed since installation.  I am trying to decide whether to use seasoned hardwood or unseasoned ones for my deck.  Have done research on the net and formed the impression that unseasoned hardwood might shrink, twist, split, etc.  Do you have any such problem? 
> Cheers

  Hi Happyflute! 
The timber I used for my sub-frame was actually seasoned, it was just not "dressed". i.e. it was rough sawn and gives you lots of splinters when working with it!
Check out the user "brynk" for his posts as I believe he built a deck around the same time I did and used unseasoned timber. There are various techniques you can use to help prevent warping and cracking and they get mentioned in that thread. 
Cheers
Loki

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## happyflute

Hi, Loki 
Thank you for your last reply.  I am coming back to my deck again, after struggling with other parts of my rebuild/renovation projects. (half way through the bathroom renovation, I discovered the floor would need to be ripped out and new concrete poured.) 
I am having great trouble getting sawn but seasoned hardwood for my deck substructure (lots of kiln dried dressed hardwood but I think I don't need dressed hardwood).  Could you tell me which timber yard you got your hardwood from? 
Thanks. 
Happy Flute :Biggrin:

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## Loki429

> Hi, Loki 
> Thank you for your last reply. I am coming back to my deck again, after struggling with other parts of my rebuild/renovation projects. (half way through the bathroom renovation, I discovered the floor would need to be ripped out and new concrete poured.) 
> I am having great trouble getting sawn but seasoned hardwood for my deck substructure (lots of kiln dried dressed hardwood but I think I don't need dressed hardwood). Could you tell me which timber yard you got your hardwood from? 
> Thanks. 
> Happy Flute

  I bought all my timber from Barrenjoey Timber. I requested quotes from a number of local timber yards and these guys were the most helpful, responsive and similar prices to the others. I also found their online price list great for costing the job at the start.
Check out http://www.barrenjoeytimber.com.au/price.cfm?CatID=8 and have a look at the "Sawn F11 & F14 Hardwood" - that's what I used for the sub-structure. 
cheers
loki

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