Urgent Questions for a Deck Structural Expert or Person in the Know

[mrsclem]

Time and prices have changed. When we built ours, total cost $2100. Hubby had a fit when I told him the price for the new deck. I had priced out the lumber for the decking and it was $1200. Lowes will be tearing down the old deck and building a new one with more supports plus they will be hauling away all the old materials. To me it's worth it because if we did it, it wouldn't get done! New deck in 2 days-YAH!

 

[Big Lou]

BTW, since our deck is not attached to the house a permit is not required.

 

[MarcusNZ]

BTW, since our deck is not attached to the house a permit is not required.

Heh heh. I was going to touch on that as a possibility but I figured your consulting a professional would be the safest suggestion.

In my city here in NZ we too can build a deck (among other things) without a permit provided that:

• the structure is under 1m in height.
• the structure is not touching or fixed to the dwelling (i.e. freestanding).
• & it adheres to building regulations.

p.s. I like Sissys approach of "overkill" when it comes to quality of build. I can tell within seconds of stepping on a deck whether shortcuts have been taken. Some decks are like treading on a spring board. Second thoughts, that could have been handy right next to my pond. :trampolin:

 

[sissy]

ahh yes i call that the jump test marcus .Better a deck is not attached to they house at times because in sandy soil or severe drought the ground can shift .I know some parts of Texas have drought and homes have some structural damage because of it .Some people there even put drip water lines around there house to stop it .Had a friend that lived there and he had severe foundation problems with the family house he inherited .

 

[Bullfrog]

Some building codes are just unbelievable.

 

[capewind]

They charged ours last in 2007 to meet some "hurricane code" ... The irony is there is very little damage to homes in our area from WIND, and the last real hurricane we got was in 1991. I pulled the building permit for this house 3/07.. It took 3 GPS maps to get us over a mile from the mean high tide make (ended up at 1.07 miles from the back wall of the house) ... under the new codes, we WANTED to be in zone B... Under zone A, they wanted 50% of the sheathing to be 4'x10' plywood (I didnt even know you could get plywood this size!), and all windows needed to be hurricane rated. A normal Anderson 36"x54" was then $400 each, the "hurricane version" were $800 each! Under zone B, I only had to use 25% sheets of 4'x10' plywood. The anchor bolts AND WASHERS (addition of specific washers) that hold the sill plate onto the foundation went from 36" apart to "no more than" 24" apart (read that to mean placed every 23"). Hurricane straps went from NONE, to every 12" ... Some it was just crazy.

 

[Big Lou]

Our home was built to 1993 building codes.

Talk about crazy codes. Our home has to have freeze proof outdoor faucets. Now this is all well and good except when our house was built in 1993 these faucet assembly's were soldered into the "in wall" water line. To replace one costs $145-$250 plus a mason and carpenter. As you see in the picture I resorted to redneck diy repair. May be ugly but it works. Oh, repair parts for these old models are no longer available.

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[sissy]

My house was built to hurricane and also earthquake standards .It has metal bolts and straps that go from the roof down to the foundation in the basement .it is not require but it does give the house shear strength in high winds .The walls are 2x6 with 2x10 floor joists with 2 metal frames under that to give the floor more strength .All that is tied down to the foundation .I heard about hurricanes here and wanted it to those standards just in case .I have never been hit by one but don't want to be either .Here it seems hurricane standards have gotten tougher but not really enforced well by building inspectors .Most inspectors turn there heads and put blinders on and are older guys who seem to think who cares I just get paid to do a job .I think they get paid by some of the builders too .Thats why I bought a modular home built in a nice dry factory and i watched it being built and followed it from Tennessee to VA .I know my house can do 65 miles an hour and it took 2 huge cranes to put my house on the basement.I don't look back either ,I know every inch of my house .Norris homes is a great company and custom built my house to my standards .I designed every inch of it .Only thing they did not put in my house was flooring because I wanted a certain type of flooring .They even installed my central vac system which they did not offer at the time .All my walls have sound board on the out side and inside .Makes for a quiet house inside and even adds structural strength .

 

[sissy]

hey if it works who cares and yep freeze proof is needed here too .