The DIY Deck - Part 2

In my last entry I tried to make the case that if you don’t hire a professional to build your deck or porch project, at least use the best tools and knowledge when building it yourself. My wife thought the article was a little biased (it was) and maybe even arrogant (I hope not.) Not to worry. I’m one of those people that cannot get away with expressing an opinion without something immediately happening that contradicts what I said. That article was no exception.

This past winter, my mother moved into a house that my wife and I own in eastern North Carolina. When we bought the house I made the comment that the house was pretty complete except that it needed a screened porch. My plan was to design a nice traditional porch and send a crew down to build it next winter when work slowed a bit. (The house is about 4 hours away.)

My mother, who turns 80 later this year, is not a patient person. Once she makes a decision she goes into action. She thought the porch was a good idea too, but apparently decided that next winter was too long to wait. Always thoughtful, she also didn’t want to bother me about this during the busiest time of the season.

So at almost exactly the same time that I was writing the March article she was discussing the porch project with her brother Herbert. Herbert grew up on a farm and worked for more than thirty years as an operating engineer on ocean going tugboats. That job required him to be good with his hands and have a good understanding of how things work, but very little in the way of carpentry skills. Herbert is a young 70 years old.

Herbert told my mom that they should be able to build the porch, which is about 12’ x 20’, for about $1200. Now that sounded like a steal since I had told her that I would sell a porch that size for about $12,000. So, without saying a word to me, they decided to proceed. They recruited another of my uncles, Albert, to help. Albert turns 80 this year too.

So how did it turn out? Well they finished the porch in just over a week (Herbert doesn’t have much patience either.) And they did a pretty nice job as you can see from the photo. The cost did run a little over budget by a few hundred dollars and they had a young guy install the roof panels (a very smart move.) The roof is made with inexpensive fiberglass panels (good for letting in a lot of light) and a Northern Virginia building inspector would have some issues with some of the structure. But the porch looks good, is safe, and it will add value to the house. Most importantly, mom loves the space and she spends hours out there reading and working on her puzzles.

So has this experience changed my thinking about amateur deck/porch builders? A little. Remember I didn’t have a problem with DIY builders. I just tried to make the point that if you’re going to do this type of project, invest in the time and money to have the right tools and knowledge. I’m sure Herbert has never read a single book on deck building and his tool set is good but basic. However, he, mom, and Albert do have the one absolute necessity for a quality job – an unyielding desire to do work that you can be proud of.