TROPICAL HARDWOOD: JARRAH AND CUMARU DECKING

tropical hardwood decking woods jarrah and cumaru

In our previous post we presented a hypothetical Los Angeles homeowner with no financial brakes. Someone who decides to have a deck designed and built for his home, with money no object. This, to be sure, is a pretty rare client in real life. But such people do approach us. If you think about it, … Read more

TROPICAL HARDWOOD: MAHOGANY AND TEAK DECKING

sunny and warm wooden deck

When home improvement projects are on the table, the conversation usually gets around to economics. The dollar pros and cons of various types of upgrades, for instance. Return On Investment (ROI) at resale time. Up-front versus long-term maintenance costs. All very sensible, in fact, for just about everyone.  It’s a harder, on the other hand, … Read more

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO BUILD A DECK?

wooden deck with grass and brick overlooking a sunny city

Okay, then. You’re standing at the last bridge to cross before committing to the long-awaited deck addition to your home. You’ve done your research. Materials, design options, permit requirements – your research and inquires covered the bases.  There’s really only one imponderable left to get your head around. Look, even the most experienced Los Angeles … Read more

UP ON THE ROOF

up on the roof deck

Los Angeles County is big. In fact, it’s four times the area of the entire State of Rhode Island. Nonetheless, anyone familiar with our area knows that land here does not grow on trees. We are, after all, over 10 million residents.  Land is scarce. It’s most definitely expensive. Hence, we’ve learned to get the … Read more

SECOND-STORY DECKS

second story deck under construction

Sometimes adding a deck to the second story of a home is just the right thing to do. There are, to be sure, a few compelling reasons for this step. For example, houses built on steep slopes. Second story decks, in fact , are sometimes the only possible decks. Moreover, even when a property’s layout … Read more

FRENCH DOORS

wooden deck with grass and brick overlooking a sunny city

We’ve posted a lot of material about decks. Designing, building, extending, and remodeling them. Furthermore, we’ve discussed the merits of various building materials. In brief; there’s very little ground we haven’t covered in our posts. We’ve probably noted the obvious fact that accessibility is a key design criterion. French doors come to mind. After all, … Read more

DECKSTENSIONS

finished deck extended into comfortable backyard

There are two ways a homeowner ends up with a deck that’s not spacious enough. One is by purchasing a home with an existing deck.  The buyer may even know up front the deck’s too small, but likes the house.   Then, there are the homeowners who  add decks to their homes. Life, of course, is … Read more

DECKONOMICS 101

investing in yourself economics chart

As we noted in a post last year,  the addition of a deck to a home bodes well for the property’s resale value.  Estimates of Return On Investment for adding a deck  are in the 65%-80% range, nationally.  Since the use value of a deck is partly a function of climate, we’re on the high … Read more

DECKS ON DEMAND DOT CALM

wooden deck with grass and brick overlooking a sunny city

A great many clients of ours lead very active, full lives. Two-paycheck households, career ambitions, children, civic involvement and so forth. Leisure hours (such as may be!) are, therefore, for leisure. Some people consider dabbling in home improvement projects leisure. A hobby. In our experience, however, most homeowners shopping at  Home Depot are motivated by … Read more

DECK REMODELING: PART TWO

sunny and warm wooden deck

In Part One of this discussion of deck remodeling we looked at the “why” and the “how” of these projects. We noted that restoration and repair of worn or broken deck elements are often what turns a homeowner’s thoughts to remodeling. A deck, after all, is a part of the home. Hence, we shouldn’t neglect … Read more