Adding a porch or deck to your home can be a joyous home improvement that not only adds to the value of your home, but provides a focal point for enjoying the outdoors. This will be the spot of many BBQ's, parties, and other social activities and the uses for a porch or deck are as numerous as the types one can build.
Keeping that in mind, you'll want to carefully consider the design elements that go into your planning. Porches consist of an assembly of parts much like decks. In fact many porches are simply roof systems attached to a deck frame. In addition to the obvious advantage of having protection from the rain and sun, porches offer a level of enclosure that provides privacy. Screens can be installed to keep insects out while allowing fresh air in. Porches can be built to compliment your house using similar materials and by matching the roof style and slope. Electrical outlets and fixtures such as lights and fans can be installed to porch interiors. There are many ways to finish porches and even skylights can be installed. Your imagination and pocketbook are your only limitations.
The downside is that porches are more expensive than just a deck and are relatively harder to build, largely due to the amount of work it takes to construct a roof and the extra considerations needed in designing. Decks with porches must be designed to support 80 lbs per square foot compared to 55 lbs per square foot for decks. This extra 25 lbs is required to safely support the roof and snow loads. Decks with porches need to be specially engineered to distribute more complicated loads to the frost footings. Footing sizes are larger and need to be positioned so that support posts can directly transfer roof loads through sound framing to solid foundations.
There are so many factors to consider in the design of a deck or porch, from location (rooftop, pool or attach to house), railings, stairs and steps, elevations, traffic patterns, size and span, cutouts (for a hot tub installation or existing tree), all the way down to the materials for use. For many years, decking was primarily wood: redwood, cedar, pressure treated pine, and even some exotic woods. Wood has some beautiful natural characteristics but also requires some maintenance. Decking comes in many forms these days. There are over a hundred different man-made decking products on the market today, most of which are composed of composite, vinyl, and aluminum, that offer low-maintenance and a variety of appearances. Some alternative materials are prone to color fading, mold and mildew, thermal expansion and or may not be approved for use in your area. Do your homework and check out their warranty information before making any purchases.
Compare Deck and Patio MaterialsYour choice in decking material is very important because it is the surface you will see, walk on, maintain, and have to live with for years to come. Do some research on our site to find a material that lends itself to your tastes and your project, whether you're making a multi-level deck, a front porch, a pool deck or a rooftop deck. Keep in mind that design is only one factor in the decking decision and other factors must be weighed in, whether its a high installation cost or more required maintenance.
Wood
The most common building material for outdoor decks is still wood, and the most common of wood decking is pressure treated lumber (usually southern yellow pine). Pressure treated lumber is called such because it is created by forcing chemicals into the wood under intense pressures . These chemicals act as preservatives for the wood and help keep moisture out and prevent rotting, decay, and insect damage. Today's PT lumber is treated with safer, less toxic chemicals, such as alkaline copper quaternary (ACQ) or copper azole. Pressure treated wood is especially recommended in applications where the wood needs to come in contact with the ground, like in fences or posts. Because of its popularity, the wood and its related materials are easy to find at competitive prices. It offers a familiar and attractive appearance.
The downside of PT lumber is that it's not very dimensionally stable, so it has a tendency to crack, split and warp. And routine maintenance is necessary to prolong the life and look of the deck, so plan on a regular system of painting, sealing, and cleaning. Wood decking will require you to apply sealant to your deck at least every year for the first several years to protect the surface from sun and moisture damage and maintain its appearance. When the decking is installed, it is usually high in moisture content, which can lead to cracks in the wood if it is allowed to dry too quickly.
For many purists, the only choices for decking are redwood or red cedar. Both of these western softwoods are prized for their rich color and natural beauty, and because they aren't pumped full of chemicals or preservatives. Both species contain tannins and oils that make them naturally resistant to rot, decay and voracious insects. The level of weather- and bug-resistance of redwood is directly related to the amount of heartwood in the boards. Heartwood grows closer to the center of the tree, and is relatively hard and very resistant to decay. Sapwood grows in the outer part of the tree, near the bark, and is softer and more susceptible to decay. According to the experts at the Western Red Cedar Lumber Association, the four best grades of cedar to use for decking are (listed from most expensive and clearest, to least expensive and most knotty): architect clear, custom clear, architect knotty, and custom knotty. In most regions of the country, redwood and cedar each cost at least three times more than pressure-treated lumber.
These materials may require more maintenance and have less resistance to decay than pressure-treated wood, but offer a great appearance. Redwood and cedar require an annual power washing and coat of finish every three to four years. To protect the wood's surface from the weather, and to help reduce checking (fine splits), apply a clear, water-repellent wood preservative. To maintain the wood's natural color, however, you'll have to apply a stain. If you don't apply a stain, both redwood and cedar will eventually weather to a soft silvery gray.
Massaranduba, cumaru, red tauari, tigerwood, ipe, and Philippine mahogany are just some of the tropical hardwoods available for decking. These exotic, rich-grained woods are extremely hard, very durable and naturally resistant to rot and insects. However, because these woods are so dense, they're heavy and difficult to cut and drill. In fact, it's virtually impossible to drive a nail or screw without first boring a pilot hole, which is why tropical decking is typically installed with some sort of hidden fastener that clips or screws into the edge of the boards. Tropical hardwoods are relatively expensive, especially when compared with PT lumber, but in most parts of the country they're comparable in cost to redwood and cedar.
Most tropical hardwoods are so dense they don't accept stains very well. But if you're determined to apply a stain, be sure it's an oil-based penetrating stain specifically formulated for hardwood decking. If you choose not to stain the deck, you should at least apply a UV-blocking clear wood preservative every three to four years. And like cedar and redwood, most tropical hardwoods weather to a soft silvery color if they're not stained. The amount and speed of any fading depends greatly upon the deck's exposure to sun, rain and snow.
Finally, when purchasing any wood decking, check with your lumber dealer to ensure that the wood was certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, a nonprofit organization that identifies lumber that has been harvested in a legal, sustainable manner.
CompositeGiven the significant maintenance required in working with wood decking if you desire a natural appearance and grain texture, various composite materials have gained popularity and acceptance over the years. Composite decks are made of a compressed combination of vinyl, wood, and other recycled materials and are normally given a wood grain so that it looks somewhat like wood on the outside. Colors can be matched to your home and should not fade as much as a wood deck.
Composite decks have been known to be susceptible to mold and staining due to moisture absorption, and sometimes the solution to that problem is cleaning with standard household cleaners and a brush. However, composite decking materials have improved over the last decade and most old problems like mold and mildew have improved as technology has advanced. Nevertheless it is important to find a product that has a good warranty in case of a problem. You can find the details and lengths of the warranties on all of the products webpages or from the lumberyard where you purchase the materials. It should also be noted that extreme temperatures can increase flexibility of some composite materials. In theory, a modern composite deck or porch needs little other maintenance than occasional sweeping and spraying, but since they are partially wood, they do also eventually succumb to decay
This comes at a cost, which can be anywhere from 1.5 to 3 times as much as a cedar deck and possibly 2 to 5 times as much as a pressure-treated pine deck.
AluminumAnother alternative to wood decking is aluminum decking. An aluminum deck gives you a very clean look and is pretty much maintenance free once installed, and it's totally recyclable. Most designs offer interlocking panels, creating a waterproof surface that keeps the area below the deck dry as well. Most of the water is drained right off the surface channels of the decking, while any that seeps inside is picked up by a continuous gutter strip underneath that channels water towards the drainage area (provided that you keep the channels free of debris), which makes it a great choice for second-story decks since the space below stays dry. Unlike wood, aluminum decking won't rot, rust, warp, splinter, crack or check, and it's extremely weather, mold and slip resistant. Its powder-coated finish lasts virtually forever and it'll never peel or blister. Aluminum cannot catch fire, wood-boring bugs can not destroy it, and it is cryogenically strong, which means that it does not get brittle in extremely cold weather. It remains much cooler than wood or concrete when exposed to sun and heat, so guests won't burn their feet walking across the deck in summer.
When compared with wood, composite and plastic lumber, aluminum decking is three to four times lighter, yet two to three times stronger. It can be cut with the same saws and carbide-tipped blades used to cut wood. Here's the downside: aluminum is by far the most expensive decking option.
