How do I decide what kind of deck I want?

Start with how you will use it, not with the material. Every other decision, from size to budget, falls out of that one, and getting it in the wrong order is the most common way people end up with a deck that does not suit them.

What is the first question to answer?

What you will actually do out there, on an ordinary evening, not on the one big party a year.

A deck for two chairs and a coffee is a different structure from one that seats ten for dinner, and both are different from one built around a grill and a counter. Sketch the furniture before you sketch the deck.

Be honest about the ordinary use. Most people size for the party and then live with a deck that is bigger and more expensive than the life they actually have on it.

How big should it be?

Big enough for the furniture plus the room to walk behind it, which is more than most people allow.

A dining table needs clearance behind the chairs so somebody can pass while people are seated. A grill needs space in front of it that nobody is walking through. Lounge seating needs a path to the door that does not cross the seating.

The useful test is to lay it out in the yard with tape or cardboard and live with it for a weekend. It is free, and it changes people's minds more often than any drawing.

What shape suits my house and yard?

The one that follows the door you will use and the view you want, and the simplest shape that does both.

A deck is entered from a door, so where that door is decides a great deal. From there, look at where the sun falls in the late afternoon, where the neighbours' windows are, and what you would rather not look at.

Complexity costs. Angles, curves and multiple levels are all buildable and all add labour. If a simple rectangle in a better material fits the budget and a complicated shape in a lesser one does, take the rectangle.

Which decking material should I choose?

Choose by how much maintenance you are willing to do, then by look, then by budget.

Pressure treated lumber is the least expensive to install and asks the most of you afterwards: cleaning and sealing on a cycle for its whole life. Cedar is softer, lighter and more stable, with the same maintenance conversation.

Mahogany and ipe are dense hardwoods that weather to grey unless they are oiled. Composite and PVC boards, which is where Trex, TimberTech, Azek and Fiberon sit, cost more up front and want little more than washing. Level Line builds in all of them, leans toward Trex, and is a Trex Certified Installer and a TimberTech Certified Installer.

The honest way to choose is to ask yourself whether you will really seal a deck every couple of years. Most people know the answer.

How high off the ground will it be?

Whatever the door height dictates, and that single measurement drives more of the design than anything else.

A deck level with a first floor door needs guard rail on every open edge and a stair run to the yard. A deck a step off the grass may need neither. The higher deck is a bigger structure with more of everything.

A raised deck also creates a space underneath. An under deck drainage system turns that into a dry, usable area rather than somewhere the hose lives.

What moves the budget?

Size and shape, material, height, ground conditions, demolition of what is already there, and the railing.

Those six account for most of the difference between one deck and another. Lighting, built in seating, a pergola and an outdoor kitchen sit on top of them and are all optional.

We do not publish prices, because a published price has to assume a deck nobody is actually building. We look at your yard and quote your deck. Our post on what moves the price walks through each item.

Do I need a permit, and when do I sort it out?

Almost certainly yes, and it happens before anything is built, not alongside.

Your town or village building department issues it, and its rules are the ones that count. The application usually needs a survey showing where the deck sits and a drawing showing how it is built.

Level Line prepares the drawings for the application, unless an architect is assigned to the job. You submit the application with what Level Line provides, Level Line arranges and attends the inspections, and Mark is available by phone throughout. How long approval takes varies by town and by inspector, so it is worth starting early in the year if you want the deck for the summer.

How long will the build take?

Between one day and two to four weeks, depending on size and scope.

A resurface of a sound existing frame is at the short end. A large raised deck with stairs, railing, lighting and an outdoor kitchen is at the long end. Weather and the permit come before either.

The build is the visible part and usually the shortest part. The design, the material choice and the permit are what set the calendar.

What should I have ready before I call?

A rough idea of use, a photo of the door and the yard, and your survey if you can find it.

None of it has to be final. You describe what you want, Mark sketches it, and then it gets built. There is no design package to buy and no step to sign up for first.

If you have a survey it saves a step. A missing one is not a blocker.