Finally all the holes were dug and posts concreted in, and I could progress with the frame. One of the trickiest things in deck building is getting all the posts leveled off.
To assist in leveling I made a water level out of a clear bucket and a length of clear plastic hose. You put a hole in the side of the bucket and insert the hose, then seal it up with some duct tape. Fill the bucket and attached hose with water until the water level in the bucket matches the level you are trying to set while trying to eliminate any air bubbles from the hose. Once the level is set you just move the hose around to the the various posts and mark on them where the level of the water settles to. It will always match what the level in the bucket is. It's cheap as chips and very accurate! There's some great (and easy) instructions on building a water level on the BuildEazy web site.
You can see in the picture below I have leveled off the posts, attached the bearers and started in on laying out the joists.
When it came to attaching the bearers to the posts I chose (for some crazy insane reason) to notch the posts and bolt in the bearers. It's supposed to be one of the strongest methods of attaching bearers to posts. However when you are dealing with a deck clearance height measured in millimeters it's a very hard proposition. The posts are 100x100 and the bearers dual 90x45, so I started out by marking a line in the top of the post 10mm in and cutting vertically down 90mm with the circular saw, and then measuring 90mm down the side to make the horizontal cut. This left a 10mm wedge on top of the post that I then bolted the bearer to using 2 x M6 coach bolts and washers set on the diagonal. If I was going to do it again I think I'd just cut the top of the post off and skew nail the bearers in. Notching is really too fiddly on a low clearance deck
Below you can see the entire deck looking down from the garden utility area. Before I laid down the joists I'd also put down a product called Protectadeck which is available from Bunnings. It comes as a 12m long PVC strip that you lay along the top of the bearer and is supposed to extend the life of the wood as it has "wings" that allow the water to drain off the sides stopping any rot developing.
I'd read a bit of debate online as to whether it's worth it or not, but it my mind it made sense as the bearers were made up from ganged timbers, and didn't add that much to the cost of the deck. You can also get it for the joists, but I thought that would be a bit of overkill and after all the joists are going to be filled with nails, negating any waterproofing. You roll it out and then cut it to length with just a pair of scissors. I then fixed it at each end with galvanized clouts.
To assist in leveling I made a water level out of a clear bucket and a length of clear plastic hose. You put a hole in the side of the bucket and insert the hose, then seal it up with some duct tape. Fill the bucket and attached hose with water until the water level in the bucket matches the level you are trying to set while trying to eliminate any air bubbles from the hose. Once the level is set you just move the hose around to the the various posts and mark on them where the level of the water settles to. It will always match what the level in the bucket is. It's cheap as chips and very accurate! There's some great (and easy) instructions on building a water level on the BuildEazy web site.
You can see in the picture below I have leveled off the posts, attached the bearers and started in on laying out the joists.
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| Bearers and Posts Completed |
When it came to attaching the bearers to the posts I chose (for some crazy insane reason) to notch the posts and bolt in the bearers. It's supposed to be one of the strongest methods of attaching bearers to posts. However when you are dealing with a deck clearance height measured in millimeters it's a very hard proposition. The posts are 100x100 and the bearers dual 90x45, so I started out by marking a line in the top of the post 10mm in and cutting vertically down 90mm with the circular saw, and then measuring 90mm down the side to make the horizontal cut. This left a 10mm wedge on top of the post that I then bolted the bearer to using 2 x M6 coach bolts and washers set on the diagonal. If I was going to do it again I think I'd just cut the top of the post off and skew nail the bearers in. Notching is really too fiddly on a low clearance deck
Below is the almost finished frame. I attached the joists to the bearers using standard Pryda Joist Straps with galvanized clouts to fix them down. I brought 2 boxes, one of left and one of right handed straps, and alternated down the length of the joist. You can also see I've dropped in a frame for sizing the single step that will lead from the decking down to the gravel path. I'll bolt it to the stumps, drill down three post holes and then concrete in Pryda Post Anchors to bolt to the corners and front edge.
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| Frame Completed |
I'd read a bit of debate online as to whether it's worth it or not, but it my mind it made sense as the bearers were made up from ganged timbers, and didn't add that much to the cost of the deck. You can also get it for the joists, but I thought that would be a bit of overkill and after all the joists are going to be filled with nails, negating any waterproofing. You roll it out and then cut it to length with just a pair of scissors. I then fixed it at each end with galvanized clouts.
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| Top View |
Time the get the young fella to work again! The tops of the joists need to be painted to offer some protection to them, but also because the tops will be visible in the gaps between the decking boards if they're left bare. A quick coat of the old "mission brown" does the trick!
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| Brush up, brush down. Brush up, brush down |
Because I am going to be running a water feature and lights in the deck, there needs to be some electrical power available. Below you can see my mate Peter the sparkie putting in some electrical outlets. ALWAYS use a certified electrician for any mains voltage electrical work! Always.
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| Some Bright Spark |
The dual outdoor rated power points will give me enough outlets to run the pump and lights as well as have a couple to spare.
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| Power to the People |
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| Job Done! |
Last thing was putting down a metre of gravel under the deck. Backbreaking!
Now comes the exciting part of laying the deck!
Thanks!
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