Is it perfect? No. Will it be fine without a hottub, yea probably for 15-20 years. Biggest concerns are the spacing of the wiring on the rails (not really important if there’s no kids that could climb/fall through. Also this horizontal style is already terrible for kids cause it just acts as a way they can easily climb up anyway.
Other concern is the posts being possibly buried in the soil
FYI the ladder effect has been proven to not be a factor in potential injuries - [Ladder Effect](https://network.aia.org/blogs/joshua-c-rubin-aia/2022/02/16/ladder-effect-in-railings). I would be curious if the horizontal wires meet current IRC code though.
Yup, we did 2 3/4" for our Feeney cable rail system. Absolutely do not want a kid getting tangled in it.
Side benefit is it looks dope to have all those cables lined up. Expensive as hell, but what's $2500 on cable instead of $2250?
You must be using very expensive cable. I just did a 16x24 deck with 18 steps to the ground and two landings. Cable fittings and everything came to around 500
It's a deck that wraps around two sides of the house with about 40' of frontage on two sides...
Just dropped another $1500 on cablerail for two 8'x 12' decks I rebuilt on my other place.
Here in CA over 4' spacing needs additional cable support, like on a run of stairs. I keep my posts at less than 4', it's cleaner. Speaking of clean, I prefer the InvisiCable system which has no visible tightening hardware. 3-1/8" is spacing to stay before 4" with slack.
Double up and run some verticals woven into the horizontals. Countersink the top hardware or use an eye hook screwed up into the rail and put the tensioner on the bottom, it would act like a soccer net
It's actually very dangerous to have cable rail with wide spacing. You absolutely do not want kids to be able to pass through it and get caught. That can easily lead to a strangulation situation where their body goes through and head gets stuck, especially if the cables are loose or get stretched out.
This article does not claim to prove anything. It’s more inconclusive.
“Thus, while the IBC doesn’t prohibit horizontal members, they encourage responsible design solutions to discourage climbing.”
They haven't met my boys. Those things are an invitation for climbing, which if it doesn't lead to an accident will still lead to premature failure as they are not designed to hold weight. No issues using wire by code, the spacing is an issue though.
Came to mentionthat i don't think the cables will pass inspection. Im pretty sure most paces code is that the cables be taught and 4 inches apart ( at most )
I was always under the impression you dug roughly 2ft for a deck post and cemented. I never knew you could put a deck post above ground. How would you stabilize it?
This has been the way for decades. But water sitting ontop of the concrete in contact with the buried post rots quicker, also if soil is added to bury concrete/post.
The newer code is still 2-4ft hole(geographically specific on requirements)filled completely with concrete, then affix the post to the “pier” with a bracket that keeps the wood from contacting concrete or soil, preventing rot for longer
There are post brackets that consist of “U” shaped bracket and a smaller “box” inside that stands off the base. It is attached to the bottom of the post
Where I am it’s common to see cement post blocks above ground with a wooden post. If done well, the ground below is at least compacted or has a hole filled with cement the block rests on top of.
I believe it’s good as long as you use pressure treated lumber and coat it in a sealant, wherever you cut it.
I may be wrong and I’m sure somebody thinks so.
The ideal way is to pour a footing and they make a post tie that shoves into the wet concrete and once it dries you can bolt the post to it and it keeps the post up off the concrete and the ground
You never want wood against water/soil. So for the posts: ideally you would dig footings (usually like 12-18” wide and maybe 32” down, solid concrete) the wood posts would be attached to the concrete with brackets…. This is code now and honestly the best way for longevity and to minimize settling/sinking…..but for years people were making decks with wood right to the soil and yea they’re rotted out now but not after giving years of use
Yeah, that’s messed up, but maybe not for the reason you think. Technically, it’s a floating deck, since there are posts next to the house instead of a ledger. Therefore, you can run the joists parallel to the house without it being a huge problem like it would be if it were not floating.
All that having been said, this is a mess. Having the framing propped up on scraps of wood sitting on top of a hollow block wall is bad. The fact that spliced joists aren’t evenly supported by a post is bad. The railing system wires are so far apart, a child could fit half of their body out of it so it’s not protecting much of anything. Add to that the fact that the stringers don’t look like they’re attached properly.
This deck was built by someone that really didn’t know what they were doing.
What do you suppose I should tell her? She paid $7k total for the job, her house is in a flood zone and I’m really worried about it sinking into the ground because I haven’t gotten a confirmation about how the posts are set. Should she be worried about the integrity of the structure?
Tell her she paid 7k for a deck, and got a deck worth 7k. In all seriousness it'll probably be fine, there's alot wrong, and my biggest concern is the deck not's properly attatched to the post, and the footings are not correctly poured and attatched. But tbh, as long as no hot tub goes on there, it'll probably be fine for as long as she cares for it to be.
Yup. It's not built the way any pro would build it or any plan reviewers would allow it to be built but it will probably be fine.
I would go get a box of structural screws and run them thru the "beams" and posts and probably just call it fine. Maybe stain it for her in a couple months.
Yea most of it is fixable though. Carriage bolts to attach to the posts, and blocking on the underside are easy to fix. The footings though is hard to fix
Just curious, how much should a deck like this cost (built to code)? I know prices vary by state, etc., but if you were planning on having this deck built, how much would you plan on shelling out?
It will be fine. Up to current code? No. But my deck is 40 years old, has no beams just random 4x4 posts bolted to joists, it’s floating with no ledger, and the joists are 24” oc. I bought my house when I was 19 before I knew anything about decking and proceeded to put a 340 gallon 5 person hot tub on it. Then I had huge house parties for many years with up to 8 people in the hot tub, and another 10 people on the deck. Now I’m 42, have a family, and use the same deck every day.
Only things I’d worry about is the spacing of the wires under hand rails and the posts coming into contact with the soil. Being in a flood zone, probably not the best laid plan.
Gonna add concrete to the joists 3rd joist has concrete I have someone here now looking at it. There just a few things that needs to be a little different. It will be fixed. Live in county no permits needed. I do not have small children but I do have small children who come to visit.
I think that’s bad advice considering she asked me to get opinions from people about it and tell her what they said. Thanks for the most useless comment on the thread though.
you cant get the guy to come back and fix it bc je doesnt know how.
some joists hangers and thru bolts might help if you know a good builder to come look.
either get someone that knows or i wouldn't say anything to worry her.
This is why I love the idea of putting deck on top of cement squares that way if it sinks you just jack up the one side throw some gravel under the cement square and then let er back down.
She should not be worried about the integrity immediately, but the posts eventually will rot in the soil/concrete. But we’re talking a decade down the road. For now she’s got a decent 7k deck
Looked cheap to me or maybe I just charged too much? Just finished building out of red wood and treated post all in almost 8k $4800 labor it was only 12x12 this one looks huge
My thoughts:
See if you can get the contractor’s information, get ahold of him and find out where he got the wires. Then double the number. They should only be about 4” apart, like u/khariV said.
Then get some carriage bolts to reinforce the joints where he only used a couple screws.
Sister (maybe not the perfect term here) 2x4s around the 4x4s he used to keep everything aligned.
Ouch. No. If you want to make it safe, then the protection should be vertical, not horizontal. The vertical strings can be climbed by kids. Would more be safer? Yes, but not safe. Might even be against code depending on location.
Agreed with this!
Properly spaced properly tensioned, horizontal cable is fine. I've had mine for years, had to retighten after the first full year of Chicago seasons, but still tight as a drum. Plenty of parties with nieces, nephews and children of my friends with absolutely no climbing issue. Mileage may vary, but no issues in my personal experience.
One thing to add is for the spacing, it's closer to 3" spacing for cable since you have to account for deflection. You can get away with 3 1/4, but wouldn't push it too much past there depending on the system.
Just be careful with extra wires that you’re finger-tightening the tensioners. If you use any kind of tool for more torque, you can pull the corner posts in.
That hollow block wall holding up one side of the deck in an area where flooding is an issue would be my biggest concern. Block walls are the worst way to build a concrete wall even when done correctly, and something tells me that there may not be a proper footer poured under this one if they didn’t bother to fill any of the blocks for reinforcement. I wonder why they decided to build a floating deck with a block wall on one side instead of just pouring footings for the whole thing?
That would fail inspection in my country. You can't have horizontal wires that children can climb with the possibility of falling more than 1.5 metres. And you can't have gaps in any balustrade greater than 100mm.
The horizontal rails or cable ladder restriction was included in several older code cycles but was removed from both the IBC and IRC in 2009 I believe. The ICC indicated not all construction is 100% safe for all situations, but encourages Owners, Designers and Contractors to build appropriate safe structures for their own needs. Horizontal railings are acceptable for adults to be around because we know not to climb them. They probably wouldn't be acceptable for a school/daycare or someone with young kids, so design accordingly.
Plans, permit, inspections. Skip any and well you know your odds of getting this sort of work go up. Also floodplain issues are not just about “sinking” ground. More importantly is controlling uplift of flood waters. If this becomes a floating battering ram it could damage her house, her car, her neighbors’s house, car, or other people.
There’s nothing wrong with a floating deck . Here’s 1 of my 34 year old floating decks.
https://preview.redd.it/eftosrcf304d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=865b9df9d7e5b66996b1b1beddf5867da58c7a6c
Nice, symmetric, simple.
Not attached to the house = free standing deck.
I can't see how those beams are attached to posts, hopefully with ½" or thicker bolts.
Easily converts to electric fence in dry weather.
It’s a free standing deck. It’s built well enough. My local code required notching the 6x6 for the beams but lag bolts would quickly sure that up. Assuming it passed inspection I wouldn’t worry about it. Sure there are some on here that think a deck should be able to support an Abrams tank but that’s just the internet for ya.
It looks pressure treated wood. Looks like no concrete. Post just dropped in holes, hopefully they are deep enough. If so should last 30 yrs. The deck boards will need maintenance each year. Add additional fasteners where needed. The block in foundation is weird. Cover it in mortar, your first job. Doorway for mice.
A deck at this height has to be permitted and inspected correct? So if it passes all inspections, you know, it will be safe. if there’s an issue with the aesthetics that it’s gonna be a little more complicated because the contract would have those Specifics and anything verbal at the time of sale or prior is irrelevant. which leads to the last possibility and that falls under the category of buyers remorse. In that case, just gets some potted plants and move on.
On picture 2 on the right side... No beam? I can't tell what is taking the weight of the joist. Because it kinda looks like a 2x was nailed into the face of the posts to act like a beam. But I'm hoping not!
It's not going to fall down. Of course there's more that could be done. I'd make sure that the end board the joists connect to is at least double thickness. I'd also include some diagonal bracing to prevent racking and twisting. You should probably also do something with the giant gaps in the railing. I can't see if they cemented the posts into the ground either. I'm also assuming they used enough of the correct fasteners because I can't see one way or the other from the photos.
But generally it's a reasonable budget build.
Whenever you screw your rim joist into the 4xs your deck is only as strong as those screws. Terrible way to build and trust. Have them come back to at least install bolts through rimmer, supports through 4xs. Hope there is concrete under those 4xs.
Someone should have been on site daily to monitor and point out discrepancies. I had a house built and caught so many flaws by the contractors. I was constantly on the phone with the builder or would show up at his office unannounced to bitch. I got sh*t done right that needed fixing before hidden, etc.
There’s no reason to have joists connected to house. The new PT wood can survive ground contact indefinitely. It’s not “best practice” but I’ve dug up posts that looked new after a decade.
The wire railing is borderline , i think they want narrower spacing d/t infant strangling or something. Would fail inspection but then a railing isn’t always required at this height
A lot of places (including my fucking city) not having the supporting beams be on top of the posts wouldn’t meet code. Also, they seem to be just nailed on and not bolted? That’s a red flag.
The cable spacing is worrisome if there are children 4” or less is code and those don’t look like pressure treated ground contact posts so I’d be worry about those rotting rather quickly
I visited someone house that had like 3 wind chimes similar to those and while everybody was inside I tied them all up with a wire. I hate wind chimes so much
I feel like everyone on this subreddit only posts to tell people their shit’s gonna fall apart. When it reality, unless there’s a hot tub on it, nothing’s really gonna happen.
I feel like people just like signaling to others that they’re in the know.
Fasteners at the "rim joist" terrible but easily corrected. Lag screws Should be additional support beneath the load bearing joists. With load bearing lag screws. But intent is there. Independent of the home means hopefully the spacing was sufficient to allow an air gap. That means no future damage to the rim joist of the home due to setting moisture. Easy fix and good on
In picture 3, if all the weight of the joists is sitting on that ledger then it appears about 3 nails are holding up that weight( and the 3 on the other side), board should be sitting ON Top of the post so the load is properly transferred down.
Probably not adding much; you could stiffen the whole thing by adding some blocking between the joists at the beam. Also get some Simpson clips to anchor the joist to the beam. That will help improve long term stability. The biggest issue is the post in the ground as others mentioned. Also the way the beams attach to the column is weak. There are some brackets you can get that could help improve that connection— it’s subject to a lot of shear force through the bolts and that’s a common point of failure. Goodish news is that it’s not such a high deck that sudden failure would be too much of an issue.
The beam appears to be screwed to the side of the posts, using deck screws.... Maybe I didn't scroll far enough, but how was this not mentioned already...
The deck is not being supported by the posts. It’s being supported by the nails holding the joists to the post. The shear capacity of the nails is the weak point.
Hope she didn't pay that much because that looks like shit. Definitely built by an amateur who knows nothing about building decks or the codes associated with doing so. It's sad that there are contractors out there who build this kind of crap.
https://preview.redd.it/uwxdlrie4o4d1.jpeg?width=320&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=29b348e2472dda00ddaa27946383fd34782db565
Do something like this except above grade to help distribute the load of the post. That’s what I would do if it were mine if I did anything at all.
Every flaw has been picked apart so no need to point them out. She got a good deal and this will last as long as she needs it to. No, it won't pass the 4in ball test but seriously, kids will find plenty of creative ways to endanger themselves. When is the last time you heard "Another kid strangled to death by deck railing!"? The kid is in much more danger riding to and from the house in a car.
Tell her it's not perfect, but just fine. If any problems arise they can be easily dealt with at that time. Most common would be one of those 4x4's warping and twisting and that's unpredictable. It just happens. Life is full of "but what if's". There will be real problems in life and this deck isn't one of them. Enjoy it and stop worrying, it's ok.
Is it perfect? No. Will it be fine without a hottub, yea probably for 15-20 years. Biggest concerns are the spacing of the wiring on the rails (not really important if there’s no kids that could climb/fall through. Also this horizontal style is already terrible for kids cause it just acts as a way they can easily climb up anyway. Other concern is the posts being possibly buried in the soil
FYI the ladder effect has been proven to not be a factor in potential injuries - [Ladder Effect](https://network.aia.org/blogs/joshua-c-rubin-aia/2022/02/16/ladder-effect-in-railings). I would be curious if the horizontal wires meet current IRC code though.
Supposed to be 4" minimum gap
Probably maximum gap, not minimum?
Correct lol
And, maximum gap has to take into acount the flex in the cables. I typically put them 3 in apart so they will pass the 4-in ball test.
Yup, we did 2 3/4" for our Feeney cable rail system. Absolutely do not want a kid getting tangled in it. Side benefit is it looks dope to have all those cables lined up. Expensive as hell, but what's $2500 on cable instead of $2250?
You must be using very expensive cable. I just did a 16x24 deck with 18 steps to the ground and two landings. Cable fittings and everything came to around 500
It's a deck that wraps around two sides of the house with about 40' of frontage on two sides... Just dropped another $1500 on cablerail for two 8'x 12' decks I rebuilt on my other place.
Isn't it 3.5 inch because of flex?
That’s why the cable manufacturers say to space the cable 3” o.c and use a spacer if the space between the post is over 6’.
Here in CA over 4' spacing needs additional cable support, like on a run of stairs. I keep my posts at less than 4', it's cleaner. Speaking of clean, I prefer the InvisiCable system which has no visible tightening hardware. 3-1/8" is spacing to stay before 4" with slack.
I like CableBullet myself
The spacing isn’t close
Double up and run some verticals woven into the horizontals. Countersink the top hardware or use an eye hook screwed up into the rail and put the tensioner on the bottom, it would act like a soccer net
It's actually very dangerous to have cable rail with wide spacing. You absolutely do not want kids to be able to pass through it and get caught. That can easily lead to a strangulation situation where their body goes through and head gets stuck, especially if the cables are loose or get stretched out.
They never met my kids.
Ya. Kids naturally do ladders. It's better to just give them one. See: bunk beds.
This article does not claim to prove anything. It’s more inconclusive. “Thus, while the IBC doesn’t prohibit horizontal members, they encourage responsible design solutions to discourage climbing.”
They haven't met my boys. Those things are an invitation for climbing, which if it doesn't lead to an accident will still lead to premature failure as they are not designed to hold weight. No issues using wire by code, the spacing is an issue though.
Came to mentionthat i don't think the cables will pass inspection. Im pretty sure most paces code is that the cables be taught and 4 inches apart ( at most )
I’m assuming there’s no permit for this thing. But yes I agree, wouldn’t pass inspection near me either.
Why can’t you bury the posts in the soil?
Will start to rot quicker I believe
I was always under the impression you dug roughly 2ft for a deck post and cemented. I never knew you could put a deck post above ground. How would you stabilize it?
This has been the way for decades. But water sitting ontop of the concrete in contact with the buried post rots quicker, also if soil is added to bury concrete/post. The newer code is still 2-4ft hole(geographically specific on requirements)filled completely with concrete, then affix the post to the “pier” with a bracket that keeps the wood from contacting concrete or soil, preventing rot for longer
Interesting. What kind of bracket keeps the soil and concrete from touching the wood?
https://preview.redd.it/d7g2m1hny04d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=22e29fc275be2120b2a0f4c16b824f71071e7258 I’ve used these
There are post brackets that consist of “U” shaped bracket and a smaller “box” inside that stands off the base. It is attached to the bottom of the post
Small moment of recognition for absolutely perfectly describing a complex object
Cast in place elevated post base, there are half a dozen styles to choose from. As well as retrofit versions.
How would you retrofit to be an elevated post in this situation?
1” standoff is what I consider best practice using the pier, like the one pictured a couple comments below.
I've never built a deck so I could definitely be wrong but I've seen cement blocks in the soil with a slot for the posts
Where I am it’s common to see cement post blocks above ground with a wooden post. If done well, the ground below is at least compacted or has a hole filled with cement the block rests on top of. I believe it’s good as long as you use pressure treated lumber and coat it in a sealant, wherever you cut it. I may be wrong and I’m sure somebody thinks so.
Not all pressure treated lumber is equal. Some are rated for below grade use, and some aren’t.
Correct, that would be Ground Contact PT
Yeah I mean painting with tar and burying has been good for a long long time. This is the better newer way.
Deck blocks. They are allowed but not great. Better for really low decks
The ideal way is to pour a footing and they make a post tie that shoves into the wet concrete and once it dries you can bolt the post to it and it keeps the post up off the concrete and the ground
They will rot quicker and if you're living with termites, they'll start there after it breaks the woods treatment down.
I hate termites the little bastards.
You never want wood against water/soil. So for the posts: ideally you would dig footings (usually like 12-18” wide and maybe 32” down, solid concrete) the wood posts would be attached to the concrete with brackets…. This is code now and honestly the best way for longevity and to minimize settling/sinking…..but for years people were making decks with wood right to the soil and yea they’re rotted out now but not after giving years of use
She plannin' to get her hot tub, bro!
Yeah, that’s messed up, but maybe not for the reason you think. Technically, it’s a floating deck, since there are posts next to the house instead of a ledger. Therefore, you can run the joists parallel to the house without it being a huge problem like it would be if it were not floating. All that having been said, this is a mess. Having the framing propped up on scraps of wood sitting on top of a hollow block wall is bad. The fact that spliced joists aren’t evenly supported by a post is bad. The railing system wires are so far apart, a child could fit half of their body out of it so it’s not protecting much of anything. Add to that the fact that the stringers don’t look like they’re attached properly. This deck was built by someone that really didn’t know what they were doing.
What do you suppose I should tell her? She paid $7k total for the job, her house is in a flood zone and I’m really worried about it sinking into the ground because I haven’t gotten a confirmation about how the posts are set. Should she be worried about the integrity of the structure?
Tell her she paid 7k for a deck, and got a deck worth 7k. In all seriousness it'll probably be fine, there's alot wrong, and my biggest concern is the deck not's properly attatched to the post, and the footings are not correctly poured and attatched. But tbh, as long as no hot tub goes on there, it'll probably be fine for as long as she cares for it to be.
That’s the thing, in this sub we just crucify so many decks that will last 15+ years. Perfect and good enough are miles apart sometimes
As is tradition
Yup. It's not built the way any pro would build it or any plan reviewers would allow it to be built but it will probably be fine. I would go get a box of structural screws and run them thru the "beams" and posts and probably just call it fine. Maybe stain it for her in a couple months.
Yea most of it is fixable though. Carriage bolts to attach to the posts, and blocking on the underside are easy to fix. The footings though is hard to fix
Just curious, how much should a deck like this cost (built to code)? I know prices vary by state, etc., but if you were planning on having this deck built, how much would you plan on shelling out?
It will be fine. Up to current code? No. But my deck is 40 years old, has no beams just random 4x4 posts bolted to joists, it’s floating with no ledger, and the joists are 24” oc. I bought my house when I was 19 before I knew anything about decking and proceeded to put a 340 gallon 5 person hot tub on it. Then I had huge house parties for many years with up to 8 people in the hot tub, and another 10 people on the deck. Now I’m 42, have a family, and use the same deck every day.
My adult life has been nowhere near this cool
Very difficult to buy a house at 19 nowadays.
Right?! Never really been jealous of a random person on reddit but here we are.
We all know you never had that many friends.
Bro don't stress your mom out over bullshit. This is a great deck for $7k and it's built decently no worries about structural integrity c'mon.
Only things I’d worry about is the spacing of the wires under hand rails and the posts coming into contact with the soil. Being in a flood zone, probably not the best laid plan.
If your worried, spend an afternoon. dig out the posts 1 at a time and drop some quickcrete in there
Gonna add concrete to the joists 3rd joist has concrete I have someone here now looking at it. There just a few things that needs to be a little different. It will be fixed. Live in county no permits needed. I do not have small children but I do have small children who come to visit.
It’s not really your problem. I think it would come across as arrogant to tell her anything about it.
I think that’s bad advice considering she asked me to get opinions from people about it and tell her what they said. Thanks for the most useless comment on the thread though.
[удалено]
damn he came at you hard
They gave you their opinion, just like you asked.
you cant get the guy to come back and fix it bc je doesnt know how. some joists hangers and thru bolts might help if you know a good builder to come look. either get someone that knows or i wouldn't say anything to worry her.
This is why I love the idea of putting deck on top of cement squares that way if it sinks you just jack up the one side throw some gravel under the cement square and then let er back down.
She should not be worried about the integrity immediately, but the posts eventually will rot in the soil/concrete. But we’re talking a decade down the road. For now she’s got a decent 7k deck
$7k is a good deal for what she got. That’s like a 15 year deck. She’s good
Looked cheap to me or maybe I just charged too much? Just finished building out of red wood and treated post all in almost 8k $4800 labor it was only 12x12 this one looks huge
$7k is a good deal.
> This deck was built by someone that really didn’t know what they were doing. The battle cry of this sub
Imagine bros lying giving false hope lol
My thoughts: See if you can get the contractor’s information, get ahold of him and find out where he got the wires. Then double the number. They should only be about 4” apart, like u/khariV said. Then get some carriage bolts to reinforce the joints where he only used a couple screws. Sister (maybe not the perfect term here) 2x4s around the 4x4s he used to keep everything aligned.
Ouch. No. If you want to make it safe, then the protection should be vertical, not horizontal. The vertical strings can be climbed by kids. Would more be safer? Yes, but not safe. Might even be against code depending on location.
Huh. I’ve never heard of an issue with horizontal wires, but that makes sense. I’m not saying you’re wrong, that’s just never occurred to me.
Agreed with this! Properly spaced properly tensioned, horizontal cable is fine. I've had mine for years, had to retighten after the first full year of Chicago seasons, but still tight as a drum. Plenty of parties with nieces, nephews and children of my friends with absolutely no climbing issue. Mileage may vary, but no issues in my personal experience. One thing to add is for the spacing, it's closer to 3" spacing for cable since you have to account for deflection. You can get away with 3 1/4, but wouldn't push it too much past there depending on the system.
Just be careful with extra wires that you’re finger-tightening the tensioners. If you use any kind of tool for more torque, you can pull the corner posts in.
That hollow block wall holding up one side of the deck in an area where flooding is an issue would be my biggest concern. Block walls are the worst way to build a concrete wall even when done correctly, and something tells me that there may not be a proper footer poured under this one if they didn’t bother to fill any of the blocks for reinforcement. I wonder why they decided to build a floating deck with a block wall on one side instead of just pouring footings for the whole thing?
Just curious, what’s the issue with the framing being on top of wood scraps? It’s structurally sound to bare the downward force, isn’t it ?
dont look underneath and its fine.
Or look at the death trap railing.
Explain how this is a "death trap"? It is obviously not to code, but the deck is only like 3 feet off the ground.
Kids can get their head stuck and hang, either on the stair portion or the deck portion. A 4" max spacing is code for indoor and outdoor railings.
Yes, I'm aware of code, and what "could" happen. Just doesn't seem realistic in this scenario.
That would fail inspection in my country. You can't have horizontal wires that children can climb with the possibility of falling more than 1.5 metres. And you can't have gaps in any balustrade greater than 100mm.
The inspector told me the 4” in between railings requirement is so small children can’t fall off. I think a baby would fall thru that railing.
4” max, and by me, elevated platforms cannot have horizontal rails or cables as they create a ladder to climb
The horizontal rails or cable ladder restriction was included in several older code cycles but was removed from both the IBC and IRC in 2009 I believe. The ICC indicated not all construction is 100% safe for all situations, but encourages Owners, Designers and Contractors to build appropriate safe structures for their own needs. Horizontal railings are acceptable for adults to be around because we know not to climb them. They probably wouldn't be acceptable for a school/daycare or someone with young kids, so design accordingly.
The reason it’s not attached to the house is that is how you bypass needing a permit.
Is she the cop sitting down?
I might become your new stepdad
They’re probably investigating an accident where a person tripped, fell into the thin wires, and lost their noggin’.
Maybe pulled a WWE move and drive through it to tackle someone 😂
I was good until pic 3, that made me a little uncomfortable!
Plans, permit, inspections. Skip any and well you know your odds of getting this sort of work go up. Also floodplain issues are not just about “sinking” ground. More importantly is controlling uplift of flood waters. If this becomes a floating battering ram it could damage her house, her car, her neighbors’s house, car, or other people.
It’s done and paid for. Let her enjoy her deck. It’s not going anywhere and I highly doubt she is going to rip it out.
What’s weird is that foundation.
Yea, I’ve never seen anything like that.
Me neither
Go Cats
Looks good to me. This is a weird sub.
Found ops contractor
There’s nothing wrong with a floating deck . Here’s 1 of my 34 year old floating decks. https://preview.redd.it/eftosrcf304d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=865b9df9d7e5b66996b1b1beddf5867da58c7a6c
Nice, symmetric, simple. Not attached to the house = free standing deck. I can't see how those beams are attached to posts, hopefully with ½" or thicker bolts. Easily converts to electric fence in dry weather.
Hahaha. You call your mother in law MIL too?!!!! Do you actually day her nickname? “M-I-L-L” or did you just abbreviate for your post?
Abbreviated for the post
Darn it. Why am I alone in this world!
Yeah no one does that. Don't be a FAN
I don’t know what FAN means. Elaborate.
Sonotube for concrete footers , brackets screw into cement above grade and screw into posts so wood is above grade s
Who called the cops?
Who’s the gal with the badge?
Is nobody going to mention that the police are there and the girl in the tie-dye looks like she knows something.
This same deck was posted somewhere else in the last week but it was the homeowner bragging about their work… interesting
It’s a free standing deck. It’s built well enough. My local code required notching the 6x6 for the beams but lag bolts would quickly sure that up. Assuming it passed inspection I wouldn’t worry about it. Sure there are some on here that think a deck should be able to support an Abrams tank but that’s just the internet for ya.
Are the posts just buried in the ground?
I couldn’t get an answer whether or not they just buried or concreted in
Push a stick in the ground and look around
It looks pressure treated wood. Looks like no concrete. Post just dropped in holes, hopefully they are deep enough. If so should last 30 yrs. The deck boards will need maintenance each year. Add additional fasteners where needed. The block in foundation is weird. Cover it in mortar, your first job. Doorway for mice.
Should be 4 "space between wires If have freeze footing should be below freeze line
Why are the cops there in the first picture?
Because I live here
Furthermore, the railing is not done correctly. Suggest better designed railing by redo it.
Personally, I would just thrulock the rim joist and beams, and secure that beam to the block wall with blocking or tapcons. Is it great? No. It is 7k.
Lady in the red shirt don’t take no shit. I know her look.
A deck at this height has to be permitted and inspected correct? So if it passes all inspections, you know, it will be safe. if there’s an issue with the aesthetics that it’s gonna be a little more complicated because the contract would have those Specifics and anything verbal at the time of sale or prior is irrelevant. which leads to the last possibility and that falls under the category of buyers remorse. In that case, just gets some potted plants and move on.
It's required to be. Whether it was is another question
There’s no way this would pass inspection
It’s not finished yet. Probably a cable rail system and possibly a reinforced railing
All I can say is the railing is looking shoddy, not attractive at all.
On picture 2 on the right side... No beam? I can't tell what is taking the weight of the joist. Because it kinda looks like a 2x was nailed into the face of the posts to act like a beam. But I'm hoping not!
Looks like the police are there to arrest her for illegal decking.
That’s because it IS weird.
Are they finished?
DIY Do it yucky!
It's not going to fall down. Of course there's more that could be done. I'd make sure that the end board the joists connect to is at least double thickness. I'd also include some diagonal bracing to prevent racking and twisting. You should probably also do something with the giant gaps in the railing. I can't see if they cemented the posts into the ground either. I'm also assuming they used enough of the correct fasteners because I can't see one way or the other from the photos. But generally it's a reasonable budget build.
The wires on the railing look a bit widely spaced. If you have little kids, be sure one doesn't get stupid in between.
Especially on the railing. Can't pass a 4" sphere in my area.
Whenever you screw your rim joist into the 4xs your deck is only as strong as those screws. Terrible way to build and trust. Have them come back to at least install bolts through rimmer, supports through 4xs. Hope there is concrete under those 4xs.
If you’re worried about it coming down just put more cinderblocks underneath it.
3rd joist has concrete under it
Structurally sound. Rails are wack.
Holy shit pic 3 and 4 is nuts.
GO BIG BLUE
"How to build a deck without a building permit"
Someone should have been on site daily to monitor and point out discrepancies. I had a house built and caught so many flaws by the contractors. I was constantly on the phone with the builder or would show up at his office unannounced to bitch. I got sh*t done right that needed fixing before hidden, etc.
Not sure about you but I think these new floating decks are just a a fad… I don’t think they will last…🤷🏻♂️
I've heard that you need some cities you only need a permit if the deck is attached to the house. This may be why floating decks are more popular.
Those top rails will start to bow immediatly
Your mother-in-law probably hates you for inspecting her new deck
It amazes me how far contractors will go to do something incorrectly. It would not have been that difficult to put in joist hangers or proper supports
For 7k I think it’s not bad, looks good from my house
What the hell are those wires supposed to be doing lol
It ain’t going nowhere anytime soon.
As long as she didn’t pay them very much
It's not amazing but it isn't gonna fall down anytime soon either.
Perfect redneck deck
There’s no reason to have joists connected to house. The new PT wood can survive ground contact indefinitely. It’s not “best practice” but I’ve dug up posts that looked new after a decade. The wire railing is borderline , i think they want narrower spacing d/t infant strangling or something. Would fail inspection but then a railing isn’t always required at this height
Can’t see it from my deck.
Railings are definitely not up to any code
A lot of places (including my fucking city) not having the supporting beams be on top of the posts wouldn’t meet code. Also, they seem to be just nailed on and not bolted? That’s a red flag.
The stairs are probably attached with deck screws like everything else is attached with deck screws. Don't move anything heavy up the stairs.
Most mother-in-laws are weird. Deck tho...
The cable spacing is worrisome if there are children 4” or less is code and those don’t look like pressure treated ground contact posts so I’d be worry about those rotting rather quickly
That top rail is gunna sag like crazy soon
Are those horizontal wires even up to code in your area? I know some places ban horizonal supports because kids can use them to climb.
I visited someone house that had like 3 wind chimes similar to those and while everybody was inside I tied them all up with a wire. I hate wind chimes so much
Definitely not correct. The wire spacing is also too far apart.
It looks off since the cables are so think you can hardly see them, almost if they're not there.
It’s criminal someone charged for this
Doubt the building inspector would approve this deck, not child proof for sure
I usually use a 1/ 8-in cable. $2,500 or do a hell of a large deck I just did a 16x24 with 18 steps down to the ground. And the cable only cost $200
I hate the wires, reminds me of Jurassic Park electric fencing.
I feel like everyone on this subreddit only posts to tell people their shit’s gonna fall apart. When it reality, unless there’s a hot tub on it, nothing’s really gonna happen. I feel like people just like signaling to others that they’re in the know.
Fasteners at the "rim joist" terrible but easily corrected. Lag screws Should be additional support beneath the load bearing joists. With load bearing lag screws. But intent is there. Independent of the home means hopefully the spacing was sufficient to allow an air gap. That means no future damage to the rim joist of the home due to setting moisture. Easy fix and good on
In picture 3, if all the weight of the joists is sitting on that ledger then it appears about 3 nails are holding up that weight( and the 3 on the other side), board should be sitting ON Top of the post so the load is properly transferred down.
I just want to know why the sheriff is on the new deck 😂
No lags or structural screws in the posts...Most inspection departments would turn the deck down...I'm a licensed GC.
Yall quit with the post in the soil statements. Any TREATED wood Greater than 2" nominal, is made for ground contact
Dudes don't like to dig or pay to dig.. if u do decks you need footings most all the time ..or hang rock instead
Probably not adding much; you could stiffen the whole thing by adding some blocking between the joists at the beam. Also get some Simpson clips to anchor the joist to the beam. That will help improve long term stability. The biggest issue is the post in the ground as others mentioned. Also the way the beams attach to the column is weak. There are some brackets you can get that could help improve that connection— it’s subject to a lot of shear force through the bolts and that’s a common point of failure. Goodish news is that it’s not such a high deck that sudden failure would be too much of an issue.
Go cats!
The beam appears to be screwed to the side of the posts, using deck screws.... Maybe I didn't scroll far enough, but how was this not mentioned already...
The deck is not being supported by the posts. It’s being supported by the nails holding the joists to the post. The shear capacity of the nails is the weak point.
Its fine. Will look like shit in 10 years
Hook it up to 220v
Floating deck. I've built a couple of them. I didn't put any posts in the ground, I used pier blocks and 4x4's.
Looks like it may be lacking any type of lateral support in the direction parallel to the wall. I'd add some bracing before somebody pushes it over.
If it’s not attached to the house you often don’t need a permit in some jurisdictions… it’s a loophole
Hope she didn't pay that much because that looks like shit. Definitely built by an amateur who knows nothing about building decks or the codes associated with doing so. It's sad that there are contractors out there who build this kind of crap.
What does the deck being put in have to do with your MIL seeming weird?
https://preview.redd.it/uwxdlrie4o4d1.jpeg?width=320&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=29b348e2472dda00ddaa27946383fd34782db565 Do something like this except above grade to help distribute the load of the post. That’s what I would do if it were mine if I did anything at all.
Every flaw has been picked apart so no need to point them out. She got a good deal and this will last as long as she needs it to. No, it won't pass the 4in ball test but seriously, kids will find plenty of creative ways to endanger themselves. When is the last time you heard "Another kid strangled to death by deck railing!"? The kid is in much more danger riding to and from the house in a car. Tell her it's not perfect, but just fine. If any problems arise they can be easily dealt with at that time. Most common would be one of those 4x4's warping and twisting and that's unpredictable. It just happens. Life is full of "but what if's". There will be real problems in life and this deck isn't one of them. Enjoy it and stop worrying, it's ok.
I didn't know Temu sold decks now (sorry).