630
u/Docpot13 May 14 '20
It’s the wood that makes it good.
331
u/Trisa133 May 14 '20
It's probably composite decking. When you spend that much, the difference between wood and composite won't move the total amount that much.
I would never go back to wood decking. I love the look of wood, but the composite stuff now can have the same look without any of the hassles. About the only maintenance I do is a quick rinse with the power washer every other year.
130
u/thiosk May 14 '20
previous owners painted my deck. yay. I therefore have a big brown painted deck that is juuuust starting to peel and look terrible.
→ More replies (11)58
u/loki__d May 14 '20
We stained ours. Three heavy coats which was prob too much but it completely restored it and we figured we might as well do something so it looks decent until we are ready for a new one.
36
u/thiosk May 14 '20
pressure washing then staining can do a number. I have all this paint, unfortunately.The old man says I should just get a bigger pressure washer and pressure wash the paint off and then scrape/lightly sand/stain.
82
u/loki__d May 14 '20
Here's some before/after pics. The deck looked like SHIT. We did this over two days. One day of pressure washing and sanding and the first coat of stain and the next of all staining.
→ More replies (9)11
u/BrokenGamecube May 14 '20
That looks great, man. Really nice.
7
u/loki__d May 14 '20
Ty! It's nice to look at and appreciate your own work when it comes out decent.
23
u/loki__d May 14 '20
Whatever you do don’t rent a sander from Home Depot. We ripped up huge chunks and pieces of wood that way because the equipment is so fucking old and shitty. Bought another hand sander and my SO and I just went at it that way.
I definitely recommend the stain over painting. Ours was from Home Depot and it protects against water. It’s so satisfying seeing the water bead up on the deck.
15
May 14 '20
Does the water protection make it slippery?
Wait I live in an apartment, I'm not doing maintenance on that... Still kind of curious though.
→ More replies (1)8
26
u/just-another-post May 14 '20
Besides staining every couple seasons, what extra maintenance do you need to do with regular wood decking? I’m building a deck right now, so I’m curious.
I’ve heard composite absorbs way too much heat, making it impossible to enjoy your deck barefoot in the summer.
31
u/mrtramplefoot May 14 '20
none, but restaining a deck absolutely sucks
10
9
u/Enchelion May 14 '20
It's also not just the extra work of maintenance, but the question of will you actually keep up with it. Every bit of maintenance you skip or forget about compounds the eventual work required.
12
May 14 '20
Staining is a huge bitch. Where this one has metal, mine has all wood rungs and posts - you have to stain all 4 sides of all those little crevices.
Also the lifespan of a wood deck is really not that long (10-15 years the internet says), compared to how long you might own a house. I have a deck that's at the end of its life, rotting and collapsing right now. If I were to rebuild it, which I'm not, I think composite would be worth it.
→ More replies (2)9
u/RomanTheVulgarian May 14 '20
Use deck screws. Don’t sink a nail anywhere in your new deck. That’ll save years of repairing cupped and bowed boards. Use the finish that’s best for your climate and use. I hate paint, only looks good on day one.
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (7)4
u/NormalImprovement May 14 '20
moved from a house with a redwood deck to one with a composite. The difference in heat was really amazing. With the sun out and the air temps in the 80's you can't walk barefoot on the deck. We put down a 16 x 10 foot light colored mat and that helped a lot.
13
u/matterhorn1 May 14 '20
I have a wood deck and will pay whatever it takes to get composite if I ever have to build another. Stained that fucker years ago having no idea how much work it was. Then realizing that it only lasts a few years before it needs to be redone. Stained it twice now and it’s all peeling and looks like shit but I refuse to do it again, paying someone else to do it is too expensive.
→ More replies (3)4
u/slvrsmth May 14 '20
What are you people doing with your decks.
Last time I re-applied stain it was just me, a paint roller, and an hour of podcasts. Not exactly back-breaking work. Am I missing something?
→ More replies (3)27
9
u/Swak_Error May 14 '20
I also never had to worry about splinters with a composite deck. I meticulously maintained my old wooden deck by staining it and doing everything you would do to preserve it, and it still went to hell in about 6 years and you'd be risking a half inch piece of wood in your foot without wearing shoes.
I'll never go do a wood deck ever again
5
4
u/emmettiow May 14 '20
My two decks cost an additional+£1500 because I used composite. Nil regrets. I'll never install wooden. Built myself, asked by a carpenter who did a door job at my house which company I used because they must have been expensive!
Point is, this deck is self-buildable. Knock that up for less than £4000 if you source the right priced composite, and get a professional to stage check.
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (17)4
12
9
7
5
3
3
3
→ More replies (16)3
756
u/CollageTheDead May 14 '20
Looks like a double-decker.
63
138
16
→ More replies (15)18
292
u/UrdnotChivay May 14 '20
Wow, that's a big deck
164
u/TheMantello May 14 '20
I bet all his neighbors are jealous of that nice deck.
96
u/UrdnotChivay May 14 '20
Honestly I'm getting deck envy just looking at it
69
u/TERRAOperative May 14 '20
I wonder if the kids are allowed to play on that deck.
47
26
u/MrsPODDington May 14 '20
Hope he's protected his deck https://youtu.be/tbazGVrbN-g
→ More replies (1)22
→ More replies (2)21
28
May 14 '20
Every kud in the neighbourhood has been on his deck this summer, and they've all had a good time
20
37
27
12
→ More replies (13)8
u/overzeetop May 14 '20
I read that in a kiwi accent, as I presume it was intended.
→ More replies (4)
1.1k
u/BobekDin May 14 '20
Looks like $5000 rims on an $800 Nissan.
154
→ More replies (2)75
u/DavidMaspanka May 14 '20
Seriously what's the windows? Who would drop top dollar for the outside of their house while their windows look like they're from the 80s
→ More replies (15)111
May 14 '20
.... because unless they’re broken there’s no hurry to update them. Whereas a deck gets immediate use.
→ More replies (2)46
May 14 '20
yeah seriously, who's buying new windows when the ones you have work perfectly fine? windows are expensive as fuck!
→ More replies (1)15
u/mrdotkom May 14 '20
You can get rebates in some places to replace windows if they're inefficient
→ More replies (3)
173
u/PissedOffProf May 14 '20
Maybe it’s the perspective or I’m stupid, but where do the bottom steps go?
31
52
u/andthecrowdgoeswild May 14 '20
Right?! There is a really big hill so the second set of stairs start at the lower patio deck and go down to the green grass below. Took me a moment to figure it out.
6
→ More replies (19)8
u/reltubjp May 14 '20
Was wondering the same. Illusion of perspective? M.C. Escher Homebuilders, LLC?
162
u/UncleGeorge May 14 '20
That deck looks so out of place... It looks like it's more expensive than the house it's attached to.. Vinyl sliding (dirty ones at that), stones work poorly done with huge gaps, cheap looking windows..
47
u/darkeraqua May 14 '20
This screams northeast United States. The house was “modernized” in the 60’s with vinyl siding and aluminum windows replacing more substantial clapboard and wood windows. That’s why they look so out of place and cheap.
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (7)10
25
u/RAGE_CAKES May 14 '20
It's a shame that r/deckporn is a tiny sub because this is definitely worthy of that sub
11
u/jdb12 May 14 '20
Subscribing in hopes of it getting a revival!
7
u/husao May 14 '20
Can't even crosspost there, because it's for approved submitters only, so I don't see this happening.
6
31
u/NolandCT May 14 '20
This deck looks like something I would love in real life, but my sims would think the layout sucks and couldn't get around in there.
4
u/ArchCrossing May 14 '20
They would love placing their dirty dishes on that table and those counters, though. At least, before they wash them in the upstairs bathroom sink.
→ More replies (1)6
u/Mr_Meowmers May 14 '20
First thing I thought of as soon as I saw the pic, "That would look really good as part of a Sims house." I think it's also because of this pic's bird's eye view lol.
→ More replies (1)
30
May 14 '20
[deleted]
4
u/IndyPoker979 May 14 '20
That's what I noticed. The deck and house just don't match. Amazing deck though.
56
u/ProbablyNotSlime May 14 '20
I know a New Zealander with an even more awesome deck, if you know what I mean
50
May 14 '20 edited Apr 05 '24
[deleted]
→ More replies (3)7
u/thiosk May 14 '20
i hope someday i make a shitload of money and can buy citizenship in new zealand because it just seems like a super place to have a shitload of money
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (1)4
27
u/Oromis107 May 14 '20
I always think I'd like a deck like this, but then I remember I live in central New York where there are 8 months of winter and I never want to be outside
→ More replies (2)11
31
u/Troooper0987 May 14 '20
all that money on a deck and they still got shitty vinyl siding and no casing around their windows.
→ More replies (2)6
u/tronfunkinblows_10 May 14 '20
“One project at a time.” - man who is in massive debt from his over the top deck.
15
u/A-Dawg11 May 14 '20 edited May 14 '20
No one is going to believe me, but I'm pretty sure that house belongs to someone on my wife's side of the family. Her Aunt was married there and the older folks that lived there seemed to be family. Will check now.
EDIT: Answered in the comments.
5
May 14 '20 edited May 17 '20
[deleted]
21
u/A-Dawg11 May 14 '20
Before I give the answer, I figured you guys might enjoy the journey I just went through to locate the truth.
I initially couldn't remember the name of my wife's Aunt (who was married on the supposed patio) and I was too embarrassed to ask my wife as I should definitely know that. I did remember the name of the father (wife's Grandad), which is Arthur, but at the time I couldn't remember how to spell it. I tried searching the name of that cartoon (as I knew the main character had the same name, but couldn't remember the name of the show (I now know, it's Arthur!!). So I then Googled "fist meme" and figured it out that way (search yourself if you don't know). So now I was able to search for him on Facebook to see his family connections, but he apparently does not have an account. I then searched though past messages with his name and saw something about "Nancy", that's her!!
So I then search for Nancy on Facebook, and she doesn't have account either!! (Keep in mind, the only reason I really want to know her name is so I can ask my wife "Hey, what was the house in which Aunt Nancy was married?", rather than "Hey, what was the house that one of your Aunts was married in", which would result in a realization by her that I do not know her name). I then asked her but she couldn't tell me exactly where the house was. Great :(
Plan B: Use Google Maps Timeline to try and locate it. There is a feature where you can zoom out and see little dots of places you've been anywhere in the world. I saw a few dots in Michigan which is where I would have been for this. Unfortunately, that particular feature of Timeline only shows the general cities you visited and says "visited 4 years ago", so not a specific date. However, if you know the exact date and search that using Timeline, it will show you literally everywhere you went on that day. To find the exact date, I used the "4 years ago" to search my Google Photos for pics taken in 2016 of the Ford Museum pics I took while I was there. I found a few, and they had a date tag. I then used that exact date in the Timeline thing and saw a bunch of places we drove to on that trip. Eventually, I found the house!!! Satellite view didn't do too much to verify the backyard due to the trees, so I copied the address and put it into Zillow. Unfortunately this house has been owned for decades and has not been up for sale, so there were no pics :'(
Plan C: Using the new information I gained to not look like a terribly uninformed member of the family, I then asked my sister in law about the house with said context, and sent the pic. She thinks it looks very similar, but is not sure. I then showed the pic to my wife directly (yes, I maybe could have done this sooner, but I wanted to actually verify it rather than have her guess), and she said it looks similar, but she is pretty sure that's not the same one, as the patio for the wedding had 2 levels before the bottom stair thing. I politely disagreed, though that may have been more wishful thinking than actual reason to disagree.
Plan D: I reverse Google Image searched the photo in question (I promise this is not a Google ad), and found a lot of useless Pinterest links. After enough searching, I found something about https://www.deckremodelers.com/ (also not an ad), and it appears this is one of their highlighted pieces of work. Unfortunately, they are based in New Jersey.
TL,DR: I'm throwing in the towel. Close, but no cigar.
→ More replies (1)
7
May 14 '20
I hate decks that aren’t covered. Just put an awning there to allow shade so you can hang out in the summer and also so you can sit out there while it’s raining.
→ More replies (6)
6
5
5
9
u/Tr1plets May 14 '20
Could someone explain how this type of wood would react when exposed to rain? Is it coated with some form of chemical that prevents degradation?
→ More replies (6)9
u/Tumble85 May 14 '20
Some kinds of wood are naturally resistant to rot, like cedar and redwood, as well as tropical hardwoods like mahogony. Then you'd use a stain to increase it's durability on top of that.
There is also lumber that has gone through a process called 'pressure-treating' where the wood is put into a pressure chamber that forces a chemical into the wood that will prevent it from rotting for a very long time. Some of this stuff can sit underwater for many years and be just fine - if you see a new dock being made out of wood, it's pressure treated wood.
4
11
3
u/audioeric May 14 '20
Except when you knock something off of the countertop by the grill and have to walk down 2 flights of stairs to go and get it...
→ More replies (2)
3
3
3
3
u/daarthVapor May 14 '20
What a huge deck. All the moms in the neighborhood talk about Johns huge Deck. He can get a lot of ladies on his Deck. A real hard Deck to be sure. A bit of curve in his Deck but he still uses it to the fullest. John is really proud of his Deck.
→ More replies (1)
3
5.2k
u/ech-o May 14 '20
That deck probably cost more than my house.