Planning your Decking

Here is a step by step break down of the building of my decking, hopefully this will answer any questions you had when you decided to look on the Internet for more information.

1. Measurements

Get accurate measurements and draw up a plan of the deck you want to build. Don't worry too much about fine details at this point, things can be altered as you go along.

Once you have decided what area your decking needs to cover you will have more of an idea of the number and lengths of timber to buy. The measurements on these plans are in millimetres, our local supplier sells wooden decking component parts in metric lengths so it makes it easier to work things out if you use the same unit of measurements.

2. The Framework

Depending where you live in the world there are probably some regulations or guidelines for building a garden deck, so you will have to check with your local authority to find out. You can find some basic guidelines here.

Layout the joists and find the best locations for the supporting posts. In my case I had a substantial wall at one end so I fixed a 4" x 4" length of post timber to the wall using 12mm rawlbolts, I also placed three supporting posts along the length so that the rawlbolts weren't taking the weight. The bolts hold the timber tightly to the wall and the posts take the weight.

Don't forget to allow a slight fall away from buildings for water to run off. The usual guideline is 1:100, so for every meter the fall should drop by 1cm. I wanted to lay the boards at 45 degrees so I allowed a bit more than this to make sure rain would run off.

3. Post Holes

Dig holes deep enough to reach a solid sub soil. Put some stones or gravel in the bottom and beat them down with a fence post to form a firm base.

I used a product called "Post Fix", this is basically a fast drying concrete mix which is very easy to use. Once the post is in place, the "Post Fix" is poured in dry around the post then the water is added. It produces a rock solid concrete base around the post and the stones form a very solid foundation.

Here is my shopping list for the above decking.

15 x 3.6m Reversible decking boards

5 x 4.8m Treated sawn timber - 47 x 150mm

4 x 2.4m Treated Fence Post - 75 x 75mm lengths

20 x Machined Spindles

2 x 4.5m Reversible Handrail/Baserail

3 x Turned Newel Posts with Acorn Cap - 90 x 90 x 1500mm

300 x Decking Screws

3 x Bags of Post Fix

1 x Various Miscellaneous Items