To build a deck

The first thing you need is plenty of friends and family that are willing to work for peanuts.  Okay, I didn’t have any peanuts, but I had some good assistance from Rene’s brother Trevor, my mum and dad, friends from work Mat and Brendon, friends I don’t work with any more Paul and of course Rene.

Firstly, this is pretty much what we were meant to be achieving:

So Friday was spent having to dig around 16 holes on the edge of the house…all by hand.  A big thanks for Trevor for sharing in the blister exercise.  Also all the wood and cement (a “gross” of them).

Saturday was made up of two parts, completion of digging the post holes, this time with an auger attached to the rented Dingo, and setting out the framing for the deck.  The deck is actually made up of 3 parts, the area for the outdoor room, in front of the lounge & dining rooms and the other bit.

Brendon was doing a great job of cutting out the bearers for the first area, with my dad arriving just in time to help him square it all up.  After a bit of man handling it got set in position and all of the post positions were marked out.

Mean while the next part was getting cut and set out, with some egging by Mat, Brendon started to confuse him self, but eventually it all got done.  Two frame parts made.  Plenty of joist hangers the get set out now, to save some effort later.

Day three, and the workers had started to thin, Trevor got to play on the dingo levelling some area out the front for the fencing and I continued to drill holes for the post set out and nail in a heap of joist hangers.

Mat came back for another round, “rockstars” in hand so we thought we would set out and level the outdoor room.  By the end of the day, the outdoor room was all cemented in, ready to get some joists put in after hours this week.

Anyhow, just a couple of photos of it all. (sorry, didn’t take that may progress pics).

Trevor on the Dingo. 

My turn…I did manage to level out a fair bit of the back yard.

Some holes (yes, I hit the storm water pipe…on the last hole)

One of the frames (dang water pipe is in my way)

The first one down and cemented in…24 bags of cement mixed by hand…thanks Mat.

Anyhow, this week after work I hope to get all joists in and maybe even the 2nd frame set into position, or at least the third frame complete.

Oh, and after “desert storm” finishes, we shall get some completed inside shots taken.

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